Developmental Disabilities
Welcome to the Division of Developmental Disabilities webpages. We believe that Georgia citizens with disabilities have the right to meaningful lives in their local communities. Our mission is to join with others to offer the quality supports necessary for each individual to reach his or her full potential. We hope you find these webpages useful and we welcome your comments and suggestions.
People with developmental disabilities have chronic conditions that developed before age 22 and limit their ability to function mentally and/or physically. Georgia's state-supported services are geared to people with mental retardation and to people with other disabilities, such as cerebral palsy and autism, who require services similar to those needed by people with mental retardation.
State-supported services are aimed at helping the family continue to care for a relative when possible, serving people who do not live with their families in a home setting, and promoting independence and self-determination. The services a person receives depends on a professional determination of level of need and the services and other community resources available. Services may include:
- Family Support – is an array of goods and services aimed at providing families with the highly individualized support needed to continue to care for a family member with disabilities at home. Family Support is not generally seen as a crisis service. Rather, it is provided to families with the goal of preventing crises that can result in the need for out of home placements or higher intensity services.
- Supported Employment – customized assistance to help a person find and keep a job, including job development, on-site job coaching, job adaptations and promotion of coworker support
- Respite Services – Respite is provided in situations, such as when families or care givers are in need of additional support or relief, when the person needs relief or a break from a care giver, when a person is experiencing a crisis and needs structured, short term support or when relief from care giving is necessitated by unavoidable circumstances, such as a family emergency.
- Regional Hospitals – seven state-operated hospitals serve people with severe and profound mental retardation. Today, people may be admitted only under special circumstances for temporary and immediate care during a crisis.
- Community Residential Alternative or Community Living Support - Support and supervision for people who live in their own or family home, with a foster family, or in a group or host home.
- Community Access - Services that are individually planned to meet the person's needs and preferences for active community participation. These services are provided in either community based or facility based settings.
Please contact your Regional Office if you have any questions or concerns.
Find A Service Near You
An alphabetical list of counties designed to assist you in locating your local county contact information.
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