AI Innovations for Person-Centered Empowerment in Home and Community-based Services for Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities

Abstract

Support planning for people with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities receiving home and community-based services takes up a large amount of time and resources, often produces extremely inadequate results, and almost always lacks quality resources for implementation. After decades of struggling with the challenges of developing empowering, truly person-centered support plans AND wrestling to try to implement those support plans, Arkansas Support Network (ASN), in partnership with Awake Labs, developed a planning process that anchors the agency's value doctrines and infuses those values and support goals into all aspects of day-to-day services, creating an effective and efficient tool to ensure high-quality plans and practical plan implementation. Visioning an Empowered Life (VEL) overhauls traditional disability support, which often suffers from scattered information and a focus on limitations and deficits. VEL leverages Artificial Intelligence (AI) and collaborative planning to create a holistic, person-centered system. It centralizes information, prioritizes individual strengths and aspirations, and adapts to changing needs across the lifespan. Key features include AI-driven insights that connect goals to real-world opportunities, and the generation of customized action plans and implementation resources. VEL empowers individuals to lead meaningful lives, fosters community participation, and provides Direct Support Professionals (DSPs), natural supporters, and other service providers with the tools and training necessary to provide effective, values-driven support. Initial feedback suggests VEL enhances service delivery, improves the quality of support plans, and provides more relevant guidance for DSPs.