Rich people get concierge service; mental health challenged get Community Support Services

What is Community Support Services (CSS) supposed to be about? Essentially, the purpose of CSS is to improve the lives of disabled people who are on Medicaid in order to ADDRESS HIS/HER EDUCATIONAL, VOCATIONAL, HOUSING NEEDS.

Enhanced Benefit Services for Mental Health and Substance Abuse
Effective March 20, 2006

"Service Definition and Required Components

Community Support consists of mental health and substance abuse rehabilitation services and supports necessary to assist the person in achieving and maintaining rehabilitative, sobriety, and recovery goals. The service is designed to meet the mental health/substance abuse treatment, financial, social, and other treatment support needs of the recipient. The service is also designed to assist the recipient in acquiring mental health/substance abuse recovery skills necessary to successfully address his/her educational, vocational, and housing needs. The Community Support Professional provides coordination of movement across levels of care, directly to the person and their family and coordinates discharge planning and community re-entry following hospitalization, residential services and other levels of care. The service includes providing “first responder” crisis response on a 24/7/365 basis to consumers experiencing a crisis...."

(p. 1): http://www.dhhs.state.nc.us/MHDDSAS/servicedefinitions/
servdef3-27-06rev.pdf

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What do rich people's kids get at North Carolina's High Point Unversity's 'Club Ed': essentially the purpose of Club Ed is to 'come up with ways to please current and prospective students" so that they will be inspired to make better grades and assure the university of more donors and more students :

"....To that end, he (President of the university, Nido R. Qubein) hired a director of WOW! The holder of that illustrious title is Roger D. Clodfelter, and it's his job to come up with ways to please current and prospective students. The ice-cream truck that circles the campus doling out free frozen treats (more than 500 to choose from!) is but one example.
....

Near the entrance to the cafeteria is the concierge desk. The chief concierge, Leslie Smith, takes care of maintenance requests, gives restaurant recommendations, and sends out dry cleaning, among other services. Students can also sign up for automated wake-up calls. Right now the voice is generic, but there is talk of adding a recording of the president himself urging students to get out of bed.

The list of frills goes on.....

If it sounds like too much, well, maybe it is. But it's in keeping with the president's philosophy, as summed up in the university's slogan: "At High Point, every student receives an extraordinary education in a fun environment with caring people."

His strategy for High Point has so far been a success. Since Mr. Qubein took over, freshman enrollment has tripled, even though the university is charging more. He's raised more than $100-million, mostly by tapping the wallets of wealthy friends.

Seven buildings have been torn down, 12 new ones have been built, and six more are under construction. One of those new buildings, informally dubbed "The Multiplex," will house a movie theater, a sports bar, and a steakhouse.

..... some seniors and recent graduates complain that the new students are lazy and feel entitled. One possibly apocryphal story involves a freshman who opened his fridge (the freshman accommodations are two-person suites with kitchens) and asked: "Where's the food?" Someone had to explain that he needed to purchase his own supplies.....

Mr. Qubein is acutely sensitive to the suggestion that High Point emphasizes goodies over substance. Even the silliest-seeming extra, he contends, has a larger purpose. "When the students know you care, they reward you by doing well in the classroom," he says. "Then they reward you by telling their friends and by their parents' becoming your donors."

.....Another way of making students happy is by prettifying the campus. Six fountains have been added in the last two years (with six more on the way.....
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http://chronicle.com
Section: Short Subjects
Volume 54, Issue 43, Page A1

GEE, I HOPE THEY DON'T GET FAT ON ALL THAT ICE CREAM: that could lead to some real eating disorder problems.....

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This is what NC DHHS has in store re: CSS upgrade:

"The activities of the initial plan included additional training for providers, clinical post payment reviews on all recipients receiving an average of 12 or more hours of Community Support a week, revisions to the endorsement checklists used by the Local Management Entities to determine that providers have the necessary qualifications to deliver the service, and some changes to the Community Support service definition."

READ: training in terms of paperwork for providers (the trainings are only about paperwork)

post payment reviews (looking at the paperwork, which is assigned to the LME's)

perusing the paperwork associated w/ the LME's vis a vis the Endorsed Provider companies

http://www.dhhs.state.nc.us/dma/csupport/
dhhsplantoimprove.pdf

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Ahem: Where's the NC DHHS concierge who can address the matter of the paperwork? I don't feel AT ALL like doing it.