02/15/2026
Hello all.
Last weekend, after spending probably 10 days trying to rework my original plans into the current service code alignments that SDRC has requested, I realized that what I am trying to do just doesn't fit. The populations of young people that I am trying to serve don't really exist according to the SDRC--medical kids HAVE to be in a center-based program, regardless of their medical stability. Behavioral kids are often put into restrictive behavior programs, whether they need those restrictions or not. So I put together an email that really laid out who it is I am trying to serve: in short, those who may look really scary on paper but are actually quite stable and do well out in the community. I pointed out that they are served appropriately via the TRACE program in SDUSD, and that is what I am trying to mirror. I keep hearing that the school district is "its own thing", but it has the same boss the SDRC does: the State. If the State agrees that this population exists and can be served in the community when they are school-aged, then it is contingent upon the SDRC to continue to serve them appropriately as adults. If fact, the law says they *have* to.
SDRC has not responded to my email.
So am trying to figure out who to talk to, either at SDRC or further up the food chain at the state's Department of Developmental Services.
I knew this was going to be a huge project, but I really had no idea how huge.
Meanwhile, Cormac's nursing contact at San Ysidro Health has asked us to come speak at their next quarterly staff meeting. They asked for a presentation on Cormac--who he is, what he loves, the places he's been and things he's achieved with the WPCS support that HCBA provides, and they also want to hear about ITAV and how it's going. HCBA will pay for 1:1 nursing care for MedFrag participants, but if they do, I am not allowed to bill SDRC for them. That's fine by me; we'll figure out another way to pay the bills!
So send out good juju, lift a prayer, do a little voodoo, whatever your specialty is! If you are inclined to reach out to your child's SDRC worker to specifically request an active, community-based program (and get it written into their IPP as a goal!), that would be amazing! If they tell you one doesn't exist, you can request that it goes into the IPP, anyway. Once those requests are documented, we get a little more legal pull.
Thanks for checking in! It takes a village to keep these young people living their best lives, and you are a huge part of it!
