Summary
The Supported Decision Making – Guide for Decision Makers and Support Persons (in Finnish Tuettu päätöksentekijöille ja tukihenkilöille) is a product of a project by Savas Foundation in Finland. The project was carried out from 2011-2015. The guidebook contains cards to help with communication and an easy to read text part. The cards can also be printed form the website. The cards and the text together are a toolkit to help to communicate with people with intellectual disabilities.
Location
Finland
Organisation/s
Savas Foundation
Issues addressed
The toolkit is made to assist persons with intellectual disabilities to communicate and to support them to express themselves about what kind of life they wish to have and make their own decisions about it.
Background information
Savas Foundation which primarily works in Savo district, in the eastern part of Finland, carried out the project which was financed by The Slot Machine Association of Finland. The toolkit is only available in Finnish but is free for use and can be downloaded here.
Description of practice
The guidebook is published to assist persons who need help with their decision making and for family members and professionals who work together with them. It is written in easy to read language and gives information on:
There is also a list of experiences and ideas to use in supported decision making.
Analysis
As the guidebook and the picture cards are free for anyone to print from the Savas website, it can be widely used in Finland. The experiences and ideas listed in it encourage its use in everyday situations in the lives of people with intellectual disabilities, especially with persons that also have a communication disability.
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