UPDATE FOR SERVICE PROVIDERS: CLBC is directing “if a person can be properly supported, the safest place to be is at home. CLBC is asking all service providers to identify who can be supported in their homes until this crisis has passed. In this case, this may mean in their group home, home sharing or family setting.” Please make this happen on Monday and thank you CLBC. Full text here: https://mailchi.mp/…/adjusting-services-to-keep-people-safe…
Over the weekend, 1000s of people with intellectual disabilities who attend community inclusion day services from Monday to Friday are at home. This could be with their families, with their home share providers, at their own staffed home, or in their own apartment where they receive some support. Come Monday, they need to stay at home. If they can stay home for two days, then they must stay home for longer during this crisis. And they will need to stay in that home with the least amount of contact possible with other people for the next six weeks, and likely longer. This is what health officers are telling the general population and we need to shift our systems to make this happen for people with intellectual disabilities as well. I realize that this will cause hardships to family members, home share providers, and staff who work in group homes (although it has been my experience these past few days that all those people are very supportive of a plan that keeps their loved one and themselves as safe as possible at home). I am convinced that those hardships will pale in comparison to the hardships that will come if people do not stay home this Monday. If people have a safe home, which 95% of people with intellectual disabilities do, they need to hunker down and stay there. We have two days to save lives by shifting current government policy around people with intellectual disabilities who have homes that are safe in their communities < see update above >. Our system must shift from supporting people with intellectual disabilities in community inclusion day services to supporting people to stay home. It’s a human rights issue. Please share this widely this weekend so that this change is made. #DisabilityRights #StayHome #StayHomeStaySafe
Doug Tennant
Chief Executive Officer
778-994-6757