Planning Ahead

September 24, 2007 the Eastern Los Angeles Regional Center Vendor Advisory Committee sponsored a training on planning and supporting individuals with planning ahead and end of life wishes.

This one-day overview provided an introduction on how to establish communication of end of life wishes for people with developmental disabilities.
We learned about:
Ø Why we need to have this conversation
Ø What role person-centered planning has in this topic
Ø The difference between competency and capacity
Ø Help people look at learning from their efforts and focusing on improving the future.
Ø Decision making ability of people with developmental disabilities in health care decisions
Ø The difference between a living will and an advanced directive and when they are needed
Ø Health care powers of attorney
Ø The role providers and staff play in end of life situations

Ø How to talk with someone you support about end of life
Ø The grieving process of people with developmental disabilities
Ø What to do when you are faced with this situation
And lots more . . .

Leigh Ann Kingsbury has been working in the field of developmental disabilities for almost 30 years; starting her career as a summer camp counselor in the late 70’s. Since that time, she has worked for several non-profit agencies and several states, helping people with disabilities leave institutional settings, return to their communities, and establish the lives they want. She founded a small supported living agency in Wilmington North Carolina and has worked on several systems change projects in North Carolina and other states, including projects that support people with psychiatric disabilities. She is the former director of the NC Person-Centered Planning Initiative.
Currently Leigh Ann is the lead consultant on an End of Life project in Washington, DC, and in Toronto, Canada. She is also the Regional Director of Arc Services, Inc. in New Bern, NC. She is consulting in several other states on person-centered planning and/or communication of end of life wishes. She is an Essential Lifestyle Planning Mentor Trainer, a PATH trainer and a Respecting Choices End of Life Planning Facilitator.
Leigh Ann holds a Bachelor’s degree in Therapeutic Recreation from the University of Maryland, and Master of Public Administration and Graduate Certificate in Gerontology from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.



After a morning of understanding all the legal terms associated with planning ahead we spent the afternoon practicing real life scenarios in small groups. We then discussed all the options collectively with all who attended to learn from each other. We would like to thank Leigh Ann for all of her insights and experience and look forward to future learning in the area of supporting individuals and families to bring planning full circle and create a end of life that one desires.

I would like to thank all of the agencies that attended and hope that we can all share our learning to others and continue to provide and share resources in the areas of end of life.