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Tags Posts tagged with "Workforce Crisis"

Workforce Crisis

Message from National Core Indicators:

The NCI-IDD SoTW is the most comprehensive data on Direct Support Professional (DSP) workforce providing direct services to adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). We remain committed to partnering with states, agencies, and people with IDD to use these data to strengthen Medicaid-funded services and supports and ensure DSPs are valued for their essential role supporting people with IDD.

A few report highlights:

In 2024, we collected data from 3,936 provider agencies representing 344,179 DSPs in 26 states and the District of Columbia. The data for 2024 suggest some positive trends for the state of the IDD DSP workforce. For example:

  • Across the nation, the median hourly wage for DSPs is $18.39, which is more than a dollar increase from the median hourly wage of $17.20 in 2023.
  • The weighted average turnover ratio was 37%, with nearly two in three DSPs who left their employers (64%) having been with their agency for less than one year.
  • On average, 26% of agencies report they turned away or stopped accepting referrals due to staffing issues, down from 38% in 2023.

State DD agencies have worked tirelessly to address the ongoing workforce shortages for DSPs, and these data suggest slight but hopeful trends in key indicators. Altogether, NCI-IDD SoTW provide valuable insights about opportunities to enhance retention of DSPs and improve the continuity of services.


The full report can be found here at this link.

For questions or comments, please contact Tim Sohosky.

Home studio podcast interior. Microphone, laptop and on air lamp on the table, close-up

The Connection Every IDD Leader Needs w/ RCPA
Ep. 62 • December 8, 2025

In this episode of the IDD Leaders podcast, podcast host, Nate Beers, sits down with Tim Sohosky, IDD Director at RCPA (Rehabilitation and Community Providers Association), to uncover one of the most overlooked advantages available to leaders in the IDD field: your provider association.

If you’ve ever felt like you’re leading in isolation, drowning in vacancies, or constantly reacting to new regulations — you’re not alone. And you don’t have to keep going solo. Tim shares insider insights on how high-performing leaders stay ahead of staffing challenges, influence policy before it hits their agencies, and tap into resources that make their jobs easier (and their teams stronger).

Watch/listen to the podcast here. Visit the IDD Leaders podcast website for more information on the podcast and organization.

In the last few months, have you thought about leaving the disabilities field?
(You are not alone.)

It’s hard to know what to change when you are feeling overwhelmed and stuck.

This field has turned into a pressure cooker. There’s…

  • Pressure to ensure individuals are safe.
  • Pressure to juggle staffing coverage when you’re short.
  • Pressure from having to add one more thing to do with every phone call, text message, and email.
  • Pressure with this week’s unexpected emergencies.
  • Pressure from constantly fighting fires.

How do you keep going when you are exhausted and wondering why you still do this?

If all of this feels far too familiar, this workshop is for you.

This workshop from DSP Magnet is free and will help you…

  • Feel less alone.
  • Reignite that spark and passion for this work.
  • Bring some fun back to work.

Apply for a FREE spot in this workshop here!

Applications are due Wednesday, September 24, 2025, by 8:00 pm EST. Completing the application does NOT guarantee a spot in the workshop.

Workshop Details:
Wednesday, October 1
2:00 pm – 3:30 pm EST
Presented by Scott de Fasselle of DSP Magnet
Will be hosted on Zoom (link to be provided upon acceptance)

You can contact Scott via email if you have any questions.

From Risk to Reward: Strengthening Your Hiring Process
Free RCPA Members-Only Webinar

Wednesday, August 13, 2025
1:00 pm – 2:00 pm
Register Here

In this session, we will review how introducing value-based tools early in the hiring process has shown to reduce an employer’s risk for turnover, safety incidents, counterproductive employee behavior, and workers compensation claims. We will review recent case studies showing the measurable impact of this process.

Presenter: Mark Walker, MBA, Managing Partner, Safer Hire LLC

Objectives: Following this course, the learner will:

  • Identify a value-based hiring process;
  • Describe how this hiring process can reduce risk of turnover; and
  • Describe how the hiring process can reduce risk of safety & claims.

Certificates of attendance are available to RCPA members who attend this webinar; anyone interested in a certificate should contact Cathy Barrick. To apply for CEs, you will need to register for the RCPA Annual Conference Strive to Thrive and indicate you attended the webinar in your CE packet, which will be made available on the mobile app.

Contact Carol Ferenz, Conference Coordinator, for details, or visit the RCPA Conference website for information on workshops, sponsors, exhibitors, and more!