A resource manual created by the Institute on Disabilities at Temple University, College of Education and Human Development with support from the Pennsylvania Office of Developmental Programs.
Jenifer Taylor Eaton, Netanel Paley, David Harold Rush, Shawn Aleong, Virginia DiLello, and the IM4Q Review Team at Self Advocates United as One (SAU-1).
IM4Q (Independent Monitoring for Quality) is a project of Pennsylvania’s Office of Developmental Programs and the Institute on Disabilities at Temple University. IM4Q gathers information from people with disabilities in Pennsylvania who receive waiver-based services to understand how they live their lives and to make their lives better.
The purpose of IM4Q is to understand how people with disabilities feel about their lives and the services they receive. This allows decision makers at the state and county levels and service providers to improve services for people with disabilities. The information shared in IM4Q reports helps achieve this goal by showing areas of strength and areas where improvement is possible. It also allows us to track changes in how people feel about their lives and the services they receive over time.
IM4Q also allows us to improve people’s lives in a direct way. When IM4Q staff members interview a person with a disability, they write down any problems or needs the person has. We call these "considerations." These considerations are shared through the IM4Q system with someone who might be able to help, like a supports coordinator (SC), a service provider, or family members. The supports coordinator decides how to handle the problem or need, and talks with other staff at the state and county levels. People work to fix the problem or fill the needs of the person with the consideration until they or their family is satisfied. We call this "Closing the Loop."
