What is Supported Decision Making?
The South Carolina Supported Decision Making Project aims to educate parents, professionals, and individuals with disabilities about alternatives to guardianship that promote self-determination and value quality of life. Supported Decision Making is “a recognized alternative to guardianship through which people with disabilities use friends, family members, and professionals to help them understand the situations and choices they face, so they may make their own decisions without the ‘need’ for a guardian." In Supported Decision Making, individuals can choose “Supporters” to assist them in different areas of their lives—employment, education, services, finances, health, etc.
See Supported Decision Making in Action:
Meet Carrie!
Age: 24
- Hobbies: Reading, hanging out with friends, and binge-watching shows on Netflix
- Disabilities: Cerebral Palsy, Anxiety, and ADHD
How I Use My Supports:
- I use family, friends, doctors, as well as organizations such as Able SCto make my decisions.
“Supported decision making is important to me because I get advice from others on what I could do, but I get to be the one who makes the final decision.”
How I Use My Financial Supports:
- I use family as well as Able SC in order to help me make financial decisions.
“Talking with others about creating a budget helps me spend my money on rent, food, and other important items needed for independent living.”
How I Use My Healthcare Supports:
- I rely on family, friends, and my doctors and nurses in order to make the best decisions for my mental and physical health.
“Supported decision making allows me to make important decisions about my health like what medicine to take and what doctors to see.”
How I Use Employment My Supports:
- I get input from family and friends on how to make my career decisions.
- I talked to people working in the careers I was interested in in order to see whether I wanted to work in that field.
“When deciding whether I wanted to go into counseling or social work, the staff at Able SC were able to share their experiences with each field to help me decide which career I wanted.”
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