A one-page description is a brief overview of “what is important to a person” and “how they need to be supported”. It can be used as an introduction to a person in many settings when that individual isn’t able to adequately communicate for themselves, including hospitalization.  It creates a person-centered foundation for supporting needs and offering comfort as instructed by the family or caregiver.  It is also referred to as a one-page profile.

If someone in your life has special needs, a one-page description is a good tool to develop. The most important thing is that the people working with the individual understand their specific needs to best comfort and care for them. Depending on the setting, you can have a number of individuals working with an individual. A great way to easily share the key information about an individual is a one-page profile.

While this video was not created by Parents Helping Parents, this tool is something that we offer trainings on throughout the year.  It can be part of the foundation of care and comfort for any individual with a disability, as well as anyone who cannot communicate effectively for themselves.  We cannot guarantee this video’s level of accessibility, so please let us know if you have any trouble accessing this video or video captions.

You may find this template useful as you start creating your first one-page profile:1-Pg Description Template