Released on April 17, 2014
Progress is being made on individual planning for each of the 187 people living at Moose Jaw’s Valley View Centre - the first step in transitioning them to new homes in the community.“I am very pleased to report that 163 meetings with residents, their families and supporters have been held or are being scheduled to determine each individual’s needs and begin planning for appropriate services in the community,” Social Services Minister June Draude said. “This is a critical step in ensuring a successful transition for people living at Valley View, and we want to get it right.”
Planning Alternatives for Tomorrow with Hope, or PATH, meetings are the first step in the person-centred planning process. To date, 112 PATH meetings have been completed. Each meeting takes two to three hours and involves planning with families who live throughout Saskatchewan or other parts of Canada along with advocates from Saskatchewan Association for Community Living. Each PATH meeting is preceded by extensive information-gathering, analysis and assessment of the individual’s medical, behavioural and personal support needs. So far, Valley View staff and social workers have devoted more than 2,000 hours to the PATH process.
As caseworkers continue the PATH meetings, they are also planning for new homes and resources, whether that involves existing services or the development of new initiatives to meet the unique needs of each individual.
To gather ideas on how to best serve individuals with intellectual disabilities within the community, including those living at Valley View Centre, the Ministry of Social Services issued a Request for Information (RFI) in January 2014. Public information sessions were held in January and February in Moose Jaw, Regina, Prince Albert and Saskatoon, attended by more than 200 members of the public, families and existing and potential service providers. A number of submissions have been received or are in progress. The closing date for the RFI is April 25. More information is available at https://sasktenders.ca.
“While we are planning for each person living at Valley View, we are also moving forward on expanding the ‘safety net’ of supports and services that are available for people with intellectual disabilities – one of the key recommendations of the Transition Steering Committee,” Draude said. “This is all part of the made-in-Saskatchewan approach to creating new homes for people living at Valley View, and to making our province the best place in Canada to live for people with disabilities.”
More information is available on the website at http://socialservices.gov.sk.ca/Transition-from-Valley-View.
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For more information, contact:
Trish Alcorn
Social Services
Regina
Phone: 306-787-0916
Email: trish.alcorn@gov.sk.ca
Cell: 306-536-1479