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Posted by paul “How much we pay direct care workers…” will NOT increase the their chances of calling emergency services. To imply so is to imply that Daniel's caretakers would have called 911 if they had been paid twice as much…three times as much…et cetera. To imply so is to imply that a volunteer would be unable, under any circumstances, to recognize the need for emergency services and to call emergency services when needed. I am not stating nor implying that direct care staff get adequately compensated! I am implying that the core issue (in California) is non-wage/funding based. Wages can be a close second or third (usually about 5th), but RARELY a primary impetus behind low quality and turnover. The very need for a Daniell’s law should make this self-evident. By placing “wages” amongst training and cultural issues we encourage behavior that chooses to avoid the more critical issues. Id est, instead of addressing ALL issues affecting quality and turnover, which can be a LOT of work, in tandem - advocates choose to focus on salaries and funding IN LIEU of the more critical problems. It is the easiest mantra. In California Direct Care staff MUST, by law, receive 35-hours of training during their first year of employment, and 70-hours after their second year. Law does not permit a direct care staff that does not meet these requirements permitted to work. Yet, there is no monitoring or data collection mechanism to ensure that adult residential facilities comply with this law. Furthermore, results of initial testing showed a “low pass rate” which forced the California Legislature to extend deadlines to prevent a staffing shortage. To boot, a survey IMO, would find that most supervisors of groups homes are unaware of the mandates. A study by AAMR (Minnesota data) showed that only 51% of Supervisors (group homes) provided new employees with job descriptions before hiring.* Would increased salaries and funding for these supervisors and group homes make them understand “best practices”, concepts of sourcing, opportunity, stress, provide leadership or work standards, or get them to read “the one minute manager”? To increase wages or funding without insuring that our critical problems are addressed is money burned. (Sheryl A. Larson, Ph.D., K. Charlie Lakin, Ph.D., Robert H. Bruininks,
on November 18, 2005, 11:31 am, in reply to "Re: "
68.6.36.93
Most certainly, informing direct care staff of their responsibilities, and giving them the tools to effectuate those responsibilities (e.g. TRAINING) will go a long way to help people with disabilities. Concomitantly, and in unison, empowering direct care staff through a culture that facilitates and encourages “best practices” will exponentially help people with disabilities. But –
Ph.D. Staff Recruitment and Retention: Study Results and Intervention
Strategies (Cambridge, Mass.: American Association on Mental Retardation,
Washington D.C. 1998) pg. 73
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