Q & A for People Who Get Brain Injury Program or Developmental Disability Services

BDAP stands for: Brain Injury and Developmental Disabilities Advocacy Project.

BDAP is a pilot program. A pilot program is a way for us to try something new to see if it is helpful.

BDAP has a Brain Injury and Developmental Disabilities Advocate. (The Advocate). She is here to help.

The advocate will:

• be person-centered.
• try to solve problems with services.
• help people understand their rights.
• visit people to make sure they have a safe home and quality services.
• investigate complaints.
• keep track of information to see if there are patterns of problems.
• make recommendations to improve the Brain Injury Program and Developmental Disabilities services.

During this pilot program, we are only working in Franklin and Grand Isle counties. If BDAP is helpful, we will try to get funding so we can work in all parts of Vermont.

BDAP does three main things:

1. monitoring visits
2. respond and investigate complaints, and
3. know-your-rights training.

Based on what we learn through these activities, BDAP may make recommendations to improve Brain Injury Program and Developmental Disabilities services.

BDAP visits people who receive either Brain Injury Program or Developmental Disabilities Services. These are called “monitoring visits.”

We visit you wherever you live, whether you live in a group home, with a shared living provider, with a family member, in a staffed home, or on your own.

• Visits let us get to know you.
• Visits give you a chance to share what you like and what you do not like about your home or services privately.
• Visits are a private way to ask for help. You can ask for help to solve problems. You can tell us if you have complaints about your home or services.
• Visits help us learn from you so we can work together to make recommendations that improve services for everyone.

You decided who will be at your visit. If you are not comfortable meeting with the advocate alone, that is okay. You can have another person you know and trust with you at the advocate’s visit. The visit is not private in that case.

Whether you meet privately or with other people, what you say is not shared by the advocate with your agency or anyone else without permission from you.

We would like to meet you in your home, but you may feel more comfortable talking to us somewhere else. We can meet you where you feel comfortable.

BDAP is an independent advocate for people who have problems with their Brain Injury Program or Developmental Disabilities Services.

When do I need an advocate?

You might want an advocate if you have problems with your home or your services.

Here are some examples of things other people have complained about:

• My home provider does not let me have the food I want to eat.
• I am not allowed to spend time with my friends.
• My case manager made a new ISA (Individual Support Agreement), but I did not get a say in my goals.
• Someone is hurting me.
• Someone is taking my money.
• I am not getting the help I want from my staff.
• I lost my job because I do not have staff.

Does an advocate tell my business to other people?

Your advocate keeps what you say private. Sometimes your advocate will ask your permission to share what you say. They ask to share to help you solve your problem.

How can an advocate help me?

• Your advocate can help you think about what would solve your problem.
• Your advocate can make calls or write letters to try to get the solution you want.
• Your advocate can go to meetings with you to ask for changes that would solve your problem. If your advocate thinks you have a legal problem, she can help connect you to a lawyer.

Can the advocate help me if I have a guardian?

Yes. The advocate can meet with you privately — without your guardian or anyone else there. The advocate’s job is to listen to what you want and try to solve your problem the way you want.

If you want the advocate to meet with you and your guardian (or another person who supports you), she can do that, too.

To talk to us at BDAP:

• call our toll-free phone number at 1-888-567-2327 (1-888-567-BDAP), or
• email us at bdap@vtlegalaid.org.

If you have a complaint to report:

• fill out this online complaint form
• email us at bdap@vtlegalaid.org, or
• call our toll-free phone number at 1-888-567-2327 (1-888-567-BDAP).

You can also ask a friend, support worker or guardian to call for you. If you ask someone to help contact us, we will need your permission to share information with them.

BDAP trains people to know your rights in getting Brain Injury Program or Developmental Services.

When you learn about the rules for your services, and your rights, you know what you can and cannot do. You know what your agency, your case manager, your staff, and your home provider have to do to help you.

Knowledge is power. Knowing your rights helps you be a better self-advocate.