Supporting People Who Are Aging

The “Core Concept” module introduces the foundational principle of Person-Centered Thinking for older adults by teaching support professionals to balance what is important to a person for their joy and comfort with what is important for their health and safety. Learners explore how to empower people through daily choices, shift power dynamics, and understand how environments impact an aging person’s sense of control and well-being. By applying Like and Admire and other Discovery skills, professionals can craft a practical One-Page Description that tailors respectful, dignified care to each person’s unique preferences.

The “PCT for Older Adults” module emphasizes that as people age and their needs shift, support professionals must sequence Person-Centered Thinking skills differently, beginning with Relationship Mapping and discovery before addressing planning or safety. By prioritizing deep listening and learning a person’s life story and routines, teams build essential trust and can respectfully adapt daily rituals to accommodate physical changes without sacrificing the person’s identity. Ultimately, this intentional approach ensures that care remains responsive, honoring autonomy and dignity.

The “Person-Centered Discovery Skills” module challenges the harmful assumption that discovery is unnecessary for older adults, framing it instead as an ongoing, empathetic process of learning what brings joy and meaning to their lives. Learners practice intentional listening and conversational processes, such as the seven questions and the ask about the ask technique, to uncover the deeper motivations and values behind a person’s surface-level requests. By recognizing diverse communication styles and building trust, support teams can organize these insights into a Person-Centered Description that drives truly dignified and personalized care.

The “Rituals and Routines” module explores how daily patterns—both functional routines and emotionally significant rituals—offer older adults a critical sense of identity, comfort, and emotional safety during times of change. Learners discover how to identify these patterns through observation and curious conversations, recognizing that disrupting these familiar rhythms can cause significant anxiety and frustration. By respectfully documenting these essential daily moments in a One-Page Description, support teams can ensure consistent care that honors the person’s preferences and preserves their positive control.

The “Good Day/Bad Day” module teaches support professionals how to analyze the rhythm of an older adult’s daily life to uncover their true values, preferences, and needs. By closely observing transitions, environmental factors, and reactions to routine disruptions, learners practice identifying what brings comfort versus what causes distress, particularly for those who communicate through behavior rather than words. Ultimately, participants learn how to document these critical patterns, allowing support teams to intentionally protect what works and respectfully adapt to challenges in order to foster more good days.

The “Relationship Mapping” module teaches professionals how to visually diagram an older adult’s social world to understand the emotional closeness and diverse roles of the people in their life. By distinguishing between paid and unpaid relationships, learners can identify risks of social isolation—especially as connections naturally shift due to aging or loss—and discover opportunities to rebuild natural supports. Maintaining this living map allows support teams to proactively guide planning conversations and ensure care strategies nurture the person’s vital human connections and sense of belonging.

The “Communication Chart” module reframes behavior as a vital form of communication, particularly for older adults who may not use words to express their distress, preferences, or unmet needs. Learners utilize a four-part collaborative skill to objectively observe an action (“I do this”), analyze its environment (“What is the context”), empathetically explore its underlying message (“It usually means”), and determine the person’s preferred supportive response (“And I want you to”). By shifting the focus from simply managing behaviors to truly understanding them, support teams can create consistent, safe environments that build trust and honor the person’s voice.

The “Two-Minute Drill” module introduces a focused, structured conversation skill designed to help support professionals quickly uncover what truly matters to an older adult when time is limited. By practicing two minutes of uninterrupted listening followed by thoughtful reflection, learners can effectively identify a person’s core values and immediate support needs. Combined with the guess, ask, write discovery habit, this intentional approach to conversation builds trust, improves daily planning, and ensures that care remains deeply aligned with the aging person’s preferences. 

The “Reframing Reputations” module teaches support professionals how to look beyond limiting labels and “mild negative” traits to uncover the underlying values, grief, or needs those traits may represent in older adults. By applying three specific reframing questions, learners practice shifting their perspective from judgment to empathy, discovering how a perceived challenge might actually be a strength or a request for specific support. This skill empowers teams to rewrite negative narratives, ensuring that planning conversations and documentation reflect the whole person and foster more respectful, inclusive care.

The “Everyday Learning Skills” module emphasizes that learning in person-centered support is a continuous, natural process of observation and reflection rather than a formal, scheduled event. Learners are introduced to three collaborative approaches—the Learning Log, 4+1 Questions, and Working/Not Working—that help teams capture daily insights, creatively solve problems, and center the person’s lived experience. By actively documenting and sharing these observations, support professionals can build a culture of continuous improvement, ensuring that even small discoveries lead to more consistent, responsive, and meaningful care.

The “Learning Log” module introduces a straightforward documentation skill that helps support professionals organize their everyday observations into a consistent Notice, Reflect, Act framework. By actively recording what works well and what doesn’t during daily activities, teams can uncover valuable patterns regarding an older adult’s preferences, comfort levels, and support needs. Ultimately, using the Learning Log transforms these reflective insights into intentional, responsive actions, which prevents the team from repeating mistakes and ensures the person feels truly seen and respected.

The “4+1 Questions” module introduces a structured reflection framework designed to help support teams systematically evaluate past actions and creatively solve problems when they feel stuck. By guiding teams through a continuous loop of asking what has been tried, learned, pleasing, and concerning, the skill ensures that insights are clearly articulated before deciding on the “+1” question: “What should we do next?” This cyclical process transforms reflection into actionable, person-centered strategies, fostering a dynamic culture of shared learning and continuous improvement.

The “Working/Not Working” module introduces a powerful discovery skill used to organize multiple perspectives when support teams feel stuck or face disagreements. By gathering input from the person, their family, and professionals, learners create a clear visual that contrasts what is currently effective with what causes friction or stress. This structured approach helps teams move beyond surface-level fixes and winner-loser perspectives to negotiate support strategies that work for everyone involved.

The “Management Skills” module focuses on providing support professionals with skills to clarify their roles, preventing the unintended harm that occurs when boundaries are blurred, and autonomy is undermined. Learners are introduced to two key skills: “Matching Profiles,” which ensures compatibility between a supporter’s style and a person’s preferences, and the “Donut Sort,” a visual framework that categorizes tasks into core responsibilities, areas for creative judgment, and tasks outside one’s role. By regularly revisiting these skills, teams can reduce conflict, promote consistency, and deliver intentional, respectful care without overstepping.

The “Matching Profiles” module teaches support professionals how to create detailed profiles that align an older adult’s unique preferences, personality traits, and support needs with the right staff members. By collaboratively identifying specific “Supports Needed,” “Skills Required,” “Personality Characteristics,” and “Nice to Have” shared interests, teams can prevent the stress and harm caused by mismatched support. Ultimately, utilizing these profiles for hiring and team assignments ensures that people receive consistent, intentional care in an environment where they feel safe, respected, and empowered.

The “Donut Sort” module introduces a visual framework that helps support teams clarify their roles by categorizing tasks into core responsibilities (the hole), areas requiring judgment and creativity (the donut), and boundaries that are not their responsibility (outside the donut). By gathering insights through observation and open conversations, professionals can collaboratively define these expectations to prevent burnout, avoid unintentional harm, and foster safe, flexible support. Ultimately, treating the Donut Sort as a living document that evolves with the person ensures consistent care that actively protects their autonomy and empowers them to make their own choices.

The “Building a Person-Centered Description” module teaches support professionals how to integrate their Discovery skills into a comprehensive, living Person-Centered Description that captures a person’s unique voice, values, and support needs. Emphasizing usability over perfection, learners discover how to write clear, jargon-free documents that strike a balance between the person’s Important To and Important For, clearly defining supporter roles to prevent over- or under-supporting. Teams are encouraged to actively use and regularly update this description in everyday routines to help the person maintain positive control and give respectful, tailored care.

The “Course Wrap-Up” module invites support professionals to reflect on the comprehensive person-centered skills and practices they have learned to meaningfully support people who are aging. It emphasizes that true Person-Centered Thinking shifts the focus from rigid systems to relationship-building by carefully balancing what is important to an older adult with what is important for their health and well-being. By committing to ongoing discovery, intentional listening, and regular reflection, learners are empowered to build deep trust, support autonomy, and drive lasting cultural change in their everyday practice.