Supporting Self-Determination, Independence, and Freedom
Defining Universal Assistive Technology – It is applicable to all people and useful across all the populations. It includes both the hardware and the software. It is expertly, verifiable, and highly configurable, and includes both the person supportive tools, as well as the peripheral processes that oversee the important agreed on aspects of individual’s safety and healthy functioning.
The current foundation is all the personal technology available to the population, such as smart phones, iPads, laptops, smart-watch devices, trackers, language translators [including sign-language], specialized assistive tools, etc. – this tech is evolving rapidly. Our approach would be to leverage what exists, define what is missing, and as a part of Phase 2 – to design, develop, and test the next iteration of these tools.
Use of Smart Assistive Technology is instrumental for the success of our undertaking. The technology is currently at a point where what we need is highly feasible – some of technology is already available and can be easily adapted and integrated into the cost effective, verifiable, and incorruptible tools leveraging the Transformation and Emancipation of Autistic people.
Below we outline some of the Requirements for the Supportive Smart Assistive Tech for Phase 2 of Self-Determination Program.
Transition to adulthood – a set of personal and monitoring tools to support and oversee various stages of creating and managing the budget –
A. Assessment of Needs – software that simplifies and manages the process of assessment of needs
B. Budget Control – software to track and control monthly budget provided by the State deposited to individual’s account on monthly bases.
C. Account Access – The account shall be accessed by a smart debit card [powered by highly configurable software to assist in prudent categorized spending, with checks and balances, etc.] The account would allow the individual to make payments both to vendors as well as to support individuals [including qualified tax exempt individuals], both contractual as well as ad-hoc. Furthermore the account would allow person to save when and where they can and may, and use these savings as they may choose.
D. Special Provisions – There should be provision for special purchases and unexpected expenditures; some of these services [like doctor visits] may use reimbursement approach by the service or the individual.
E. Supplemental funds – The current use of Special needs private trusts shall continue and the smart debit card may be extended to handle multiple assets and accounts.
F. Exemptions – person to person supports including exempted from taxation [subject to transactional and cumulative checks] supported via same smart card, with checks and balances.
Transition to Self-Determination in Group homes and Institutions – supporting all the aspects of gradual personal empowerment.
This basically consists of two parts – Personal private apps that support all the essential functions of personal empowerment, while ensuring that a person in use is doing it freely and unimpeded. One of these tools
may be referred to as Correspondent; this app is person’s connection to a friend, and to all who form their personal circle of supported self-determination. The other tool is the Navigator – that would help person when venturing outside. each of these tools adapted to specific needs and circumstances of the person to maximize their comfortable and efficient use. The second part comprising the solution is all the Peripheral hardware and software that would be developed to ensure the safety, good experience, and contingences. Below is a list of funcions to be supported by these tools:
A. Communication – all inmates must be empowered to communicate with an outside world at any time without restriction. The unrestricted private use of personal communication devices [smart phones and other] by an individual shall be implemented without exceptions in every institution, group home, as well as in private residences. Training including the use of social platforms shall be done non-intrusively following a facilitated self-directed approach utilizing the teaching capacity of Assistive Technology[grant by State] as a tool for learning; validation of unrestricted personal and private use and non-interference shall be carried out by the smart technology [grant by State].
Visitation – all inmates shall have a right to receive visitors during daily hours; Inmates may schedule visits according to their preferences but visitation process shall also allow shorter visits from unchosen parties in a fair manner [suggesting a queue maintained and scheduled by AT apps]. Visitation should also allow for ad-hoc visits. The number of visitors and visiting hours per day may be subject to house rules to avoid overcrowding and not to be interfering with specific scheduled events.
B. New relationships – Creation of new relationships including with possible future supports is essential element in person’s path to self-determination. This process shall be encouraged and there should be scheduled [by the individual]. The process should be non-discriminatory and fair, allowing the individual and an applicant to have time in comfortable settings both indoors and outdoors. The applicants would be subject to ID and criminal verification.
C. Going Out with a friend– Going out is a gradual process that shall begin with the inmate being Taken Out by an outside visiting person – inmates may be “taken out” by pre-approved individuals; the approval shall be anchored around the approval of the inmate; the approval process should be non-prohibitive for a verified visitor but may require an orientation instruction by the staff.
C. Going Out on your own – this would be a process initiated on inmate’s request [readily available to each inmate and recorded automatically] – intitially it may be to a specified already established comfort destination. The approval would involve a joint decission by the Resident Governing Body. Tracking and monitoring of the route, as well as access to backup for assistance – would be required initially. Refusals of person’s requests would be subject to watchdog oversight, and arbitration.
D. Drug policy – drugging of inmates for the purposes of control must be eradicated. This would require independent review, inspections by the watchdog organizations, RGBs involvement, and a policy of misconduct oversight and enforcement.
E. Resident Governing Body [RGB] – Watchdog disability organizations [such as: Alliance of Citizen Directed Supports, ASAN, TASH, Divergent Labs, …] and National Councils of Disability shall be empowered and funded to take on joint responsibility to assist in creation and support of Resident Governing Bodies [RGBs] in institutions and housing of all kinds; such governing bodies shall be elected democratically by the inmates and from the inmate ranks; RGBs would be empowered in joint decisions regarding certain areas of administration, including the selection of staff, household rules, visitations, going out, and other.
F. Grievances – A confidential [AT assisted] access allowing inmates to submit personal grievances and complaints to statewide Grievance Processing Authority should be established and shall afford them due and diligent process. Submission of the grievances shall be made available from a personal communication device and shall be confidential as well as all subsequent communications; all the aspects of this process should be safeguarded by well designed AT software
Self-Determination for Children – Raising Autistic Child
We should concentrate on transforming education paradigm from within by creation of educational software exploring various avenues that promote learning and making this software highly adaptive and configurable to specific learning styles. This is a next stage of educational tools that would allow a high degree of personalization, self-direction, and facilitation.
Self-Determination – Miscellaneous Supports
Miscellaneous supports on demand, like transportation, help with a specific task right in the moment, mediating phone calls, and just about anything. As an example just like Uber matches a massive pool of drivers with riders with only minutes of delay much of the time, some similar app could match a pool of people who need specific things with people willing to do those things quickly.
This would work well for a lot of autistic people who for example under a current system get 10 hours of scheduled staff time in a week and would be much better served by instantaneous universal help, while the staff time is minimized and accounted for.