Is the MDSOAB the same as the CAB?
Not exactly.
The Consumer Advisory Board (or CAB) existed from 1978 to 2010 as part of the Pineland and Community Consent Decrees. The CAB monitored the Department’s compliance with the Consent Decrees and reviewed rights violation reports involving Consent Decree Class Members (those who received services from Pineland on or before July 3, 1975).
The Maine Developmental Services Oversight and Advisory Board (MDSOAB) is the successor to the CAB. We focus on Department-supported services for all eligible adults with intellectual disabilities and autism, not only for former Class Members. We do not address individual rights violations; rather, we address the effects of the Department’s system on the lives of individuals who use their services.
What does the MDSOAB do?
The MDSOAB provides independent oversight of DHHS-funded programs and services for adults with intellectual disabilities or autism.
By “independent,” we mean that we are not connected directly to the Department or with any research, advocacy, provider, or other service agency.
The MDSOAB focuses on systemic concerns affecting the rights of persons eligible for Developmental Services on issues of
- health and safety,
- inclusion,
- identification and timely meeting of unmet needs, and
- effective and efficient delivery of services and supports.
By “systemic,” we mean policies and practices of the Department or provider agencies that affect group of individuals in the same or similar ways.
The MDSOAB also provides recommendations to the Commissioner, the Governor and the Legislature about policies, priorities, budgets and legislation affecting persons with intellectual disabilities or autism.
How does the Board provide oversight?
- We have several ways to collect information and oversee the work of DHHS Developmental Services:
- We receive data and reports from the Department on various topics. We analyze this information to find areas that need further exploration, or that are potential problems.
- Individual board members may attend different committee meetings throughout the state, and bring information back to the Board. They also may work on MDSOAB committees as needed.
- We use Information gathered from
- Public forums held throughout the state
- Self-advocates
- Advocacy organizations
- Other state organizations that receive data from DHHS
- Published research, or our own research about ways other states support people with disabilities
- We collect information from our website that you send – please let us know if you have experiences or concerns that can help us with our work!
Does the Board address individual rights violations or investigate consumer complaints?
Not directly.
While we are interested in individual experiences, the MDSOAB cannot address them. Instead, we can help you contact Disability Rights of Maine, Adult Protective Services, or other organization that has the power to investigate individual situations.
If you believe that your rights, or those of someone you know who is supported by DHHS services, have been violated, contact Disability Rights of Maine [link].
The MDSOAB does examine incident (and other) reports to look for regional or statewide patterns that might mean the support system is not working well. We also analyze proposed budgets, legislation, or policies to determine if there are big gaps in service availability or quality.
We also work with other organizations to hold Public Feedback Forums every year in different parts of the state, and with online surveys.
We share the information from these forums with DHHS and with its Commissioner, with the members of the Joint Committee on Health and Human Services (who have oversight of DHHS), with the Office of the Governor, and with the public. We also use this information to guide our work.
We are concerned with making the Developmental Services system work most effectively, efficiently, and respectfully.
Don’t other organizations already provide oversight of Developmental Services?
Other organizations do provide some oversight, but the MDSOAB is the ONLY organization whose entire focus is oversight of Developmental Services in Maine.
By “independent,” we mean that we are not employed by DHHS to monitor their work- we are volunteers who use OADS services and family members, allies, professionals, scholars, and service providers.
We also join forces with other organizations outside and within the Department to improve Maine’s services to adults with intellectual disabilities and autism.
Besides oversight, what else does the MDSOAB do?
There are other important functions done by the Board:
- We participate as the only members of the Regional Review Teams (RRTs) who are NOT Department staff. There is currently at least one RRT for each region of the state. Regional Review Teams review and approve (or reject) and monitor EVERY safety plan and behavior management plan implemented in the state. Other members are OADS representatives and DRM advocates, who do not vote- they help us understand the legal perspective.
- We support the Volunteer Correspondent Program, which connects adults who have no active family or guardian in their lives, or who have public guardians, with community volunteers. These volunteers spend time with individuals, keep informed of events in their lives, participate in their planning meetings, and advocate on their behalf. {See below for more information and a link to the Volunteer Correspondent Program website.}
- We work with other organizations, usually by participating on committees, to help provide advice to the Department and, when needed, advocacy for changes in the way things are done.
What’s the Volunteer Correspondent Program, and how is it related to the MDSOAB?
The Volunteer Correspondent Program was created to support those Maine adults with intellectual and/0r developmental disabilities who have no other family or friends to advocate for their needs.
Volunteer Correspondents are individuals who maintain contact with a person with an intellectual and/or developmental disability living in a Maine community, and are recognized through an official application process.
Right now, the VCP and MDSOAB share funding and operate as parallel organizations. The MDSOAB t supports and advises the work of the VCP Coordinator. The VCP Coordinator and volunteers, in turn, support the work of the MDSOAB by making the Board aware of developments in the field that might point to systemic issues.
How is someone appointed to the MDSOAB?
There are up to 15 active MDSOAB members, and each serves for a three-year term.
Potential Board members are recommended to our Membership Committee. This committee looks at the current membership and identifies the Board’s representation needs.
By “representation,” we mean geographic representation AND representation from individuals with disabilities, their allies, family members, the DDC, the DRC, providers, scholars, and service professionals.
No MDSOAB member can be employed by DHHS, although we regularly collaborate with DHHS personnel.
What do board members do?
Board members actively participate in monthly board meetings by reporting on the status of DS services from their perspective (for example, as a self-advocate, a provider, a researcher).
Board members also actively participate in MDSOAB committees to which they are appointed. Our committees keep each Board member informed on a variety of topics that, as individuals, each of us might not have the time or ability to explore in detail. Committees provide the fuel that keeps our work moving forward.
Do you have other questions, or comments, about the Maine Developmental Services Oversight and Advisory Board?
Do you have questions or concerns about DHHS Developmental Services that you think the MDSOAB should address?
Do you have ideas that we, or the Department, need to hear?