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Authors Posts by Carol Ferenz

Carol Ferenz

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The Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) shared the following communication, ODPANN 23-051: Quality Assessment & Improvement Process Cycle 2, Year 2 (QA&I C2Y2). This announces the start of Cycle 2, Year 2 (C2Y2) of the Quality Assessment & Improvement (QA&I) Process on July 1, 2023. Please review the announcement for additional information on the QA&I process and required actions that must be taken to ensure timely completion.

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July 25, 2023
1:00 pm EDT
Register Here

Greenspace Health has announced their next insightful educational panel, featuring world-renowned applied psychologist and leading global expert on Measurement-Based Care (MBC) Dr. David Clark. In this webinar, Dr. Clark will share his research and learnings from leading the launch and continued development of the NHS Talking Therapies program (formerly known as IAPT). Attendees will learn how his team made the case for its national rollout and explore key insights based on the program’s implementation and data that can be applied to any MBC implementation.

Don’t miss this opportunity to learn about the impact of Measurement-Based Care from Dr. Clark and explore what the future of mental healthcare looks like with the widespread adoption of MBC.

PS. Check out the Yale MBC Collaborative Knowledge Hub to find clips and insights from the last educational event series hosted by Greenspace Health in partnership with the Yale Measurement-Based Collaborative!

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As part of its commitment to advancing health equity and access to care for underserved populations, CMS released a set of resources addressing the needs of adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) living with and cared for by aging parents or guardians. The release includes resources for state Medicaid and partner agencies to provide new or additional support to adults living with I/DD and their caregivers as they age and experience life transitions.

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ODP Announcement 23-049 shares that the Human Services Research Institute (HSRI) has extended the deadline for completing the 2022 National Core Indicators® (NCI) State of the Workforce Survey. The portal will now close on Monday, July 31, 2023.

A national deadline extension has given eligible provider agencies in Pennsylvania an opportunity to complete the NCI State of the Workforce Survey. If your agency has already completed the survey, no additional action is needed.

To obtain a representative sample, HSRI is aiming for a 5% or lower margin of error for each participating state. The lower the margin of error, the more representative and impactful the data will be. Based on current responses, Pennsylvania has a margin of error of 8.4%. The Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) is encouraging providers to complete the survey, which will give stakeholders critical information about workforce metrics.

For any questions, please contact Ms. Lee Stephens, ODP Independent Monitoring for Quality (IM4Q)/NCI Statewide Lead.

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Photo by Markus Winkler on Unsplash

ODP Announcement 23-050 announces the release of the Individual Support Plan (ISP) Manual that includes information from the Consolidated, Community Living, and Person/Family Directed Support waiver renewals that were effective on January 1, 2023. In addition, the Waiver Service Request Form (DP 1022-S) has been translated into Spanish and can be found on MyODP.

Attachment 1 and Attachment 8 should be used effective immediately and have been uploaded as the current attachments to ODP Bulletin 00-22-05 on the DHS Bulletin web page.

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The Information Sharing and Advisory Committee for the Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) met this week. Brief updates were given regarding the employment symposiums that were held in coordination with ODP and the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation (OVR) in April and May as well as Selective Contracting proposal activities. Reports were also given for ISAC Recommendation #10 Expand Options for Community Living, and for ISAC Recommendation #14 Promote Racial Equality.

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It has come to RCPA’s attention that individuals with disabilities lack choice and providers lack referrals due to the Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) confusing service description for Benefits Counseling. In September of 2022, ODP sponsored 25 Pennsylvania employment support professionals representing 18 providers (five of whom are RCPA members) across the state to take part in training through Cornell University’s Work Incentive Practitioner Credential Program, which was facilitated by the K. Lisa Yang and Hock E. Tan Institute on Employment and Disability. Of the participating providers, only one is an Employment Network, suggesting that, once certified, 17 providers would be relying on referrals from ODP and the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation (OVR) to provide the Benefits Counseling service.

Although ODP offers the service to Pennsylvanians in the Community Living, Consolidated, and PF/DS waivers, Benefits Counseling remains an underutilized service across the Commonwealth. This is not due to a lack of certified counselors, however. Since approximately 2008, language in the Benefits Counseling service description has stipulated the following rule:

“Benefits Counseling may only be provided after Benefits Counseling services provided by a Certified Work Incentives Counselor through a Pennsylvania-based federal Work Incentives Planning and Assistance (WIPA) program were sought and it was determined and documented by the Supports Coordinator that such services were not available either because of ineligibility or because of wait lists that would result in services not being available within 30 calendar days” (ISP Manual updated 08/09/2022).

Please view the following document for more detailed information about this issue. Additionally, if any providers are also experiencing barriers to accessing the Benefits Counseling service due to ODP’s conditions, or for anyone interested in advocating for program participants to receive this valuable service in the manner of their choice, please reach out to Eileen Campbell, Benefits Counselor & Special Projects Coordinator at Lighthouse Vocational Services, via email or at (717) 354-0355.

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