The provision of choice plays an important role in the process of implementing the provisions of Article 19 of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. Staying in specialized institutions greatly limits the options of people with disabilities, even with regard to their most basic living needs. It is for this reason that specialized institutions cannot be characterized as a place where “equal choices with other people” are provided. Being able to choose means that a person can evaluate the alternatives offered. The more the needs of people with disabilities are taken into account in society and the social system, the less need there is to involve personal assistance. In other words, the availability of means of personal assistance does not mean that society should not constantly expand and adapt various services and infrastructure to meet the needs of people with disabilities. Nevertheless, personal assistance will still be necessary for the inclusion of people with disabilities in society, and the nature of this assistance should depend primarily on their own choice. The fact that a person is in need of assistance must not serve as the basis for limiting or regulating the activities of people with disabilities in a form that is not permitted for all other people.

Choice directly determines the nature of the assistance provided, and presupposes the presence of alternatives. If, as is often the case, the only alternative is offered instead of a specialized institution, then it means that the person has no real opportunity to choose. People with disabilities are often told: “You have a choice, but at the moment we can only offer one alternative” – that is, instead of staying in a specialized residential facility or isolation in the community, medication therapy or living together with people with a similar illness is offered.