The power of relationships

Noah served as an usher at Drew and Jennison’s wedding. “I was shaking in my boots,” he said, but he wanted to do a good job for himself and for his friends. Now, he’s excited about moving to an apartment of his own with support that’s customized to his individual needs. “It’s going to be good for me.”

By  Drew Bielemeier, senior vice president of operations

As an agency, we are dedicated to education as a way to improve the quality of our support and ensure the safest environment for those we support and our employees. We know how to safely support someone in receiving complex medications and perform CPR, how to support people with evacuating for fire drills and how to properly fasten safety q-straints for those requiring wheelchairs.

While education is an important part of our success, we need to talk more about something that also has proven to keep people safer and happier: relationships. We know that when the support professionals and the people we support become friends, advocacy increases and mistakes decrease. We know that when people genuinely care about one another, they’re less likely to cut corners or rush. And we know that those friendships open up a greater opportunity.

We call that social capital, and study after study shows that stronger social ties translate into better mental and physical health for people of all abilities. Relationships are that powerful! It all begins with the genuine and authentic relationship of two.