Frequently Asked Questions
Who can receive your services?
In general, adults and children who have mental retardation or another developmental disability that occurred before the age of 22 and that significantly interfere with functioning in the community are eligible to receive services.
How does a person find out about services?
To learn about how to get connected with services the Board offers, call the Intake Department at 513-794-3300.
If you are inquiring about services for children up to age three, call 281-GROW.
What kinds of disabilities do the people you serve have?
We serve individuals with many types of disabilities, including Autism, Down Syndrome, Traumatic Brain Injury (if it occurred before age 22), and Cerebral Palsy.
Where are your services located?
We provide services in the communities where the people we serve live. Several different locations around the county host services, including adult centers, schools, various satellite classrooms and centers, and a support center. Staff in our Community Services and Early Intervention areas are based in each region so they can most often meet individuals where they live.
What is the difference between mental health and mental retardation?
Mental Retardation refers to sub-average intellectual functioning, and impairment in social adaptation. It is a developmental disability, which means that it impairs a person for life and is usually present at birth or occurs before age 22.
Mental illness has nothing to do with intelligence. It is an illness most often caused by social, situational, and interpersonal difficulties and stress that can impact structural brain processes, although a few mental illnesses are strictly caused by abnormalities in the brain. It can be controlled with appropriate medication and treatment. A person can often recover completely. Mental Illness can occur at any time in a person’s life.
Mental Retardation and Mental Illness are very different diagnoses, and require very different services. This is why there are two separate local governing boards.
What is your agency’s total budget? How much comes from the levy?
About $100 million a year, 71% of which comes from the tax levy.
How many people do you serve?
More than 5,500 individuals.
What do I do if I know someone who needs services but doesn’t have them?
One of our agency’s chief operating philosophies involves the concept of “Self Determination”, which means that individuals with MR/DD have a right to choose how they want to live their lives and what kinds of supports are best for them.
People who want to use our services have a variety of options available to them, and they choose the service options that best fit their individual needs.
People
may also choose not to be involved in our services, and this is certainly their right.
Please encourage anyone who you think might need our services to call our Intake Department at 794-3300.
Whom do I contact if I think someone with a disability is being abused or neglected?
To report suspicions of abuse and neglect for individuals with MR/DD, contact our 24-hour a day, seven-day a week hotline, at 513-794-3308.
Keep in mind that this is a reporting line and not an emergency line, so you need to make certain to contact the appropriate police, fire or other emergency services if the person’s immediate physical safety is in jeopardy. |