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The MnCHOICES team would like to thank Carver, Isanti and Wright counties,
as well as MNPrairie County Alliance for their participation as pilot agencies
for version 17.1 of the MnCHOICES Assessment. As pilot agencies, they were the
first to use The MnCHOICES Assessment application-version 17.1 and participated
in weekly pilot calls with DHS team members to review their findings and provide
feedback on their experience using the new 17.1 version.
When case managers receive a completed MnCHOICES Assessment
from a certified assessor, they should enter an administrative screening
document into MMIS to change the contact to the case manager. This can be done
by completing and entering an 02 action type on a DD screening document or an
07 action type on an LTC screening document into MMIS.
Lead agencies are responsible to complete
change-in-condition reassessments when a person experiences a significant and
potentially long-term change in his or her need for services and supports
before his or her anticipated annual reassessment. Some potential reasons for a
change-in-condition reassessment to occur are:
- Emerging need or risk
- Major health event
- Worsening health condition
- Current services and/or supports don’t meet the
person’s needs.
As lead agencies plan for the county of residence (COR) to
be responsible for reassessments, they should give consideration to
change-in-condition reassessments in their planning. For more information on
change-in-condition reassessments and timelines, please visit the Assessment
applicability and timelines web page.
Remember to track individual MnCHOICES certified assessor’s (CA)
certificate expiration dates. Expiration
dates of CA’s certificates may be found on the MnCHOICES
CountyLink page under MnCAT Step 4 – Recertification.
Before the expiration of the certificate, certified assessors must complete the
MnCAT Step 4 training, test and document all continued learning units (CLUs)
in TrainLink.
During a certified assessor’s three-year
recertification period, at least 12 of the 45 CLUs must improve the ability of
the assessor to practice in a more person-centered way. To determine if
the learning activity meets the requirements of a person-centered CLU, ask
yourself if the learning activity has resulted in improving your
person-centered practice by helping you:
- Make it easier for people to visualize and share their desires and goals
- Know about lots of potential resources and options for each person’s situation
- Put people at ease when we engage in difficult conversations
- Feel confident that when a
person makes a choice, he or she really understands all aspects of the decision.
For more information about CLU requirements,
please visit the MnCAT Step 4 – Recertification: Instructions document, found on the MnCHOICES CountyLink page.
The University of
Minnesota has opened additional person-centered thinking trainings. The
registration is open ONLY for lead agencies (counties/tribes) and DHS staff for
a limited time before UMN opens registration to the public. There are 10
dates and 500 seats available. Please review the details below and follow
the links to register.
Registration is available only through the following links:
March 9-10, 2017 (Brainerd): Email Jane to
register (8 seats available)
March 15-16, 2017 (Duluth): Click here
March 22-23, 2017 (Alexandria) Click here
March 28-29, 2017 (New Brighton) Click here
April 18-19, 2017 (Owatanna) Click here
April 26-27, 2017 (Brainerd): Email Jane to
register (25 seats available)
April 26-27, 2017 (New Brighton) Click here
May 17-18, 2017 (Owatanna) Click here
May 24-25, 2017 (Duluth) Click here
June 12-13, 2017 (New Brighton) Click here
Person centered thinking training is designed for staff at all levels in an
organization as well as people who receive support and their families. It is
especially relevant for case managers and other professionals who interact with
the people served and for supervisory staff.
There is no cost to participate; the cost is being paid by the Minnesota Department
of Human Services. Social work and nursing CEUs will be offered for all
sessions.
All MnCHOICES Assessment and Support Plan users (both lead
agency users and contracted case management agencies) must complete “Handling
MN Information Securely,” a state-mandated training. Contracted case management
agencies complete the security training as a “county worker.” Users in
contracted case management agencies select the county for whom they are
completing the work, select “social services and mental health,” then select
the “role of the county worker” or “role of the supervisor” based on the user’s
role at the agency.
The ongoing MnCHOICES webinars about getting ready to launch
MnCHOICES Support Plan have discussed this topic more in depth, as well as a
variety of other topics. You may access the webinar schedule as well as
previously recorded webinars on the MnCHOICES
CountyLink Page under the heading Webinars.
The MnCHOICES team would like to thank Anoka, Brown, Le
Sueur and Washington counties for their participation as first launch counties
for the MnCHOICES Support Plan application. We would also like to thank the
contracted case management agencies that will also be included in this first
launch. The first launch agencies are using all of the functions within the
MnCHOICES Support Plan application, including rates.
As part of the support plan launch, lead agencies will be
required to enter all staff and contracted staff who need access to the support
plan into an onboarding spreadsheet. As you complete these documents, please
remember to include all agencies you are contracting with, including those with
whom you are in current negotiations.
Lead agencies are now required to have each home and
community-based service (HCBS) provider sign the recipient’s HCBS support plan.
For more information about this topic, please visit the following resources:
The Disability Services Division lead agency eList is a
resource for counties, tribes and managed-care organizations. County, tribal
managed care and state workers may subscribe to this list with a work email
address. DHS sends important information and updates out via these lists. Visit
the Disability
Services Division (DSD) eLists website to sign up for future eLists or to
visit the Archive
of DSD lead agency eList announcements.
The following MnCHOICES publications are new or have been
updated and are now available on eDocs
for use:
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DHS-7283A: MnCHOICES: Take the first step to get
services to stay home. Counties,
tribes and health-care providers may order this document in large quantities by
visiting the order fulfillment website. We encourage lead agencies to
distribute the brochure locally (such as with hospitals and clinics).
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DHS-7283B: What you can expect with a MnCHOICES
Assessment
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DHS-6791D: Coordinated Services and Supports Plan
Signature Sheet.
- For previous issues of MnCHOICES Matters, or
other MnCHOICES assessment and support planning resources, please visit our CountyLink
page
- For more information on assessment and support
planning, please visit the Community-Based
Services Manual (CBSM)
- For previously answered questions from lead
agency about policy interpretation, please visit PolicyQuest.
For more information about MnCHOICES, visit us on the DHS
website. For technical assistance about MnCHOICES, visit us on CountyLink.
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