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| | ==Josh pages== |
| | * '''[[/getting services]]''': the multi-year story of our attempts to get supportive services for Josh |
| | * '''[[/Medicaid]]''': log of what it took to get that for him |
| | * [[/facts]]: things we've learned about Josh |
| | * [[/log]]: a record of Josh-related events in 2007-2009 |
| | * [[/meds]] (outdated): in January 2013, RHA started Josh on a mild regimen of something, to help him sleep; up until then, he had never been on meds steadily |
| | * [[/paperwork]] |
| | * [[/video]]: the good, the bad, and the ugly |
| | * [[:Category:Josh|Josh category]] with a few additional things in it (photos etc.) |
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| ==Overview== | | ==Overview== |
| [[Image:Josh Halloween 2006.jpg|thumb|right|Yarrrrrr! <br> Tis the Dread Pirate Josh!]] | | [[File:2009-07-18 Josh 2.jpg|thumb|right|Josh at the NC Museum of Life and Science, July 2009]] |
| Josh (born 1992-12-12) is the oldest of [[User:Harena|Sandy]]'s non-adult children. He is [[htyp:autism|autistic]], and currently does not use verbal communication (except apparently at school, where he is usually able to write and speak mostly-rote responses on request). | | Josh (born 1992-12-12) is [[User:Harena|Sandy]]'s second-oldest. He is [[htyp:autism|autistic]]. He is generally unable to communicate, even using hand-gestures (pointing, touching object, holding up object). |
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| Josh is unusually interactive for an autistic person; he smiles, gives eye contact, laughs, and plays possum sometimes when he knows he has to do something but doesn't want to; his main issue seems to be with communication. On a good day, he will hover outside the office door if he wants something; on a bad day, he will whack [[Benjy]] so Benjy will start crying and alert us that something needs attention, at which point we may notice that Josh is out of juice, hasn't been fed, or some other obvious problem – or it may be completely mysterious. We are trying to discourage the hitting pattern, but you can't lecture Josh and he doesn't seem to understand punishment; the best response seems to be to speak soothingly and help him to calm down, and if possible divert him with something interesting to him.
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| * [[Josh facts]]: things we've learned about Josh
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| * [[Josh Medicaid]]: a minor hitch, we hope
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| * [[Josh and The System]]: the ongoing story of our attempts to get supportive services for Josh
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| * [[Josh release form]]: permission for various entities to discuss Josh's case with each other
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| * [[:Category:Josh|Josh category]] with a few things in it
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| * [[Josh details for sitters|Josh information for care providers (sitters)]]
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| * '''2008-01-31''' [http://hypertwins.org/files/wiki/2008-01-31_Josh_IEP_draft_jpeg.pdf Josh's IEP at Jordan] (draft) - PDF, 7 pages, ~3.5 MB
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| ==Needs==
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| ===Living Situation===
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| ''as of 2007-12-27''
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| We are currently seeking a group home for Josh. We have an application in with [http://www.ghainc.org/ GHA] in Albemarle, NC (they are supposed to get back with us probably in January about whether he qualifies) and are currently working on an application for an opening in Carrboro (much closer to home) which sounds overall about as good. (My extended answers for the application to the Carrboro place are [[Josh Gaitway application extended answers|here]].)
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| ====why away from home?====
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| Josh's brothers ([[Benjamin]] and [[Zander]]) need their home to be free of the randomly (though not maliciously) destructive presence of an older brother who, though physically adult-size, cannot dependably be communicated with and does not respect others' property. They need to be able to leave a favorite book on a table without worrying that Josh will see a small tear in one page and feel compelled to tug at it (and then the next, and the next), until the entire book is in shreds. They need to be able to be at home without worrying that Josh will suddenly get in a bad mood and start hitting them.
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| We, the adults in the house ([[User:Harena|Sandy]], [[User:Woozle|Nick]], and Sandy's eldest son [[Mel]]), need to be free of having to monitor Josh constantly throughout the day whenever he is home -- to keep his juice cup filled, to make sure he isn't hurting someone, to make sure he isn't carelessly destroying something. We need to not have to worry that any loud noises or yelling are the results of Josh beating up the other two.
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| ====why a group home?====
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| Josh needs an environment which is less chaotic -- more predictable and less [[Why Harena and Woozle Need More Room|crowded]] -- than his current home. He needs to be in the care of people who have training in dealing with the daily-life issues which are involved when caring for someone with autism, and who have the energy and focus to apply that training appropriately for Josh's needs.
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| ====what sort of group home?====
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| A quality group home in a non-urban setting with a small number of residents per unit would be best for Josh; he does best when he has enough space and not too many people around him. He might do especially well in a farm setting, where simple tasks requiring physical strength may be something which he would enjoy being involved with. (He ''might'' also do fine in an urban setting, but he would need to be watched carefully for signs of being disturbed by crowding, city noises, or claustrophobia. Either way, keeping him busy with mentally- and physically-engaging activities is crucial.)
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| ===Life Skills===
| | He is very healthy, though, and quite clever, dextrous, and strong. Given all that, he has always been a little difficult to control -- but he was generally happy as a child, so it wasn't as much of a problem. |
| The most important life-skill Josh could use at this point would be some way to indicate what he wants. His current methods of indicating that he wants something include:
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| * "hovering" around the office (to get our attention)
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| * whacking one or both of his brothers (so someone will get up and notice that his juice is empty, or other things; sometimes we can't figure it out)
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| * random vocalizations (we encourage this one over the others, as it is more communicative in nature)
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| There are a variety of methods Josh could use to indicate what he needs without having to use verbalizations (e.g. pointing, or taking someone by the shoulder and leading them); he seems unable to do any of them, though perhaps training could help with this. At school and other places, he often is given picture-cards as a way of informing him of the day's schedule; I don't know if anyone has made a serious effort to get Josh to indicate choices using similar cards. ('''2006-06-25 Update''': Yes. Read [[2000-05-26 note about Josh|this]].)
| | ''This part needs updating:''<blockquote>Since hitting adolescence in 2007 or so he has gotten much bigger and stronger; he is now larger than Sandy, and able to resist all but the most strenuous and determined efforts to force him physically.</blockquote> |
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| Completing his toilet-training would also be very helpful. He seems to have grasped the concept of wiping, and all that remains is some consistency in monitoring him when he is attempting it, and trying to get him to do it each time.
| | Josh is also unusually interactive for an autistic person; he smiles, gives eye contact, laughs, and plays possum sometimes when he knows he has to do something but doesn't want to; his main issue seems to be with communication. |
| ==Notes==
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| Josh sometimes displays surprising skills and awareness. Just now (2008-01-20) he accidentally knocked over a box of (plastic) Christmas ornaments – and then spontaneously started picking them up and putting them back in the box. He did it very efficiently and thoroughly, even spotting an extra hook on the ground. After that, he apparently started pulling ornaments off the tree and putting them away too, so we had to hide the box... but now we know that he'd probably enjoy helping with that task when we're ready for it.
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| Later that day, after we made him come in from a walk (in the freezing cold) that wasn't as long as he wanted, he attacked the kids and [[Woozle|me]] -- punching me in the shoulder and slapping me in the face.
| | Josh has been happily living in a group home run by [[htyp:RHA Howell|RHA Howell]] since late Feburary, 2011. The story of everything leading up to that is [[/getting services|here]]. |
| | ===notes=== |
| | * Need to reorganize the [[/facts]], [[/behavior|behavior]], and [[/group home|group home]] pages; some overlap and some missing areas. |
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| ==Links of Convenience== | | ==Status== |
| * [http://www.dhhs.state.nc.us/dma/formsmedapp.html Medicaid and Health Choice Applications]
| | <!-- ===blog entries about Josh=== |
| * [https://www.ci.durham.nc.us/departments/parks/after_school.cfm#3 After School program] | | {{report/blog}} --> |
| * [[The Arc of Durham]]: respite care | | ===Schools/Residential=== |
| * [[The Arc of North Carolina]] | | * '''2006-2007''' Githens |
| * [[htyp:The Durham Center|The Durham Center]] | | * '''2007-2008''' [[Jordan High School]] |
| * [http://www.sonc.net/localprograms/detail.asp?event_id=173 local Special Olympics schedule] | | * '''2008-2009''' Jordan |
| * [http://ssa.gov/pubs/10026.html Benefits For Children With Disabilities] (Social Security Administration): can't get anything if you've got over $2000 of liquifiable assets (e.g. savings, stocks); real-estate ownership doesn't count towards this total, but debt (e.g. credit cards) doesn't take away from it either. Josh will qualify when he turns 18, but Sandy doesn't qualify (too much in emergency savings) so Josh can't get benefits since he is in her care. (It's not clear what happens if he's declared incompetent as an adult, which I would think would have to happen; does he still fall under Sandy's financial "wing", then?) | | * '''2009-2010''' Jordan, then wouldn't go to school, then [[Hughes Center]] |
| | * '''2011''' left Hughes Center, moved to permanent home with [[RHA Howell]] |
| | ====Archives==== |
| | * [[/2010]] |
| | * [[/2009]] |
| | * [[/2008]] |
| | * [[/2007]] |
Josh pages
- /getting services: the multi-year story of our attempts to get supportive services for Josh
- /Medicaid: log of what it took to get that for him
- /facts: things we've learned about Josh
- /log: a record of Josh-related events in 2007-2009
- /meds (outdated): in January 2013, RHA started Josh on a mild regimen of something, to help him sleep; up until then, he had never been on meds steadily
- /paperwork
- /video: the good, the bad, and the ugly
- Josh category with a few additional things in it (photos etc.)
|
Overview
Josh at the NC Museum of Life and Science, July 2009
Josh (born 1992-12-12) is Sandy's second-oldest. He is autistic. He is generally unable to communicate, even using hand-gestures (pointing, touching object, holding up object).
He is very healthy, though, and quite clever, dextrous, and strong. Given all that, he has always been a little difficult to control -- but he was generally happy as a child, so it wasn't as much of a problem.
This part needs updating:
Since hitting adolescence in 2007 or so he has gotten much bigger and stronger; he is now larger than Sandy, and able to resist all but the most strenuous and determined efforts to force him physically.
Josh is also unusually interactive for an autistic person; he smiles, gives eye contact, laughs, and plays possum sometimes when he knows he has to do something but doesn't want to; his main issue seems to be with communication.
Josh has been happily living in a group home run by RHA Howell since late Feburary, 2011. The story of everything leading up to that is here.
notes
Status
Schools/Residential
Archives
