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Northampton Community College Offers Free Online Training for PCHs/ALRs
Northampton Community College is offering free online training programs in the fall 2022 for personal care homes (PCHs) and Assisted Living Residences (ALRs). There are a variety of training topics being offered, including Verbal De-escalation Redirection Techniques, Dementia Care in PCH, and Safe Medication Practices.
In the announcement, you can select the linked course titles to register. You may also visit the College’s website. If you have any questions about registering, please contact Northampton Community College via email or at (610) 332-6585.
Participation is limited for each course. If you register and later discover you are unavailable to participate, please cancel your registration to allow other individuals the opportunity to register.
If you need information about additional available training for administrators, please contact the Operator Support Hotline at (866) 503-3926 or electronically.
Values Into Action: Virtual “Finally Home” Housing Symposium September 7
Join us for a day of presentations and discussions about what Finally Home could mean for you, your loved ones, or those you support.
We will:
- Be energized by opening speaker Erica McFadden, Director of Independent Living at the Administration for Community Living;
- Hear the experiences of people on their Finally Home journey;
- Learn how you can get involved from David Gates;
- Discuss the role of technology in our Everyday Lives; and
- Be inspired by Kristin Ahrens, Deputy Secretary of the Office of Developmental Programs, as we close our day.
Registration is required. You can register for the event here. For questions or accessibility accommodation requests, please contact Maryann via email or (610) 565-5177.
Release of Training on Residential ISP Staffing: It’s About the Person, Not the Numbers
ODP Announcement 22-094 announces the release of the Residential Individual Support Plan (ISP) Staffing three-part webcast training located on MyODP.
The Residential ISP Staffing trainings described in ODP Announcement 22-017, which were provided virtually or in-person, have been completed. To ensure ongoing training is available for new staff or for current staff who may benefit from a review of the content, a three-part training webcast is now available.
The training covers the same content as the prior virtual or in-person sessions. The training includes opportunities for participants to apply the concepts through examples and can be taken at a pace appropriate to the needs of the participant and their agency.
Participants who complete all requirements will receive 4 hours of training credit. Certificates for past trainings on MyODP are still available in the course where you completed the requirements.
Any questions, please reach out to your regional office.
Open for Public Comment: PA’s Statewide Transition Plan for HCBS
ODP Announcement 22-092 announces that the Department of Human Services (Department) is accepting comments on Pennsylvania’s Final Statewide Transition Plan (STP) for Home and Community-Based Services, which can be accessed here. Comments received by 11:59 pm on September 22, 2022, will be reviewed and considered for revisions to Pennsylvania’s Final STP that will be submitted to the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS).
A webinar specific to STP Information for the Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) will be held on September 8, 2022, from 10:00 am – 12:00 pm. Please register for the webinar.
Stakeholders may provide public comment through one of the following methods:
- Electronic comments submitted via email. Stakeholders are asked to use the subject header “PA Final STP” when submitting comments.
- Written comments submitted via mail: Department of Human Services, Office of the Secretary, P. O. Box 2675, Harrisburg, PA 17105-2675.
- Verbal and written comments during public comment webinars.
Place Your Orders for the 2022 DSP Recognition Week
Direct Support Professional Recognition Week is September 11–17, and we have everything you need to plan your celebrations of the dedicated professionals who make up the backbone of disability supports and services!
Place your order by 11:59 pm PDT Wednesday, August 17 to avoid incurring extra shipping costs to receive your items prior to DSP Recognition Week. Orders will be accepted after August 17, but may incur additional shipping fees or may not arrive before the start of DSP Recognition Week on September 11.
We’ve updated the 2022 Direct Support Professional Recognition Week Store with several new selections, along with some of the most popular items from previous years. The items you see are just a sampling of the many options to choose from, so check out the store today!
BONUS: Once you’ve placed your order from the 2022 DSP Recognition Week Store, peruse the 2022 DSP Recognition Week Toolkit for celebration ideas and sample social media posts.
DSP Recognition Week is one of our favorite times of year, and we cannot wait to celebrate with you and see all of your celebrations! Thank you, DSPs!
Charting the LifeCourse Using Applying Principles and Using Tools to Support a Good Life
Charting the LifeCourse was created to help individuals and families of all abilities and all ages develop a vision for a good life, think about what they need to know and do, identify how to find or develop supports, and discover what it takes to live the lives they want to live. This training series is for all professional stakeholders.
Participants in this training will:
- Learn about the National Charting the LifeCourse Community of Practice;
- Apply LifeCourse Principles and LifeCourse Framework; and
- Practice Using LifeCourse Tools.
Dates:
September 16, 2022, 9:00 am – 1:00 pm
Registration opens 8/10/22.
December 16, 2022, 9:00 am – 1:00 pm
Registration opens 11/10/22.
February 22, 2023, 11:00 am – 4:00 pm
Registration opens 1/18/23.
May 11, 2023, 9:00 am – 1:00 pm
Registration opens 4/6/23.
All dates are visible in the course, but registration links will open about 5 weeks in advance of each session.
Registration is Open for the 2022 RCPA Annual Conference Together!
Registration for the RCPA Conference 2022 Together! is now open! Together! will be held October 11 – 14, 2022, at the Hershey Lodge in person this year. Be sure to register, as the early bird rate is available now until September 9, 2022.
We are excited for the lineup of speakers who will be presenting at this year’s conference, as there will be pertinent information available and discussed for all service areas. Workshop sessions include:
- Connecting Pieces for Success: Utilizing a Two-Generational Approach and Collaborative Multi-Organizational Work Model to Affect Lasting Change
- Presented by Sara Newman of Project-Mosaic, Inc.
- Having Difficult Conversations With Employees
- Presented by John Amato of Familylinks
- Specialized Telehealth for Individuals With IDD
- Presented by Maulik Trivedi of StationMD
- Improve Clinical Outcomes and Enter Into Value-Based Contracts Using Clinical Data
- Presented by Dominick DiSalvo of KidsPeace
- Returning Citizens Housing Smart Model
- Presented by Claire Ryder and Curtis Gillard of Resources for Human Development, as well as Clayton Moser and Taeesha Smith of PMHCC
- CMS Home and Community-Based Services Quality Measures Set
- Presented by Juliet Marsala of Health Management Association
You also won’t want to miss our plenary speakers:
- Chuck Ingoglia of National Council for Mental Wellbeing and Gabrielle Sedor of ANCOR will give us “Insights From Washington.”
- Meg Snead of DHS and Jen Smith of DDAP will provide updates on how PA continues to be innovative in health care.
Be sure to check out the entire list of sessions in our brochure, and note that sessions will be recorded to allow participants access after the event.
In addition to an amazing roster of speakers, our 2022 Conference will have an exciting array of sponsors and exhibitors. We thank those who have committed to our conference thus far! If you are interested in sponsoring or exhibiting, visit here for more details.
Questions about the conference may be directed to Carol Ferenz or Sarah Eyster, Conference Coordinators.
DHS Announces Public Comment Period & Virtual Sessions on Statewide Transition Plan for HCBS
The Department of Human Services (DHS) announced they will be accepting comments on Pennsylvania’s Final Statewide Transition Plan (STP) for Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS). This plan applies to Medicaid Waivers under the Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL), Office of Developmental Programs (ODP), and Office of Child Development & Early Learning (OCDEL). The notice is below and includes additional information about upcoming webinars.
HCBS Settings Rule – Background
CMS published the HCBS Rule, which amends the Medicaid regulations for HCBS waivers under section 1915(c) of the Social Security Act. The HCBS Rule supports enhanced quality of programs and services and adds protections for individuals receiving services. The HCBS Rule reflects CMS’ intent to ensure all individuals receiving services and supports through Medicaid waivers have full access to the benefits of community living, including receiving services in the most integrated setting. The HCBS Rule includes a provision requiring states to develop a transition plan to ensure that services will meet federal requirements by March 2023.
Statewide Transition Plan
The Department received initial approval of its STP on August 30, 2016, which can be accessed at the Department’s HCBS Stakeholder Waiver and Planning Team web page.
To receive final approval of Pennsylvania’s STP, the Department is required to complete the following remaining steps and submit an updated STP with this information included:
- Complete a thorough, comprehensive site-specific assessment of all HCBS settings, implement necessary strategies for validating the assessment results, and include the outcomes of this assessment within the STP;
- Draft remediation strategies and a corresponding timeline that will resolve issues that the site-specific settings assessment process and subsequent validation strategies uncovered by the end of the HCBS rule transition period (March 17, 2023);
- Outline a detailed plan for identifying settings that are presumed to have institutional characteristics, including qualities that isolate HCBS beneficiaries, as well as the proposed process for evaluating these settings and preparing for submission to CMS for review under heightened scrutiny;
- Develop a process for communicating with beneficiaries that are currently receiving services in settings that the state has determined cannot or will not come into compliance with the HCBS settings rule by March 17, 2023; and
- Establish ongoing monitoring and quality assurance processes that will ensure all settings providing HCBS continue to remain fully compliant with the rule in the future.
This information is included in Pennsylvania’s Final STP for public comment. A presentation providing a general overview of the HCBS Rule and Pennsylvania’s Final STP will be recorded by the Department and posted by the end of August to prepare stakeholders for public comment. Information about where to access the presentation will be published when it is available.
As outlined in the public comment section below, the Office of Child Development and Early Learning (OCDEL), Office of Developmental Programs (ODP), and Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL) will each hold webinars to go over information in Pennsylvania’s STP that is specific to their waivers and programs. Public comment will be accepted during each of these webinars.
Public Comment
Pennsylvania’s Final STP is available for a 30-day public comment period at the Department’s HCBS STP web page. Comments will be accepted no later than 11:59 pm on September 22, 2022. Stakeholders may provide public comment through one of the following methods:
- Electronic comments submitted via email
- Stakeholders are asked to use the subject header “PA Final STP” and submit comments to this mailbox.
- Written comments submitted via mail
- Mailing address: Department of Human Services, Office of the Secretary, P. O. Box 2675, Harrisburg, PA 17105-2675.
- Verbal and written comments during public comment webinars
- The following dates and times below are for stakeholders to participate in the public comment webinars:
- Webinar Specific to STP Information for OCDEL
September 12, 2022
9:00 am – 10:00 am
Please register for the webinar via email. - Webinars Specific to STP Information for ODP
September 8, 2022
10:00 am – 12:00 pm
Please register for the webinar.
September 12, 2022
1:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Please register for the webinar. - Webinar Specific to STP Information for OLTL
September 15, 2022
2:00 pm – 3:00 pm
Please register for the webinar.
- Webinar Specific to STP Information for OCDEL
- The following dates and times below are for stakeholders to participate in the public comment webinars:
When submitting electronic or written comments, it is recommended that you include the following information:
- The page number or Appendix where the information you are commenting on is located; and
- Which office (OCDEL, ODP, or OLTL) the comment applies to, if applicable.
SAU1 September Events Flyer
Self Advocates United as 1 (SAU1) asks that you share their calendar of events “Spark Your September With SAPNA!” with all individuals who may be interested.
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