Direct Support Professional (PRN) – Easterseals UCP North Carolina & Virginia, Inc. – Charlottesville, VA

Position Summary:

(We are looking for individuals willing to work PRN status)

REACH Center Based Direct Support Professional (DSP) provides support to persons with co-occurring intellectual/developmental disabilities and mental or behavioral health needs who are admitted to the Crisis Therapeutic Home (CTH) or Transitional Home. This staff participates in facilitating daily program and individualized activities and support for habilitative and/or rehabilitative activities, therapeutic interventions, personal care/assistance, health care and other activities. DSPs participates as part of comprehensive REACH services that collaborate with individual?s primary provider and clinical home, community crisis services, family and others.

REACH is a crisis prevention, intervention and stabilization system to support individuals with intellectual and/or developmental disabilities, as well as a mental health condition or challenging behavior that is negatively affecting their quality of life. REACH provides consultation, prevention, development of crisis education & prevention plans, community based mobile support and crisis therapeutic home services.

Essential Job Functions:

• Assists individuals with daily activities, personal care/assistance, behavioral health needs, and physical health, wellness, community engagement and leisure activities.
• Orients guests and their caregivers (if applicable) to the home, program policies, rules and activities.
• Establishes rapport with consumers with intellectual/developmental disabilities and challenging behaviors, while maintaining respect for each consumer?s dignity, individuality and right to confidentiality.
• Maintains professional boundaries with individuals and follows ethical and licensing guidelines.
• Monitors individuals for frequency and severity of mental health or behavioral symptoms and provides crisis prevention, intervention and de-escalation supports in accordance with individualized cross systems crisis prevention and intervention plans, behavioral support plan (if applicable), overall service plan (e.g. ISP, PCP, POC).
• Participates in development and implementation of persons Crisis Education and Prevention Plan.
• Provides on-site crisis intervention and stabilization support to individuals and their respective systems of care for individuals experiencing behavioral health emergencies/crises.
• Plans, structures and prompts social and leisure time activities, including activities that build skills for behavior management, stress management, communication, adaptive living, ADL?s and IADL?s.
• Serves as a positive representative for agency with other professionals, families and the community.
• Reports incidents as required by agency policy as well as local state and federal laws.
• Maintains timely documentation, progress notes, behavior/symptom tracking, and other data, including incident and accident reports.
• Responds to individual safety needs, including reporting significant changes in behavior and health.
• Collaborates with the homes Supervisor, Assistant Supervisor/RN, Medical Director, Clinical Director and other staff with clinical expertise on presentation of needs, behavioral tracking, attempted interventions, plan of care and discharge planning.
• Communicates with other staff and supervisor on progress, needs, concerns and changes.
• Performs housekeeping duties as assigned, including meal preparation in accordance with individual dietary needs and preferences.
• Adheres to program standards and policies as well as local, state and federal regulations
• Assists with discharge planning.
• Other duties as assigned.

Additional Functions for Day Support:

• Records, analyzes, and reports results of individual community involvement in a professional and timely manner while maintaining confidentiality of individuals served.
• Works collaboratively with all adjunct specialists including recreation activities and community integration

• High School diploma or equivalent from an accredited institution required.
• Qualified Mental Health Professional (QMHP) and/or Qualified Developmental Disabilities Professional (QDDP) – Minimum of a bachelor’s degree in human services or related field received from an approved, accredited institution and no less than one year of fulltime relevant experience required for day support DSPs, strongly preferred for other DSPs.
• Registration with the Board of Counseling as a QMHP A and/or C required if a QMHP or QDDP.
• Experience with crisis prevention and intervention services preferred.
• Maintain valid state appropriate driver’s license and auto insurance for personal and agency vehicles utilized for work;
• Complete within specified time period the trainings as required by agency and service model.
• Knowledge and ability to utilize computer word processing and data programs including but not limited to Microsoft Office Suite, Web-based data entry, etc.
• Must demonstrate capacity to effectively communicate verbally and in written form.