If you’ve ever thought about placing your child or loved-one who is intellectually or developmentally challenged into a group home, then you’ve surely asked yourself a variety of questions. Am I doing the right thing? Will my child be OK? How do I know when I’ve found “THE” home? How do I even start this process? Here at D&S, we have an in-house team of Board Certified Behavior Analysts (BCBA’s). They’ve put together this very helpful list of questions you may want to consider asking potential group home providers.
• Is the home clean and maintained?
• Will there be enough room for your loved one?
• Are the grounds maintained?
• Is the home accessible?
• Are pets allowed?
• If other residents are in the home, are they clean, do they seem happy?
• How are “house rules” determined?
• Are the staff friendly? Do they seem knowledgeable?
• What kind of training do the staff receive?
• Do you have written policies? What are they? Which ones can I have a copy of?
• What are the staff and house manager turnover like? What is case manager turnover like?
• What kind of oversight is provided, and who is accountable to whom?
• Is there a grievance process? What is it?
• I have been told that as people with Downs Syndrome get older, they can get dementia. Does this provider understand how to address dementia?
• How can other clinical services be accessed? What is that process?
• If my loved one’s needs change, how do I make sure that they are met?
• How would you plan to transition my child from school and/or my home to a group home?
• Do you offer work activities or day programming? How do you determine which one is the most beneficial? What if I want to switch?
• What training on your loved-ones diagnosis do the staff receive? How often do they receive training?
• How are daily routines determined? How do you work in my child’s routines or preferences?
• What kind of life skills or other training can you offer? How are these skills taught, and who teaches them?
• What other kinds of supports do you offer or can we access? How do we access other services?
If you would like to find out more about the group home D&S Community Services offer throughout Texas, Tennessee, and Kentucky, please contact us here!
