INSIDE OKDHS - NEW DIRECTIONS

(MUSIC PLAYS) 

No Audio: JoAnne Goin, Developmental Disabilities Services Division - Division Director

JoAnne Goin: Well, I have been with OKDHS for 38 years. And I started in Tulsa as a social worker in the field and moved up through Field Operations which was the division at the time, and in 1988 came to DDSD when we were growing the community program and became involved in the closure of the Hissom Memorial Center as a District Supervisor and then as the Area Manager. 

I was the Area Manager at DDSD in Tulsa through the closure of the facility until recently when Mr. Nicholson retired, and I moved to Oklahoma City to become the Division Director. 

Jim left a long legacy for us and big shoes to fill. Jim came to the program in its infancy and was able to build the program to where we are today by building a network of community providers, by developing several Medicaid waivers. He leaves for all of us a legacy that will shape our future and will guide us to make good decisions in the future. 

Job one for us is to close the NORCE and the SORC facilities and to successfully move the individuals who live there into community placements that are selected by their parent and guardian, and the consumer themselves. To do this is going to require a lot of hands-on work by every person in the division, and we have a fairly tight timeframe to meet to get this done. 

So that will take every one of us to accomplish during the next couple of years. But, I believe we'll be successful. We have a successful track record, and we're already off to a really good start. The transition is really based on establishing trust with the parent and guardian, and the person we're going to move. 

So, we're now in the process of making weekly contact with the families, hopefully getting them to look at some of the service options that we have to offer them - helping them establish where they want the individual to live, who they might want to be roommates for the individuals, and helping them select a service provider so that every detail is planned prior to the move. 

Once the move is made, then we put equal energy into monitoring that placement the first month and the first year, so that we're sure that if there are any new things that may come up when the individual moves, that we're right on target with meeting the new need or making changes, if changes are needed in the program. 

One of the other important parts of our work this year, and next year particularly, will be moving people from our waiting list into services and possibly making some improvements in the way we communicate with people on our wait list. 

Right now, we are in the process of working through our waiting list to move people into the waivers, and we're also working on setting up a portal on our website so that families on the wait list can keep us updated with their address and contact information changes. And while people are waiting, we want to be sure that we help them access all of the community services that we're familiar with that can provide support for their child while they're waiting.  

Well, I've been with the agency for 38 years, and so I've seen a lot of transitions, and I'm very hopeful for the future. Change is who we are at DHS. I think we're always seeking ways to improve our service system and to be more responsive to our customers, and so this change is another opportunity to make improvement. 

When you've been with the agency for a long period of time, you get this feeling of maybe, gratitude that the agency provides us all such interesting assignments over the years. So, stepping here is one of those interesting assignments that I really look forward to, but my entire career has really been filled with great opportunities to serve and fulfilling work, and I really am grateful.