Great Oaks Special Needs Services
Overview of Programs & Services for Adults
Mission: “To provide quality collaborative services for individuals with disabilities to become employed, productive members of the community.”
Great Oaks has been CARF accredited for approximately 15 years.
Adult Services
A few years ago, through “For the Future of Great Oaks,” it was identified that Great Oaks should enhance their placement services to adults with disabilities. As a result, we expanded our Adult Job Placement services. These placement services now include:
q Job Development and Placement (Community Based) – We have four part time job developers who provide individualized services to adults who desire to work in their local community. Our primary vendor is the Ohio Rehabilitation Services Commission. This program serves adults in the Greater Cincinnati area.
q Employment Services Program: This program serves adults with disabilities in Clinton, Fayette, and Highland counties. This program started as an establishment grant program from ORSC and is now self-sustaining. Two staff members are available to meet the needs of these consumers.
Follow Along: This service is provided for the Hamilton County Board of Mental Retardation and Developmental Disabilities. Retention and career advancement services are provided for approximately 100 adults who work in their local communities. In order to retain their positions, they need several hours of service each month. Each client gets individual attention depending on his/her level of needs.
Adult Education Plans: For every adult in a full-time program that has a documented disability, a written accommodation plan that meets their education needs is developed. Many times, an outside agency such as the Veterans Administration or Ohio Rehabilitation Services Commission (ORSC) is paying the tuition for this student. A team of people, including the instructor and student, design the plan and monitor progress as well as coordinate job development upon completion of the program.
Career Assessment: Great Oaks has worked with several local Departments of Human Services since 1993. One of the services provided is Career Assessment. Testing and assessment are offered to provide career planning information as consumers transition from welfare to work. Most of the services are provided in Hamilton County where we test hundreds of clients each year.
Project SEARCH Programs: (Project SEARCH is a collaboration between Children’s Hospital Medical Center (CHMC), Great Oaks Institute of Technology and Career Development and the Hamilton County Board of Mental Retardation/ Developmental Disabilities (MR/DD).
Adult Employment Program: Children’s Hospital and Great Oaks have teamed up to provide employment opportunities to almost 70 adults with significant disabilities at CHMC. Hamilton County MR/DD provides retention services and career advancement to each of these employees. Staff identifies open positions, performs a job analysis, matches the job to a qualified candidate and provides job coaching services to each new employee. Clinton Memorial is participating in this program and other Cincinnati based hospitals are also beginning to hire qualified persons with disabilities.
Healthcare Training Program: This twelve-week certification program is designed to train people on public assistance to be Health Unit Coordinators or State Tested Nursing Assistants. We have served approximately 150 in the first two years. The Department of Human Services funds the program. Due to their individualized needs while transitioning from welfare to work, the program uses a Case Manager and Job Developer as well as the nurses who teach the curriculum and healthcare content. Because of the success of this program, a Practical Nursing program was established in June 2001 for entry-level staff at Children’s Hospital allowing them career advancement opportunity.
