Community Participation Supports Direct Support

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Community Participation Supports for Direct Support Professionals Webcast #1

This webcast includes spoken narration.

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The written version of the narration appears to the right of the screen.

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Certificates of Achievement will be available to Administrative Entity staff, Providers, Supports Coordinators, and SC Supervisors after completing all course requirements.

Please view and then save or print your certificate in order to receive credit for this course.

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Hello – my name is Nancy Thaler and I am the Deputy Secretary for the Office of Developmental Programs. Our office designs the programs and services provided to over 55,000 people who have intellectual disabilities and Autism.

The goal of our services is to help everyone have the same experiences and the same opportunities that we all have in life: to be part of a family, to have friends, go to school or work, to have fun, and to feel like we belong…an opportunity to live just an Everyday Life.

You are the critical players to making all of that come true and I know how critical you are because I was a direct support professional for eight years at the beginning of my career. I worked in small institutions and was a live‐in house parent in a group home for four years. The other reason I know how critical you are is because I have a son with intellectual disabilities who lives in the community. He has a job with the help of a job coach and a wonderful direct support professional who helps him in his apartment. I know how hard your job is, I know the challenges you face and I also know the joys of getting so close to someone that you support that they become like family.

Today I am welcoming you to a new training series created just for Direct Support Professionals. We are introducing a new service for people who now go to day programs like adult training facilities or sheltered workshops – the new service is called Community Participation Supports.

What’s the purpose of this new service called Community Participation Supports?

Well, it’s to give more people experiences in their community because we know that the more people we know, the more experiences we have ‐ the better life is. Adults learn mostly from experience and from being with other adults. So the opportunities everyone has and the more people they know, the more they will learn and the better life will be.

What is it people would do in the community that would expand their experience and the number of people they know?


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Well work is one way to be in the community and do that. People who have a job meet new people, they learn new skills and they feel like they belong someplace, like they are contributing. And we want to make sure everyone has the opportunity to work.

For people who are not working, volunteering is a way to meet new people and to make a contribution to the community. And volunteering can also lead to paid work. Whether it’s delivering Meals on Wheels, working in an animal shelter, a food pantry or helping out in a nursing home or a day care center ‐ these are opportunities to make a difference in the community, to develop work skills and habits and to meet more people.

Learning to navigate the community more independently, whether it’s crossing a street at the light or taking public transportation, develops independence skills. Going to adult classes in schools or libraries creates other opportunities.

Developing interests and skills in the arts like painting, singing, dancing or pursuing hobbies that allow other people who are interested to participate with you – things like racing model cars, cooking clubs, adult softball and bowling leagues all expand opportunities.

Lots of the people in our service system, like many of us, have weight problems and other health risks. So things like walking clubs, cycling, water aerobics, diet groups and yoga can be fun, and they can provide a peer support group to improve health.

If we think about what each of us does every day in our own communities, the list of things to be involved in is limitless.

Direct Support Workers are key to making all of this happen for people

Your energy, your enthusiasm, your knowledge about the community and your personal connections are things you bring to the table. You know the people you support and you will be critical to their successfully and safely trying new things and building new connections in their communities.

This may be a new role for many of you who have been working primarily within a facility and it will be new for your facility, too. You can’t do this in large groups of people so our new service makes it possible to have staff with small numbers of people in the community. You can’t do this alone and you’re not expected to. Everyone will be involved including the directors and supervisors where you work, in the planning for all of this change.

What each person does should be based on their personal interests and it should occur in their own communities so this has to be planned one or two people at a time. What you know about each person and what you know about the community will be very important.

This is not about doing things for people or just getting them out into the community. It’s about doing things that matter and doing them with people; seeing every experience as an


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experience through which people learn. Remember – adults learn by doing. And you are the facilitator.

It is obvious why it is good for people to learn new skills. But it is equally important that they build a social network. Being known not only expands opportunities but it also helps to keep people safe.

For instance, my son when he’s traveling from Norristown to Scranton by bus and arrives at the bus station earlier than we can get there is safe because the people in the bus station, the woman who sells the tickets, the bus drivers, the people who maintain the bus station know my son and they’ll watch out for him until we get there.

New expectations and change can feel overwhelming – so the best thing to do is think about this one person at a time and over time.

Think about an individual you know well. Where is his or her community? What are his or her interests and what do they like to do? Who do they know and what connections might they already have in the community? Think about your own knowledge of the community and your own personal connections. This is all about trying things out and learning from each other.

Our office will continue to provide support to you and your agency as this transition takes place over the next several years. This first session is only the beginning.

On behalf of all the staff in the Office of Developmental Programs, I want to thank you for everything you do to help people like my son, Aaron, live an Everyday Life.


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Thank you Nancy.

Hello, my name is Robin Levine from the Columbus Organization. This is the first of seven webcasts developed for Direct Support Professionals specific to your role in Community Participation Supports services. The series is designed to provide an overview ‐ an introduction to the what, why, where and how of Community Participation Supports. We will provide direction, tools and strategies to help you to fulfill your role to deliver the best quality Community Participation Support service to the people you support.

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In this first webcast, we will provide an introduction to Community Participation Supports. We will look at the values, principles and philosophies that contribute to the reason why Community Participation Supports is important. The basic meaning and purpose of Community Participation Supports will be explained and the important role of the Direct Support Professional (DSP) will be highlighted. The DSP works directly with people with disabilities to help build job possibilities, make and maintain friendships and become active in their communities.

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The Community Participation Supports service may be new to many DSPs. So, what do we mean?

The purpose of the Community Participation Support service is to broaden the types of life‐long learning experiences available to individuals receiving services in order to:‐ pursue competitive integrated employment‐ develop and sustain a range of valued social roles and relationships‐ increase independence and ‐ experience meaningful community participation and inclusion in activities that involve persons without disabilities who are not paid or unpaid caregivers.

In other words, the service provides support to help people to live a full and meaningful community life.

And while the primary goal is employment, the overall goal is for people to become a valued part of their community that includes employment and other activities and relationships.

It is important to highlight early in this discussion that these opportunities should be in integrated community locations ‐ outside of the facility, in the person's community. For people who primarily receive this service in the facility, broadening their types of experiences and opportunities is the focus of this service. We’ll talk more about that in a few minutes.

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For the next few slides, we will consider three more pieces of what guides ODP’s services and programs.

The current Mission and Vision of ODP supports the values of Everyday Lives and gives direction to the work of all team members.

The mission of ODP is to support Pennsylvanians with developmental disabilities to achieve greater independence, choice and opportunity in their lives.

The words – independence, choice and opportunity – are underlined as this connects directly to Everyday Lives.

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ODP’s vision relates to Everyday Lives with a commitment to continuously improving an effective system of accessible services and supports that are flexible, innovative and person‐centered. And here we have another strong tie to Community Participation Supports.

In order to assist people to have a full life in the community, we need the same three characteristics (flexibility, innovation and person‐centered) to be at the core of the approach to Community Participation Supports services.

This service is intended to be a wrap around to employment services to support people to be engaged in activities in their communities like any other adult (non‐Medicaid recipient) who isn't working during the day. So we are thinking about what do people do on the weekends, before and after work or people who are retired and not working.

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Person Centered Thinking is at the cornerstone of planning for people with disabilities receiving supports in Pennsylvania. If you have not completed training on person centered thinking or would like a refresher on core concepts, there is a training series on the MYODP website that we strongly recommend to you. A link to the courses on MYODP can be found where you started this webcast.

The core concept of Person Centered Thinking is to identify those things that are Important To us (like – people/relationships, spirituality, things you like to do/places to go, rituals or routines, rhythm/pace of life, and things to have); and then balance that with what is Important For us (like ‐ health and safety, prevention and treatment of illness, promotion of wellness, and emotional well being). Being a valued and contributing member of the community is also something that is Important For us.

This may be a new concept for you and you may be wondering why being a valued and contributing member of the community is Important For us. The answer is that when you are part of the community, when you are known to your neighbors and valued by people around you ‐ you are healthier and safer. People are watching out for you. And think about when you are doing something to help others? Don’t you feel good about yourself, get a lift to your spirits?

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Let me give you two examples of how being known in your community protects a person’s health and safety.

I know a guy who was dropped off by his bus and no one was home because there was a medical emergency with a different family member. Three different neighbors saw him and called his family to say he was sitting outside the house. One of the neighbors went over and sat with him until a family member came home.

Or how about Jean who attends a water aerobics class like clockwork. She developed a relationship with a few of the women in the class and when she didn't show up, they called her home to make sure she was okay.

Can you see how being a valued part of the community can help keep a person healthy and safe?

What is Important To and Important For people is tied to Everyday Lives, ODP’s Mission and Vision Statement and to Community Participation Supports Services. We will be using person centered thinking tools and highlighting the importance of person centered planning throughout this webcast series.

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After two years of gathering input and recommendations from a wide variety of stakeholders and conducting research on best practice, Everyday Lives: Values in Action was published by ODP in 2016. The stakeholder group that worked with ODP is the Information Sharing and Advisory Committee (ISAC ). ISAC continues to serve as the group that provides shared and sustained leadership and strategic thinking to the ODP service system.Everyday Lives 2016 also confirms the belief that in order to support individuals we need to support their families.

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Here are the two overarching value statements of Everyday Lives 2016. As you will hear, the underlying message is much the same as in 1991.

‐We value what is important to people with disabilities and their families, who are striving for an everyday life.‐ People with disabilities have a right to an everyday life; a life that is no different than that of all other citizens.

Different from the original Everyday Lives, the publication includes 13 recommendations for action which will guide the way for ODP in answering the questions – are we doing what we said and are we making a difference?

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The 13 recommendations from Everyday Lives: Values in Action is a comprehensive list that impacts a wide variety of topics and includes all stakeholders.

The first seven recommendations include communication; self‐direction; employment; supporting families; health, wellness and safety; supporting people with complex needs and developing and supporting qualified staff.

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Recommendations 8 through 13 address – simplifying the system; improving quality; expanding community living options; increasing community participation; providing community services to everyone and evaluation of future innovations.

As you can see, one of the 13 Everyday Lives recommendations is to Increase Community Participation. ODP has taken action on this recommendation by prioritizing a meaningful community life for all people with disabilities and has developed a new service to support implementation. That is what we are focusing on in this training series.

After the 13 recommendations were distributed, ODP worked with the ISAC to identify performance measures and strategies. Strategies are system action steps for implementation of each recommendation. Performance measures will help ODP to gauge progress over time. The full version of Everyday Lives: Values in Action and the Recommendations, Strategies and Performance Measures are resources to this training series and can be found where you originally started this webcast. There is also a link to many Everyday Lives resources at the bottom of this slide.

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Recommendation #11 describes the thinking behind the importance of Community Participation Supports for people with disabilities and what will be the result – a community life with opportunities for new experiences and interests, developing friendships and making a contribution to the community. The recommendation also reminds us that the goal is a mutual relationship where people with and without disabilities are connected and the result is an enriched life for everyone.

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With all of this background in mind, I would like you to think about yourself for a moment. Here is a list of items that many people will say are Important To them. This is not a complete list but does include some of the things that people say make life worth living. Please check all of the items that are important to you. Click submit when you are done.

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Now think of all of the things you checked and consider how many of the things that are important to you involve your life in the community. Were many of the things that are important to you (that helped you to feel happy, content and satisfied); were these experiences and events that happen in the community?

While you may enjoy time alone, I guess that many of the things that are important to you are about being with people, being connected and appreciated for your contributions and doing activities that match your interests.

And here is an important clarification – while work is where we spend many hours of each day, all of the other items on the check list happen when we are not working. In addition to competitive employment, it is the non‐work set of experiences and opportunities that are at the core of Community Participation Support.

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But while we are talking about non‐work time, there are many connections to work. Work can be a big part of a social life. Think about it, are there people at work that you see and do things with outside of the office? Do you have friends that you met through work?

Non‐work activities can also help us get set up to find jobs. Think about jobs you have had. Did you get any of those jobs because you knew someone who worked there? And there are skills that we learn through non‐work activities and community relationships that support employment opportunities. The job skills learned in a facility building through pre‐vocational services are also included in Community Participation Supports as these services are intended to lead to competitive integrated employment. Work is part of a full community life and a full community life supports work.

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Narration: We have thought about ourselves in the community so let’s hear now from Kristen, a person who receives community participation supports. What does a community life look like for Kristen? In listening to Kristen’s life, can you identify what is important to her?

Narration: Kristen was talking with her DSP, Ashley, and another staff member, Laura, when this recording was made. Laura: What do you do when you are in your neighborhood?Kristen: I’m part of the community garden, explore Philadelphia, volunteer at JRA, walk the greyhounds, museums, walk around the neighborhood, go to the gym, exercise, go to the pool and take water exercise classes. I have a dog. Ashley: MopsyKristen: Mopsy!Ashley: We got to share some vegetables with Mopsy when we picked them from her mom’s garden.

Ashley: What are some things that we are growing in our garden?Kristen: Lavender.Ashley: Okay, so what do you want to do with that?Kristen: Make pouches.Ashley: Pouches would be cool. We could look that up on Pinterest.Kristen: Yeah.Ashley: We can go to the park. Maybe we can catch the bus there. Kristin: Yeah, but.. Ashley: We’ll look it up and see when they have the drying sessions where they show you how to do everything.

Ashley: How do I help you do things in your community?Kristen: Helps me budget my money when I’m out. She, you help me introduce me to new friends and helps me buy me things to do.

Ashley: What kind of work would you like to try?Kristen: I work a few hours a week but I still want to work more. I shred, address envelopes, sweeping, odds and ends, whatever they need me to do. I want to work more hours in the doctor’s office.

Ashley: What are some of the things you want try doing in your neighborhood?Kristen: I want to learn to take the bus to work. I want to eat healthier. I want to make new, make more friends.

Ashley: Who are some of the people that you have met in your neighborhood? Who have you met that you got to know and have a relationship with now?

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Kristen: Genesis, Melana, Valerie (my boss), coworkers who are my friends. I get to meet people when I deliver food to them. Ashley: Who did you run into yesterday?Kristen: Jennie.Ashley: Where do you know her from?Kristen: The gym.

Narration: I heard many things identified that are important to Kristen that are being supported through Community Participation Supports: work, gardening, exercise, Mopsy, friends and her mom. Did you hear that, too? We also had an opportunity to spontaneously hear how new discoveries are made of things to do like go to the lavender garden.


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A little background will be helpful here. Until July 2017, most people who attended Adult Training Facilities and Vocational Facilities or what are referred to as sheltered workshops had those services paid for through the Consolidated or P/FDS waivers. The services in the waivers were called Licensed Day Habilitation or Prevocational Services.

In July 2017, ODP introduced a new waiver service called Community Participation Supports which replaces those services. The big difference with Community Participation Supports is that there is an expectation that each person has opportunities in the community to make new relationships, increase independence, contribute to their neighborhood and spend time in activities that include people without disabilities who are not paid or unpaid caregivers. Community Participation Supports wraps around work which is still the primary goal. Community Participation Support applies to all Pre‐vocational and Adult Training Facilities.

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I think you can see how Community Participation Supports relates to ODP’s vision of flexibility, innovative services and also directly relates to Everyday Lives 2016 with a focus on employment.

While employment is the primary goal for people with disabilities, Community Participation Supports are focused on the time of day when people are not working. Think about what adults do during the day when we are not working; any non‐working adult whether it is on the weekend, before and after work or at the time of retirement. What do we do during these off hours – we see friends and family, have fun, get a haircut, and spend time taking care of our general health and spiritual wellness. This is our community life; it is an Everyday Life. This training series was designed for you because you will make Community Participation Supports happen.

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Figuring out how to make non‐work time meaningful in the community and using non‐work time to develop skills and relationships takes planning and exploration. This is the critical role of the DSP in helping people with disabilities to have a full community life. It means knowing a person very well, identifying their individual interests, matching to their strengths and capabilities and then finding the connections in the community. The webcasts in this series on Person Centered Planning, Community Mapping and Building Relationships will be helpful to you in further thinking about helping people you support to have a community life.

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Let’s hear from Ashley a DSP who is helping Kristen and other people with a disability to have a meaningful life in the community.

Laura: What is the most fun about supporting Kristen in the community? Ashley: The most fun aspect of supporting Kristen in the community would be her progress from week to week. When I first started with Kristen she didn’t have many friends and now she has an abundance of them. She is better with handling her money and is able to compromise on things when she does want to spend more than usual. She also shares more with her friends now then she did before, she’s open to talking to people and interacting. She also helps with self‐advocating with herself and others; she encourages her friends to help make decisions and everything. In the future, Kristen plans to become more independent by catching the bus to work. I am excited to help her with this because I’ve been practicing lately.

Laura: Where did you start in terms of figuring out where to go and who to connect with to support Kristen in getting involved?Ashley: I started with Kristen’s neighborhood, goals, and passions. Kristen has a desire to become healthier and loves to swim. Kristen shared her love of water with me and I shared my love of crafts with her. She’s become a great painter and if you walk into her house her walls are covered in her paintings; which is something that we’re both proud of. We’ve also been able to learn how to garden together. She had a inside scoop with it because her Mom’s a gardener and I knew nothing. And we’re learning together and we’re creating a bond.

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Laura: How have you figured out what to do? What Kristen might like? Ashley: Talking to Kristen was a great help but also utilizing her team to help find out what she likes and dislikes. Kristen really wants to increase her work hours. When she first started with Community Participation, she did not work. I think supporting Kristen in making relationships has helped her with her job. We continue to work on skills that transfer into the workplace to help her to reach her goal of getting more hours. We relate activities that we do every day to how we can help her at work.

Laura: Do you have Kristen have plans for new people to meet? New activities? Ashley: We are always looking for more activities for Kristen to participate in and we try to meet new people wherever we go. I try and help her meet new friends in the places she loves to go so that she already has a common interest with these people.

Laura: How do you know when you’ve got it right supporting Kristen in trying something new or meeting new people? Ashley: I know I got it right when I see Kristen’s reactions. When she’s having a great day or a great moment, she is very proud of herself. When Kristen has a successful day at work she often tells me about it. Kristen recently got a raise at work which is great news ‐‐ for both of us. All of the skills and relationships she forms in her neighborhood have led her to have personal success as well as success in her career. Kristen is more willing to try new activities now, for example, yoga and Zumba. We’ve both experienced those together for the first time.

Laura: What has been the most rewarding part of supporting Kristen in the community? Ashley: That would again be her progress. I look back at the first year that I supported her and how much she has grown and how much she wants for her future. Also seeing how Kristen can turn someone’s day around wherever she goes.

Laura: What has been the most challenging part of supporting Kristen in the community? Ashley: Sometimes finding common ground between the people that you support is hard especially when you have more than one person at a time. It’s important to help people learn the importance of compromise. Sometimes finding free activities is hard to do also. Even with preplanning activities month in advance sometimes people don’t want to do that on that given day; it’s always good to have a backup plan. The biggest thing I learned is that you have to be open minded and willing to listen and willing to try new things with something.


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Being a valued member of your community, having a full meaningful community life is important to people with and without disabilities.

The Direct Support Professional has a critical role in supporting people with disabilities to have that life in the community. Using your skills and experiences in combination with effort and time, we will be able to support people to achieve the values of Everyday Lives.

ODP will continue to partner with you by providing tools, strategies and information to help you to be successful in promoting a community life for the people you support.

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This concludes the first webcast on Community Participation Supports. Please be sure to watch all seven webcasts and complete all the course requirements in order to obtain your Certificate of Achievement and training credit.

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This webcast has been developed and produced by the Pennsylvania Department of Human Services, Office of Developmental Programs in partnership with The Columbus Organization.

Thank you for participating in this lesson.

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Documents

Community Participation Supports Direct Support