DSP Person-Centered Planning and Support 3 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: A DSP supports James, who wants to learn to cook but his plan only lists meal preparation as a DSP task. The DSP should:
- Continue doing all cooking since the plan requires it
- Teach James cooking skills and advocate for the plan to reflect his goal (Correct answer)
- Ask James to wait until the next plan cycle to discuss cooking
- Ignore the plan and let James cook unsupervised immediately
Correct answer: Teach James cooking skills and advocate for the plan to reflect his goal
DSPs should support individual growth and advocate for plan updates when a person expresses goals not yet captured in their plan.
Question 2: The term 'important TO vs. important FOR' in person-centered thinking means:
- What the person enjoys versus what professionals think they need (Correct answer)
- Medical needs versus recreational preferences
- Short-term goals versus long-term goals
- Individual choices versus family choices
Correct answer: What the person enjoys versus what professionals think they need
'Important to' reflects personal desires and happiness while 'important for' reflects health, safety, and well-being—both must be balanced in good planning.
Question 3: When a support plan includes a goal the person says they no longer want, the DSP should:
- Continue working on the goal since it was agreed upon during the meeting
- Stop all services until the plan is formally changed
- Honor the person's current wishes and document the change in preference for the team (Correct answer)
- Assume the person forgot what they wanted and redirect them back to the goal
Correct answer: Honor the person's current wishes and document the change in preference for the team
Respecting evolving preferences is core to person-centered practice; DSPs document and communicate changes so the team can update the plan.
Question 4: Which of the following is an example of a 'non-negotiable' in person-centered planning?
- The person's preference for a morning shower schedule
- A health and safety requirement such as a prescribed medication routine (Correct answer)
- The agency's standard operating hours
- A family member's preference for the person's diet
Correct answer: A health and safety requirement such as a prescribed medication routine
Non-negotiables are health, safety, and legal requirements that must be upheld regardless of personal preference.
Question 5: A PATH planning tool is primarily used to:
- Assess a person's medical and psychiatric needs
- Map out a positive future vision and identify steps to get there (Correct answer)
- Document incidents and behavioral interventions
- Conduct a financial needs assessment for services
Correct answer: Map out a positive future vision and identify steps to get there
PATH (Planning Alternative Tomorrows with Hope) is a graphical, future-focused planning tool that starts with a dream and works backward to action steps.
Question 6: How does person-centered planning differ from traditional service planning models?
- It relies entirely on clinical assessments to determine needs
- It is driven by the individual's dreams and preferences rather than system capacity (Correct answer)
- It focuses on deficits and what the person cannot do
- It is completed by the agency without the person's involvement
Correct answer: It is driven by the individual's dreams and preferences rather than system capacity
Traditional models often start with available services and fit the person to them; person-centered planning starts with the person's vision and builds supports around it.
Question 7: During planning, a DSP should avoid language that:
- Describes the person's strengths and contributions
- References the person's disability diagnosis as their primary identity (Correct answer)
- Explains what the person has told us they want
- Identifies the person's community connections
Correct answer: References the person's disability diagnosis as their primary identity
Person-centered language focuses on the whole person, not their diagnosis; using a disability label as someone's primary identity is dehumanizing.
DSP Person-Centered Planning and Support 3
A DSP supports James, who wants to learn to cook but his plan only lists meal preparation as a DSP task.
The DSP should: