Many individuals fall under full guardianship without consideration of their ability to make decisions with support. During this session, participants will be introduced to the state’s Rethinking Guardianship initiative and how people are avoiding unnecessary guardianships through supported decision-making strategies.

Learning objectives

    1. Become aware of the goals and accomplishments of the NC Rethinking Guardianship initiative.

    2.  Gain knowledge of the term “supported decision-making” and how it can be applied to long-term and everyday decisions.

    3. Consider ways in which supported decision-making can be applied outside of and in some situations, inside of a guardianship   arrangement.

Speaker:

Linda Kendall Fields is a Clinical Assistant Professor at the University of North Carolina School of Social Work in Chapel Hill and Special Projects Facilitator for NC Money Follows the Person.  She has dedicated over 35 years to building communities that are responsive to the needs and contributions of older adults, people with disabilities and families in Minnesota, Oregon, Ohio, Georgia and North Carolina.

During her career, Linda has led numerous government, health care and nonprofit initiatives aimed at supporting individuals and families living in the community and transitioning to the community from long term care facilities.  

In her capacity at UNC Chapel Hill, she has been facilitating the statewide Rethinking Guardianship initiative since 2016 and assists the NC Division of Aging and Adult Services in improving workforce training and implementing the Dementia Capable North Carolina Strategic Plan.