ACCESSIBILITY PLAN

Established in 1984, Regis House, Inc. was founded on the principles of aiding and assisting South Florida youth with drug addictions. Regis House, Inc. enriches the lives and futures of thousands of children through comprehensive programs for elementary youth through the adolescent age years. Regis House Inc.’s Supportive Adult Services programs provide co-occurring psychiatric therapy to those suffering from mental illnesses.

This Accessibility Plan outlines the methodology by which we have identified barriers within our facility, our plans for removal of such barriers, our ongoing commitment to accessibility planning, and how we will communicate this plan to the public.

Regis House, Inc. is committed to providing a barrier-free environment for persons served with mental health, and substance abuse disorders and those presenting dual diagnoses-co-occurring disorders together with their families.

Volunteers, staff, guests, and the community are all important to us; therefore, Regis House, Inc. is committed to identify barriers that would impede them from accessing the agency as well as our services.

The CQI/Administrative Team group will recommit annually to accessibility planning, and will continue to work with our community partners towards a barrier-free environment.

Aware that many persons served face a variety of challenges such as those with co-occurring psychiatric and substance abuse disorders, we have selected attitudinal, physical, and architectural, communications, transportation, and financial barriers as those we want to impact in a positive manner.

To provide a barrier free environment for all persons served such as those with co-occurring psychiatric and substance abuse disorders, their families, our volunteers, staff, and visitors of Regis House, Inc.

This Accessibility Plan:
a) Identifies the membership of the individuals responsible for accessibility planning.
b) Describes the process and methodology by which Regis House, Inc. will continue to identify, remove, and prevent barriers.
c) Describes the barriers that have been successfully removed in the past year.
d) Describes the barriers that are to be removed in upcoming year.
e) Describes how Regis House, Inc. will communicate this accessibility plan to the public.

Regis House, Inc. is a non-for- profit 501 (c) 3 organization that is committed to improving lives for a healthy community through mental health and family support and substance abuse services.

Due to the size of the organization it was determined that the existing CQI/Administrative Team group, made up of Clinicians, Senior Managers/Directors would take on the authorized group to pursue its stated aim and objectives.

Membership:
The members of the CQI/Administrative Team are composed of the Director of Clinical Services, Director of Outpatient Services, Clinicians, and Senior Mangers/Directors.

Regis House, Inc. provides programs and services that support youth, adolescents, and adults with substance abuse disorders and psychiatric mental health needs including co-occurring disorders. We focus on the strengths of individuals and their families at home, school, workplace, and communities. We pursue research, education and advocacy, and participate in a local and regional system of services. Regis House, Inc. is committed to providing a barrier-free environment for persons served, their families, our volunteers, staff, and guests; to broadening the scope of accessibility planning; and to continue working with our community partners to achieve a barrier-free community.

The CQI/Administrative Team used, and will continue to use, the following methods to identify, remove, and prevent barriers:

Method	Description
Identified Barriers	Review and incorporate into the plan any barriers as identified by persons served, their families, volunteers, staff, and guests.
Conduct surveys	Survey persons served their families, volunteers, and staff to identify barriers and present suggestions for resolutions.
Conduct focus groups	Hold focus group sessions with staff and volunteers, with persons served and client families, and with various clinical program areas based on their area of expertise.
Consult community groups and organizations	Consult community organizations to educate the committee and staff.
Conduct accessibility audit	Perform a review and audit utilizing available audit tools.
Consult professional services	Enlist consultative professional services where appropriate, in matters of, computers and business equipment, sensitivity training, facilities management, and expert consultation in the treatment of persons with co-occurring capabilities.

In 2006, the CQI/Administrative Team used several of the methods noted above to gather information and identify existing barriers at Regis House, Inc. Surveys and Focus Groups were conducted with client families, staff, and volunteers, which provided valuable input to this identification process. An inventory of existing areas where possible barriers could exist was established and divided into six (6) categories:

Regis House, Inc. is aware of the stigma associated with Mental Health illnesses in co-morbid populations and works closely with clients and the community to assure an environment that respects the privacy of all parties. Staff regularly will involve themselves in courses, programs and sensitivity training related to agency program offerings.

The main Regis House, Inc.’s facility was originally a private residence and was renovated to meet the needs and requirements of a facility open to the public. All staff members are charged with the responsibility for evaluating the accessibility needs of those we provide services to. Significant improvements have been made to Regis House, Inc. during our expansion and reconfiguration process: the first floor is being moderately renovated and is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act. Accessibility was a key factor in determining design placement and juxtaposition of office equipment to provide for clear paths of travel for persons served, visitors and staff. Now, a barrier Regis House, Inc. faces is not having an elevator, which would not allow wheel- chair access to the second floor. For this reason, it has been decided that all services be provided in the first floor.

In 2008, Regis House, Inc. maintains having a physical and architectural barrier: No elevator in the facility.

Regis House, Inc. Main Office Parking Lot is roughly 5000sqft. The parking space provided for clients and staff is limited. Three 15-passenger vans occupy the southwest corner of the space limiting the number of available slots. Management has encouraged employees to parking alongside 20^th Street in an effort to leave empty slots for clients to park properly. Most of the clients in the morning and early afternoon hours are persons from the DCF-Medicaid Office. At 5:00 PM, when the regular group counseling sessions start there is sufficient parking spaces for parents to drop off the youth.

· Wide doorways are provided throughout the facility to allow access to all areas that are open to the public

· Men’s and women’s restrooms are fitted with accessible stalls, sinks, paper towel dispensers and mirrors.

· Refreshment machines serving water are provided and are easily accessible by persons in wheelchairs.

· Clear signage is present to direct persons to different parts of the facility.

· Clear access is provided to food services, eating areas and public areas of the facility.

Improvements to our policies and practices are continuously being revised to reflect specific changes pertaining to specific populations served such as those with co-occurring psychiatric and substance abuse disorders. Our commitment to improving lives for a healthy community focuses on the abilities of individuals, recognizes the role and support of the family, and promotes individualized choices by persons served and their families.

Information, Communication and Technology
Some barriers were noted in how we share information with persons served families, internal staff and the community, and how we best utilize available technology to share such information. In most instances, Regis House, Inc. has eliminated communication barriers and is working towards providing barrier-free access to information and communication across all channels at the agency:

· All Limited English Proficiency (LEP) persons will receive meaningful access to services by providing oral interpretations, and translation of written materials.

· Medicaid Initial and Renewal Application process and translation is provided to all persons assigned by the Department of Children’s and Families (DCF) as well as Food Stamps applications. These services are provided Monday-Friday 09:30 AM to 4:00 PM.

· For the Vision and Hearing Impaired, we have made reasonable accommodations to meet this group of individuals needs. “Escort Service” is provided for those individuals needing assistance to navigate the facility. Additionally, service dogs are permitted in the facility.

Regis House, Inc. will strive to maintain sufficient funds for each program offered by the agency. The organization pledges to advocate for increased funding at the local and state levels. Regis House, Inc.’s Marketing/Development Department will promote activities to raise financial and awareness for support of programs and the individuals served via the programs. Regis House, Inc. realizes the financial restraints of many of those we serve in our community and will make every effort to see that their needs are attended to regardless of their financial situation.

Regis House, Inc. offers a sliding scale following the Federal Poverty Guidelines to assist individuals and families in need of counseling. For individuals and families unable to pay the sliding scale fee at each session, a payment plan will be established. No interest is charged in these cases. If there are reasons the persons served cannot afford the sliding scale fee, they may request further assistance when they call in for the first appointment or at any given time during the treatment. The current fee scale ranges from $3.00 co-pay to $32.00 a session. There is a flat fee of $73.00 for the intake, and this rate includes the initial interview and bio-sychosocial evaluation. Payment is due on the day of service.

Every effort will be made to increase the chances of success for our consumers by helping to identify and correct those transportation barriers that exist within our community. Our Main Office is conveniently located adjacent to a public bus transportation stop. Regis House, Inc. has available a fleet of 3-fifteen passenger vans to accommodate the needs of persons served. For non-ambulatory transportation, needs staff will be knowledgeable regarding local transportation services such as the Miami Transit Authority and will provide information, referral, and linkage to these available services. In addition, staff can act as advocates for persons with disabilities to encourage the continued expansion of accessible public transportation systems through Special Transportation Services (STS) offer by the Miami-Dade Public Transit System. This program offers door-to-door transportation for people with disabilities who are unable to use the Metrobus, Metrorail, or Metromover.

The removal of identified barriers are prioritized annually and presented at the CQI/Administrative Team meetings. The priority for removing barriers are determined on the basis of the organizations ability to reasonably make accommodations to meet the physical needs of our clients and the community, ensuring health and safety, and promoting barrier-free access to information. The CQI/Administrative Team will continue collecting information and will be conducting accessibility audits to assist in the discoveries of barriers every year.

The CQI/Administrative Team will recommit annually to the accessibility planning process, and will file a report once complete.

The plan will be available in multiple formats upon request. Availability of this plan will be publicized to all persons served, volunteers, and staff via flyers, posted notices, and on the web internal publication.