Admissions Process and Criteria
Adults are generally referred to our services by Community Living British Columbia (CLBC) and meet their criteria for eligibility:
- Onset of disability before age 18
- Measured significant limitations in two or more adaptive skill areas
- Measured intellectual functioning of approximately 70 or below
- New CLBC admissions criteria includes the Autism Spectrum ( ie: Asperger Syndrome, Angelman Syndrome, etc)
Future Focus Program Services serves people regardless of race, ancestry, political belief, religion, marital status, age, physical or mental disability, marital status, socio-economic status, political affiliation, gender, sexual orientation or criminal or summary conviction with the primary consideration being the ability to meet the needs of the person and the best fit with the other people within the home or program.
Services center on individual needs and encompass social, physical, spiritual, cultural and psychological aspects of each individual. We aim at supporting people to maintain positive contact, involvement and participation with their family, community and culture.
Referral Process for Homes & Day Programs
CLBC is informed of openings or potential openings as soon as possible.
CLBC also refers potential people for service. With individualized funding, people may apply for service directly. Decisions about acceptance into the homes/program operated by Future Focus Program Services are joint decisions among the person requesting service, CLBC, Future Focus Program Services administration and the program supervisor. The supervisors and the staff members of the home/program are most aware of the needs of the existing people being supported and best able to determine the fit of a potential new person.
For homes and day program places, people with the most urgent need for placement, as determined by CLBC, will be considered first. Only after the person with the greatest need is deemed to be an unsuitable match will the next person be considered. If all candidates on the short list have the same degree of urgency, consideration will be given to the best fit based on personality, temperament, and match with the other people in the home. A guiding principle is that only people who can be accommodated in a safe and secure fashion with the resources available will be considered. This may require negotiations with CLBC based on the individual needs of the person entering the home/program.
Once a referral has been made, we arrange to start what we call the intake process. This includes:
- Meeting with family member (s) to explain Future Focus services, policies and entrance criteria; providing information about Future Focus.
- Gathering information about the individual’s physical and support needs;
- Discussing what services and resources the individual needs, and whether Future Focus can meet the needs;
- Providing a tour of the home/program, if applicable;
- Completing an application/intake form;
- Completing parts of the care plan; and
- Completing relevant consent forms.
After this, we determine whether we can provide what the individual needs and wants, and whether the support we have to offer is suitable. The individual also decides whether to accept the services. This is a joint decision making process involving the individual and Future Focus as well as family and other support network members.