Working with your SDM Team
Working with your SDM Team
Working with your SDM Team
RESOURCE TYPE
Information | Guide | Tool/form
LANGUAGE
English
AUDIENCE
Caregivers | Individuals with disabilities | Advocates | Family members
Resource Description
Introduction: This document explains how people with disabilities can use Supported Decision Making (SDM) to make their own choices with help from others. It was created in 2020 by groups in Virginia that help people with disabilities. The goal is to show how SDM can give people more control over their lives instead of having a guardian make all their choices.
Resource Summary
Content Summary: SDM means getting help from people you trust to make your own choices. This is how most people make big choices - they talk to others and get advice. With SDM, you pick trusted people who can give you info and help you think through options. These helpers are called your support team. You get to choose who is on your team. You might want just one or two people, or you might want more. Team members can be family, friends, staff who help you, or others you trust. It's good to pick people who know about different things, like money, health care, or planning for the future. Your team can change over time as your needs change. Your team should talk to each other and meet sometimes to stay up to date on your life. Team members might not always agree with each other about what's best. This can be good because it helps you see different views. But the most important thing is that they listen to you and respect that you get to make the final choice. Sometimes you might want to make a choice that your team thinks is not good. This is called "dignity of risk." It means you have the right to make some bad choices and learn from them. Your team should still be there to help if things don't work out well. If someone on your team isn't helping well or doesn't respect your choices, you can change your team. Just thank them for their help and let them know you want to find someone else. Then you can look for a new team member. The document ends with a list of places to learn more about SDM. These include websites, videos, and tools to help you start using SDM. There are also places to get free legal help with papers like Power of Attorney forms. SDM can help people with disabilities have more control over their lives. Studies show that when people make more of their own choices, they often get better jobs, live more on their own, and stay safer. The main point is to help people with disabilities be in charge of their own lives as much as they can.