Over the past eight years I have been complaining on a fairly regular basis about state government.
They were legitimate concerns about budget cuts, over-regulation, the lack of transparency, and an increase in the amount of bureaucracy, to name only a few. Many of these issues were systemic in nature and could be attributed to political appointees with radical views of state government, as well as Governor Brownbacks gutting of state departments. (That reference does not include our local and regional offices where state staff have been very pleasant and helpful, despite being shorthanded.)
One of the hardest hit departments was the Kansas Department of Aging and Disability Services (KDADS).
Also affected during this time was the close relationship between KDADS and organizations like Tri-Valley. It was not a kumbaya style relationship, but it was collaborative in nature and we both had the best interest of people with disabilities in mind.
We had a single vision, a strategic plan and knew what the future held in terms of system change. We could sit down together and work through any issue, and even if we did not agree, we knew the reason behind it.
The last eight years, however, were completely different, and I did not do a very good job adapting to a change in philosophy where state government knew what was best for people with disabilities. I dont know how many times a decision was made, and I would shake my head in complete disbelief and ask myself what the heck are they doing?
The relationship always appeared to be adversarial in nature and because of that, the Intellectual and Developmental Disability system suffered.
SO BACK IN December of 2018, with the knowledge we would have a new governor, I created a Christmas wishlist of things I would like to see accomplished in 2019. One of those items was for the state to revamp KDADS to make it more provider friendly. Well guess what? Its happening. The state is more responsive to the needs of the people we serve, and the demands placed on agencies.
Over the past couple of weeks, I have had the opportunity to spend quite a few hours with multiple employees from KDADS during statewide contract negotiations and I can say with utter confidence, that the new Secretary of KDADS, Laura Howard, has a new philosophy. The state came to the table without a chip on its shoulder and Deputy Secretary Janice DeBoer articulately laid out their philosophy of working with statewide partners. It included collaboration and transparency, and she continued to reiterate that fact throughout the four days of negotiations in Topeka.
All KDADS employees, led by Commissioner Amy Penrod, were professional, congenial and as one of three lead negotiators for InterHab, our state association, I can personally say they were very easy to work with.
What was most impressive to me was that they listened to our concerns and actually worked with us to rectify the problems. We were not stonewalled, ignored, or told that the state was required to implement a new regulation when we knew for a fact they were not.
Again, it was not kumbaya and there may still be some lingering trust issues, but it was a drastic change from past experiences.
The reason I mention this is that for the first time in quite some time I felt the state cared about people with disabilities. They didnt give lip service, but truly cared. So far the new administrations actions have backed up their words and I hope that this is a sign of things to come. There is so much work that needs to be done that it may take years just to stabilize a system that was broken and then bent in half again, but I have faith it can be accomplished if we work together as a team, collaborating and discussing issues, because that is the only way our system will be successful.
