Person-Centred Plans From the Perspective of Persons-Supported in a Community Care Setting: A Qualitative Study.
Gillian Young, Maria Mathews, Leslie Meredith and 2 others
PMID 40533876WHAT IT FOUND
Person-centred plans at a leading care provider work by turning broad goals into small, visible daily steps.
Participants valued the flexibility to choose between large collaborative meetings or quiet one-on-one sessions, and used binders or house boards to track progress.
Key findings
01The planning process is highly flexible, allowing individuals to choose between large, celebratory meetings involving friends and family, or smaller, private discussions with support staff.
02Goals are operationalised by breaking them down into specific, manageable steps and using visual tools like binders or house boards to maintain daily focus and accountability.
03For participants with limited verbal communication, support staff often mediated the interview process, interpreting signs or confirming agreement, which shaped how their experiences were reported.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for PTsWhat it means for OTsWhat it means for SLPs
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What it does not show
The study was conducted at a single organisation with a reputation for high-quality person-centred planning, so findings may not apply to other settings with fewer resources or different cultures. Support staff mediated many interviews, which may have influenced responses to be more positive or aligned with staff expectations rather than the participant's independent view. Participants might have felt uncomfortable criticising the process because the staff who helped them create the plan were also present during the interviews. The small sample size (19 participants) limits the generalisability of the themes to the wider population of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
Declared interests
The study was funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research (CIHR). The community care organisation (PHSS) partnered in the study design and recruitment but did not know participant identities or code the transcripts.
The easy way to misread this
Do not assume that large, celebratory PCP meetings are the standard or preferred method for all individuals. The study found that some participants explicitly preferred quiet, one-on-one planning sessions, and forcing a large group format could undermine their autonomy and comfort.