Valuing Partnerships by Stephanie Wilson, TuscBDD Board President

by   |   Mon, Aug 10th, 2015

At TuscBDD, we value partnerships. It is our goal to provide a wide-array of excellent service and support options for people in Tuscarawas County and, simply put, we cannot do this alone! We need the support of dynamic and efficient partnerships to realize this worthy goal.

As a Mental Health professional, I have witnessed time and again the benefits of collaboration. When I am able to partner with a team of professionals who each bring their unique expertise and gifts to the table, the results speak for themselves! Helen Keller perfectly expresses our commitment to partnerships in the following quote: "Alone we can do so little: together we can do so much."

We have recently received some inquiries relating to our partnership with the Mid-East Ohio Regional Council or MEORC. I want to take a minute to further explain this important collaboration. MEORC exists to support the eighteen county boards in this region of Ohio to provide valued, quality services that help people to pursue the life they desire. For the past twenty-five years, TuscBDD has partnered with MEORC to help provide the individuals served through TuscBDD the services needed to live, learn and work as independently as possible in the community.

By contracting with MEORC, TuscBDD, and many other County Boards, are able to extend the reach of tax payer funding through the sharing of activities and positions across the eighteen county region. For example, TuscBDD partners with MEORC to complete investigative services for unusual incidents and major unusual incidents. County Board staff are mandated to investigate anything that appears out of the ordinary whether actual or alleged for persons served. Smaller counties like our own do not receive a high quantity of these incidents; therefore, a fulltime position delegated to this responsibility is not needed. Instead, MEORC provides this service at a more economical rate.

It is important to note that MEORC does not provide direct care support (i.e., adult day services, school services, employment services and etc.). County Boards and qualified provider agencies continue to provide these essential services. Despite the many benefits of MEORC, it does not exist to be a County Board or a provider; instead, MEORC offers support to them.

In the coming months, it is our objective to share additional information about the dynamic collaborations occurring throughout this agency. Each month, we will feature a "provider of the month" to introduce you to our partners in this county!

Stay tuned and thanks for reading!

- Stephanie

Mon, Aug 10th, 2015