Common Mistakes made in Rehabilitation Service Plans
Avoid the following when developing Rehabilitation Service Plans:
- Building the plan around a set of recipient “problems”
- The Rehabilitation Service Plan/ITP should be built around the functioning that can be restored or improved. By focusing on functioning, the service plan inherently builds hope and focuses interventions toward achievable outcomes.
- Listing goals as process-oriented
- Goals and objectives are often too generic and do not reflect the persons functioning, goals, strengths or preferences.
- Creating a service plan that looks like a person’s “to do” list
- The service plan/ITP is not describing the rehabilitative intervention, specific to what the staff will do to assist the person to achieve certain results.
- Writing in jargon
- The service plan/ITP must be clear to the person as well as staff. While plans must meet MA documentation standards, they can be written in plain language that is understandable to all.
- Including staff interventions that are not rehabilitative
- The terms “monitor,” “review homework,” “tell,” “support” and “praise” may be part of rehabilitation interventions, but do not stand on their own.
- Including only groups or program interventions, for example: Illness Management and Recovery (IMR) with no individualized rehabilitation included.