24-Hour Supports • Residential Division

The majority of the Individuals in this Division came to WCI at 22 years of age, moving from educational services to adult life. They have primarily lived at home with their parents or lived in a residential school or institutional facility, such as the Fernald Center. WCI provides them with a transition to community life, teaching them personal care, meal preparation, shopping, home management skills, community integration, problem solving and other life experiences.

Since many of those receiving 24-hour support have aged, they require more specialized medical treatment, medication management and an accessible environment. WCI has responded to these needs by hiring an RN Health Care Coordinator, to support our staff in arranging and providing preventive and needed health care strategies (e.g., diet, exercise and recommendations made by their doctors). Some of the major health conditions that our Individuals face include diabetes, seizure disorders, cancer, respiratory problems, dementia and Alzheimer's to name a few.

Most of the homes have a 2:4 Direct Support Professional (DSP) to Individual ratio during the peak hours of the day and on weekends, with typically a 1:4 ratio overnight (either awake or asleep, depending on their needs.) Some homes have more intense supports. Staff schedules are designed to be flexible in order to best meet the needs of Individuals and are determined in conjunction with the Individual Support Team (ISP).

In others, they have less supports. One man owns his own condominium and receives less than 24-hour support. Ten other individuals (including one married couple) live in their own apartments within a local complex with 24-hour supports based in one apartment, but available to the others if the need arises. Four of them have time home alone; however they have support from the other staff in the area.

The emphasis for each Individual focuses on developing and maintaining essential independent living skills. Areas of concentration include, but are not limited to: communication; personal care skills; in-house and community recreational leisure skills; domestic skills; health awareness; diet and exercise; self-medication; nutrition planning; meal preparation; personal and grocery shopping; money management and budgeting; developing relationships; interpersonal and social skills; community awareness and travel skills. There are 10 homes in the communities of Waltham, Belmont and Newton.