ALT Graphic of a megaphone saying call for proposals

ALT Andrew Houtenville, Director, Institute on Disability, University of New Hampshire. A professional headshot of Andrew Houtenville, a man with very short hair and a salt and pepper beard wearing a tweed suit jacket and light blue shirt with a dark blue striped tie.

ALT Graphic of the Author Insights podcast from the Developmental Disabilities Network Journal

ALT The PEIS is an exciting development because it's the first of its kind. Prior to its development, there weren't any instruments designed to be accessible for people with IDD in mental health care. [It's] an opportunity to give your feedback and share your own experience and your ideas about your needs and the care that you're receiving.

ALT Let's say I have anemia. I go to the doctor, they can look at the blood, and they can see, oh low iron. But mental health care is not that way, right? Mental health care relies upon self-report in order to diagnose. And if an individual is not asked or engaged in a meaningful way, and somebody else is talking for them, it's going to completely affect [their care].

ALT And consider what the dynamic can do also to sit in a room and watch someone else be asked about your experience, and to watch them and listen to them give inaccurate information. I mean, some folks can get really close to the mark. But there's always something that goes missed or under-emphasized.