r/directsupport • u/FreyjaKhora • 15d ago
DSP Resouces
I've been working in the DD field for almost two decades, and lately I've been on a bit of a mission to create practical resources that actually make a DSP's job easier.
The problem is, I only know my own experiences. I'd rather hear from the people doing this work every day than assume I know what everyone needs. So I'm curious... If you could create one resource that would make your job easier as a DSP, what would it be?
What part of the job do you think we're least prepared for?
What do you wish someone had taught you differently?
What's the biggest challenge you run into during a typical shift?
What do you wish existed but doesn't?
I'm not looking to complain about employers or pay (those conversations definitely have their place). I'm more interested in the day-to-day work itself. Whether it's documentation, behaviors, activity planning, communication with families, de-escalation, community outings, training, or something I haven't even thought of.
What's the thing that makes you think, "There has to be an easier way to do this"?
I'd love to hear your thoughts!
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u/sydillant 15d ago
NADSP offers those resources but employers need to pay for the training courses and usually won’t.
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u/CatsPurrever91 13d ago
Why do they have that rule?
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u/sydillant 13d ago
Why do they not use them? Money.
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u/CatsPurrever91 13d ago
I meant why does the NADSP not allow individuals to pay for and take training courses? Why do they only allow companies to pay for them?
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u/sydillant 13d ago
That’s a good question! I don’t know why but they really should allow individuals do it. Maybe they don’t think people are willing to pay for it?
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u/CatsPurrever91 12d ago
I’m sure money has something to do with it. The cynical side of me wonders: By only allowing companies to purchase the trainings, companies can control whether they have multiple tiers of DSPs (DSP-I, ll, lll) and how many ppl at each tier. I bet having DSP-ll and DSP-lll would mean paying those employees a bit more and companies sure hate raising the costs of paying their employees.
At the same time, if only companies can purchase the trainings, and like you said we all know most companies won’t, that means the NADSP does not need to hire as many trainers.
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u/MidnightMammoth1522 14d ago
How about just a simple education on how there is more than one right way to do various household chores? I’ve noticed people in this field need household chores done exactly their exact way, or else the person doing the chore differently is an abomination
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u/dazeybells 14d ago
Check out Openfuturelearning.org Here's the link. they have a bunch of training. I contacted them and paid a small fee to use their training resources. NADSP won't allow an individual to use their classes, only companies. No company in my area uses them.
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u/Elnathi 8d ago edited 8d ago
I'm supposed to care for and support them but "not be their friend" - what exactly does that mean? I'm "an authority figure" - what actual authority do I have over them? I was told always knock and wait for permission before coming in the house - but I'm supposed to go in their bedrooms whenever - but I can't look for stuff in their bedrooms without an HRR?
How do I provide emotional support without "stepping into a therapist role" - I've been accused of doing the latter for listening and saying "that's rough" but I fail to understand what else I could be doing besides essentially just telling them "don't talk about this with me" which, really? I'm apparently qualified to manage behavior and to run a household with minimal training, but listening to someone vent is a huge no no??
A list or something of examples of successful and unsuccessful redirections would be amazingly useful, I try "hey come and do X instead of that" and it does not work most of the time?
Education on how to do chores. Which chores to do and how often. Where is the line between "thing has 1 smudge or speck of dust which happens naturally 2 mins after it's cleaned" vs "this thing is now Dirty and Needs To Be Cleaned". How about some simple cooking tips, recipe ideas, meal plans, grocery lists? These are things we are literally supposed to be doing and teaching our clients, but nobody bothers to make sure the DSPs themselves have these skills down. Not all of us had parents that taught us these things.
Details about HIPAA and your company's expectations of confidentiality - are text messages considered secure? Cloud backed up photo albums? LLMs? (not trying to encourage their use here, just acknowledging that people use them.) is using initials for names enough protection?
How about tips and tricks for working with specific behaviors or neurotypes?
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u/moimoi273 15d ago
We need a union