Our interdisciplinary team provides a range of Medicaid-managed community support services, including:
Whether our customers live independently, receiving hourly services, or live in an Optimae-provided home, receiving residential site services, our teams provide the supports and continuum of care necessary for them to become successful members of their community, attain valued roles and live as independently as possible.
HCBS offers a personalized approach to providing services for adults with intellectual disabilities. We provide individualized support that allows our customers to experience success and satisfaction in the community-based living environment of their choice. Services are provided in the customer’s home and other community-based settings and are available up to 24 hours a day, depending on a customer’s level of need.
HBHS assists individuals with serious and persistent mental illness to acquire, retain and improve skills for living in the community. Services are provided in the individual’s home or community and allow them to live in the most integrated setting appropriate for their needs. The services assist in the daily living needs of the customer and can be provided at any time of the day or night needed to meet the individual’s needs. Services include adaptive skill development, assistance with activities of daily living (ADLs), community inclusion, transportation, adult educational supports, social and leisure skill development, and protective oversight and supervision.
SCL helps individuals expand their abilities and empower them to be successful in valued roles within their chosen living, learning and social environments.
These programs are offered by Optimae and accredited through CARF. The purpose of Day Habilitation Services and CIPs is to encourage customers to get involved in the community, develop natural supports, become educated on resources and have fun. To accomplish this purpose, the programs help our customers learn, keep and improve skills in many areas, including: self-help skills, social skills, daily living skills and community living skills.
The TAY program offers comprehensive services to individuals ages 15-20 with serious and persistent mental illness and/or intellectual disabilities. Meeting the needs of a currently under-served population, the TAY program tailors services to this unique group. The ability to individualize services to this demographic sets the groundwork for these individuals to lead more independent lives in the future and become productive members of their communities.
IRSH serves adults with the most intensive, severe and persistent mental illness conditions who have functional impairments and may also have co-occurring conditions. The IRSH program provides services in an intensive 24-hour supervised setting in close partnership with Optimae’s behavioral health, home health and rehabilitation services teams. Homes are located in neighborhoods within the community to maximize community integration and natural supports.
Our eight-bed residential care facilities in Story and Marshall counties offer people with mental illness and disabilities assistance with day-to-day living activities to help them succeed and, in many cases, transition out of the facility.
Intensive Psychiatric Rehabilitation (IPR) provides individuals with mental illness additional rehabilitation services that aid in their recovery. IPR helps customers choose where to live, learn, work and socialize while teaching them commitment to set goals and the confidence to reach them. Services are provided in one-on-one meetings with an IPR practitioner, as well as group sessions.
Job Development can help customers obtain competitive employment in their communities. This service provides support in all areas surrounding the job-seeking process, including resume building, job searching, interview preparations and ongoing support while on the job.
Career Connections assists graduating high school students with IEPs by offering work readiness skills training, job shadowing and job coaching.
Supported Employment is an integral part of Optimae’s aim to provide our customers with a continuum of care. Individuals with mental illness and intellectual disabilities often struggle to find employment. Customers who participate in the program gain skills in antique trading, janitorial services, data entry, animal care, recreation, Community Supported Agriculture, kitchen help and foodservice preparation, and small, rural communities receive services that are not provided through other means.
In addition to community-based supported employment, job coaches work alongside our customers to provide them with employment opportunities and valued community roles in our microbusinesses.
Finding a way through
In his home and along the road to better mental health, Michael Alloway has cleared a path.
When Michael and his mother moved to Wapello after nearby Oakville flooded in 2008, they accumulated a lot — so much so, that their personal belongings were taking over their home.
“We had lots of Christmas stuff,” Michael says. “Mom loved Christmas. If we went to a yard sale and there was something Christmas, she got it; she didn’t care.”
While the holiday memories were positive, the hoarding was not. Michael decided to make a change. He and his mother started upstairs, getting things cleaned up in a room that had become a catch-all.
“When [my DSP] Kim came in, she can verify it — there was enough room to walk right in between,” Michael says.
Our strengths are not just something our customers experience, they are also backed by the highest levels of certifications from leading accreditation bodies in our industry, including CARF International accreditation for Optimae Community Services.
Optimae’s Community Services programs offer a wide array of supports that meet the needs of the customers we serve on any given day, whether provided in one’s home or in community-based residential settings. We know that having a valued role within one’s community is essential to an individual’s success and recovery, so we also offer supported employment services and community integration programs. Making a difference in our customers’ lives and a difference in our communities is truly an amazing opportunity and experience. We welcome you to join our team as we provide meaningful support to those we serve and celebrate their success.
Meghan Foster | COO of Central Iowa Services
Optimae LifeServices currently serves customers living in more than 50 central, southeastern, northeastern and south-central Iowa counties. As we expand, we are always hiring for direct support professionals (DSPs), service coordinators, team leads, job coaches and other positions.
Optimae values diversity, and we encourage all qualified candidates, including those from traditionally overlooked identity groups, to apply.
At Optimae, our core values of choice, respect, teamwork and education apply to both our customers and employees. With a supportive, mission-driven culture, many employees have started at Optimae and stayed for good.
