';
Tags Posts tagged with "DSP"

DSP

Direct Support Professionals (DSP) make a lasting difference in the lives of those they assist, helping individuals of all ages and abilities rise above challenges, embrace new opportunities, and live healthier, more fulfilling lives. The Move Your Way® campaign promotes easy to use, evidence-based physical activity guidance from the Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans. Share the recommendations with those you support and inspire them to get more active.

Start the conversation!
When you bring up physical activity, it helps to keep the tone friendly and encouraging. Try these quick conversation starters.

How much physical activity do you get in an average week?
Meet people where they are. Once you have an idea of their current activity level, you can suggest small changes to help them get more active.

Are there activities you’d like to be able to do?
Would they like to run in a 5K? Climb stairs more easily? Explore more outdoor activities? Knowing their motivations can help you work together to set achievable goals. DSPs have the creativity and compassion to modify activities that align with each person’s physical abilities, ensuring they can participate safely and feel proud of their achievements—no matter their starting point.

See the DSP Move Your Way flyer for more tips on starting the conversation.

How can you Move Your Way?
Anything that gets your heart beating faster counts. And it all adds up. Find what works for you! Walking, dancing, gardening, swimming, and stretching are just a few suggestions for weekly movement. Adults need a mix of physical activity to stay healthy. Moderate-intensity aerobic activity at least 150 minutes a week, and muscle-strengthening activity at least 2 days a week. Do activities that make your muscles work harder than usual.

Kids and teens ages 6 to 17 need at least 60 minutes every day. Most of it can be moderate-intensity aerobic activity.

At least 3 days a week, encourage them to step it up to vigorous intensity. As a part of their 60 minutes, they also need muscle-strengthening at least 3 days a week and bone-strengthening 3 days a week.

What’s Your Move?
Do you have a weekly movement routine or are you just getting started? Share your story with us!

Send an email with a subject line of “Move Your Way” and ODP may feature your story on MyODP News Online!

Please be sure to fill out the Department of Human Services (DHS) Media Release Form to send with your story!

Photo by Copernico on Unsplash

TOPIC — Autism Spectrum Disorders: An Overview and Practical Application

Over the years the prevalence of autism has increased, Pennsylvania’s service delivery system for individuals with autism has expanded, and best practices to provide quality supports have emerged. To support the individual needs of each person with autism across the lifespan, an understanding of core characteristics must be established. It is also important to learn how the individual’s presentation of autism may change across settings and situations. This seminar will provide attendees with an in-depth presentation on core characteristics of autism and the impact of the characteristics on daily life, routines, and activities. A review of common terms and basic principles used to change behavior, teach new skills, and develop practical application of best practices will be included. Opportunity for discussion and engagement will occur throughout the seminar.

Who should attend?

  • Direct Support Professionals, Front Line Supervisors, and Program Managers supporting individuals with autism in residential and other home and community-based settings; and
  • Professionals supporting individuals in Adult Autism Waiver (AAW), Adult Community Autism Program (ACAP), Consolidated Person/Family-Directed Support Waiver (P/FDS), and Community Living.

Where and when will sessions be held?

  • April 1 PaTTAN East, 10:00 am 3:00 pm
  • April 24 PaTTAN Central, 10:00 am 3:00 pm
  • April 30 PaTTAN West, 9:30 am 2:30 pm

Continuing Education Units (CEUs)

This training satisfies the basic autism training requirement for Residential Performance Based Contracting measures CN-DD/Bx.01.1S and CN-DD/Bx.01.1CE for all Direct Support Professionals (DSPs), Frontline Supervisors (FLSs), and program managers.

This training also fulfills 6100 ongoing training requirements.

REGISTER

*After logging into your MyODP account, completion of the Demographics Form is required before being able to register for a session.

Please contact the Bureau of Autism Training inbox with questions.

TOPIC: Autism Spectrum Disorders: An Overview and Practical Application

Over the years the prevalence of autism has increased, Pennsylvania’s service delivery system for individuals with autism has expanded, and best practices to provide quality supports have emerged. To support the individual needs of each person with autism across the lifespan, an understanding of core characteristics must be established. It is also important to learn how the individual’s presentation of autism may change across settings and situations. This seminar will provide attendees with an in-depth presentation on core characteristics of autism and the impact of the characteristics on daily life, routines, and activities. A review of common terms and basic principles used to change behavior, teach new skills, and develop practical application of best practices will be included. Opportunity for discussion and engagement will occur throughout the seminar.

Who should attend?

Direct Support Professionals, Front Line Supervisors, and Program Managers supporting individuals with autism in residential and other home and community-based settings. Professionals supporting individuals in Adult Autism Waiver (AAW), Adult Community Autism Program (ACAP), Consolidated Person/Family-Directed Support Waiver (P/FDS), and Community Living are encouraged to attend.

Where and when will sessions be held?

3 Locations, 1 session per location. 125-person max per session.

  • April 1 — PaTTAN East, 10:00 am 3:00 pm
  • April 24 — PaTTAN Central, 10:00 am 3:00 pm
  • April 30 — PaTTAN West, 9:30 am 2:30 pm

Registration will open in early March.

Continuing Education Units (CEUs)

  • This training satisfies the basic autism training requirement for Residential Performance Based Contracting measures CN-DD/Bx.01.1S and CN-DD/Bx.01.1CE for all Direct Support Professionals (DSPs), Frontline Supervisors (FLSs), and program managers.
  • This training also fulfills 6100 ongoing training requirements.

Please contact the Bureau of Autism Training inbox with questions.

The Office of Long-Term Living (OLTL) is partnering with the Office of Developmental Programs (ODP), The Institute on Disabilities at Temple University, College of Education and Human Development, and the University of Kansas Center on Disabilities’ State of the States team to host Pennsylvania Technology Summits as part of a statewide initiative called PA Tech Accelerator.

The goal of the Summits is to expand the awareness of, and access to, assistive technology and remote technologies in order to build capacity of technology users throughout the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania.

The Summits will be held on March 6, 2025, in Philadelphia and March 13, 2025, in Pittsburgh. To attend, please register here.

The Summits will feature a keynote address by Rebekah Taussig, PhD; a panel of technology users giving advice, sharing their stories, and answering questions; and vendors showcasing services, devices, and solutions.

Who is invited?

  • People with disabilities and their families.
  • Direct Support Providers and professionals working with people with disabilities, such as Direct Care Workers, Direct Support Professionals, Support Service Professionals, Supports Coordinators, Job Coaches, and healthcare professionals.
  • Organizations and providers who serve people with disabilities.
  • Policymakers, advocates, and allies for people with lived disability experience.
  • Students looking to work in disability-related fields.
  • Anyone interested in technological supports for people with disabilities.

If you have additional questions about the Summit, please contact Kristy Crocetto at (215) 204-1356 or via email.

Senator Carolyn Comitta and Senator Lindsey Williams shared the following message with all Senate members. You may want to contact your local legislator requesting their support.


Posted: January 6, 2025, 12:56 pm
From: Senator Carolyn T. Comitta and Sen. Lindsey M. Williams
To: All Senate members
Subject: ID/A Market Index for DSP Services

Making our government more efficient and effective often means innovating ways to more closely align bureaucratic processes with best practice solutions. Pennsylvania’s method of compensating our invaluable Direct Support Professionals (DSPs) is one such opportunity. Over 55,000 Pennsylvanians with intellectual disabilities and autism need some assistance during the day to reach their highest level of independence and opportunity. These people and their families rely upon our committed DSPs to support some of the most personal tasks and make sure they live safely while engaging in the community. Often, our DSPs become like family to their clients.

Sadly, if you looked at the pay DSPs receive in Pennsylvania you would not know how critical they are to those who need their services. Despite best efforts, too many great staff leave the profession due to necessity in order to support themselves and their families. This often leads to a very high staff turnover rate even amongst our best providers, which has a negative effect on their clients.

Regulation requires a three-year refresh of market-based data in order to adopt a fee schedule, but there is no requirement for Pennsylvania to change rates at all – no matter what happens to inflation. Under this process, rates are already a year behind by the time they become effective. Last year’s rate increase was 3-4% below actual inflation, without any guarantee of correction for at least 3 years. For many providers, annual increases to health insurance, worker’s compensation, liability and other factors far exceed the available funds.

To help stabilize this workforce and provide better care for individuals with intellectual disabilities and autism, Senator Lindsey Williams and I will soon introduce legislation to amend the Human Services Code requiring that rates annually be set based on a national market consumer index. The adoption of a nationally recognized market index will help provide stability to this system and also support the hard-working DSPs that are essential to the delivery of services for Pennsylvanians with intellectual disabilities and autism. This legislation was SB684 and a companion to Rep. Miller’s HB661 in the 2023-24 session.

We hope you will join us in cosponsoring this important legislation.