|
Additional Resources:
The Association for
Persons in Supported Employment (APSE) Supported Employment Quality
Indicators
National APSE is the largest professional
advocacy organization in the country representing supported employment
(SE) and the individuals served in SE. Supported Employment has grown
significantly in the past decade, involving approximately 150,000
individuals with disabilities. This document represents an effort by
national APSE to articulate quality indicators of individualized and
integrated Supported Employment. These quality indicators were designed to
complement APSE's Ethical Guidelines for Professionals in Supported
Employment. Given the fact that individuals with disabilities have the
right to drive their employment process with maximum choice and control of
services, this document begins with quality indicators for individuals in
SE. Direct service practitioners are in a position to support individual
plans for employment. The second section delineates values and
competencies for direct SE practitioners. The final section specifies
organizational characteristics that support quality services. This
document may have multiple uses, including as a guide for:
- hiring and training employment
personnel;
- developing training curricula;
- reviewing and evaluating programs;
- appraising individual performance;
and
- action planning. Potential users of this
document include people with disabilities and their families, advocacy
groups, employment consultants, trainers, administrators/managers,
human resource personnel, and state agency personnel.
Quality Indicators for
Individuals in Supported Employment- Individual Choice and Control of
Resources and Supports
According to the Rehabilitation Act,
individuals have the right to exercise informed choice throughout the
entire rehabilitation process. This includes obtaining information and the
necessary supports to assist people to develop, monitor, implement, and
evaluate their Individualized Plan for Employment (IPE) with assistance as
needed and desired.
- Individuals explore career opportunities
based on their interests, abilities, and needs via such experiences as
vocational education classes, job shadowing, job try-outs, and actual
employment.
- Individuals have ongoing opportunities
to develop self-determination skills through active participation in
information gathering, experiential learning, and decision-making.
- Individuals direct their transition plan
and/or IPE to the maximum extent possible, with support as
needed.
- Individuals control the resources, if
desired, to purchase services and supports. Family members, personal
advisors, and other trusted advocates assist individuals as needed.
- Individuals are assisted as needed to
secure employment according to their individual desires, including the
type of work environments, activities, hours, pay, supports,
etc.
- Individuals participate maximally in
interviews and in choosing training and support procedures typical to
workplaces.
- Individuals have necessary and
appropriate accommodations, assistive technology, and individualized
supports within and outside of their job.
- Individuals are connected to desired
adult services, including generic supports, in order to pursue desired
lifestyles.
- Individuals pursue career advancement
opportunities in order to develop skills, increase pay and
responsibilities, or other desired outcomes.
- Individuals develop satisfying
relationships within and outside of their job, as desired.
- Individuals are supported to participate
in social activities within and outside of their job, as desired.
- Individuals are compensated commensurate
with others in their position. · Individuals have access to reliable
transportation.
- Individuals are assisted to manage their
finances (e.g., banking, budgeting, benefits) as needed and desired.
- Individuals of retirement age are
supported to pursue a variety of employment and/or post-employment
options.
Quality Indicators for Supported
Employment Personnel
Providing quality supported employment
services requires technical and interpersonal skills applied creatively
and flexibly. Personnel in direct service roles must listen to and respect
the desires of each individual they support, adhere to the norms of each
workplace, and work closely with others involved in the person's life.
Quality services and supports are dignified, holistic, age-appropriate,
and status/image enhancing, with the goal of connecting each individual to
the fabric of work, home, social, and recreational activities.
- School personnel involved in transition
assist youth to explore career opportunities, develop work skills and
behaviors, and develop self-determination skills through active
participation in information gathering, experiential learning, and
decision-making.
- Transition team members support students
to direct their transition plans to the maximum extent possible, with
support as needed.
- School and adult service personnel
assist youth in transition to obtain desired adult services, including
generic supports, after high school.
- Providers get to know job seekers via
activities such as spending time together in multiple settings,
observing the individual work, talking with others who know the person
best, etc.
- Providers assist job seekers, including
individuals with significant disabilities, to participate maximally in
job development and employer contact activities according to their
individual plan for employment.
- Providers rely heavily on personal
networks and referrals for job leads.
- Providers assist individuals to
negotiate individual job descriptions/position titles, hours,
commensurate wages (paid directly from the employer), work tasks, work
location, and necessary accommodations prior to beginning a job, with
the goal of maximizing presence and participation in the work setting.
Providers are knowledgeable about job carving and restructuring.
- Providers do not group people together
for the convenience of support or job availability.
- Providers work in partnership with
supported employees on the best employment training approaches to meet
the person's needs, emphasizing typical workplace supports and the use
of discreet, status enhancing teaching techniques.
- Providers work in partnership with
supported employees and workplace personnel to develop assistive
technology and individualized supports that are as typical to the
workplace as possible and that maximize individual performance.
- Providers treat individuals in a manner
appropriate to their age, gender, and culture, and in accordance with
the norms of their job and the workplace.
- Providers assist individuals as needed
to develop relationships within and outside of their job.
- Providers support individuals as needed
to access social activities (e.g., parties, holiday functions) and
employer-sponsored activities (e.g., sports, community service
projects) within and outside of their job.
- Providers encourage typical probation
and performance appraisal processes within each workplace.
- Providers assist individuals as needed
to access reliable transportation.
- Providers assist individuals to manage
their finances (e.g., banking, budgeting, benefits) as needed.
- Providers monitor individual job
satisfaction and support people to pursue career development and
advancement opportunities.
- Providers support people of retirement
age to pursue activities according to their interests, including
employment and integrated community activities for senior
citizens.
- Providers assist individuals as needed
to access housing, community connections (e.g., church/synagogue,
YMCA, service/civic clubs), and other necessary services and supports,
with an emphasis on generic services.
- Providers interface with family members
and other service providers according to the method (e.g., telephone,
meetings) and schedule (e.g., weekly, monthly) determined by the
individual and team.
- Providers develop long-term, mutually
beneficial partnerships with businesses that result in career
exploration activities, quality jobs, marketing efforts, etc. on the
part of businesses, and consultation, training, accommodation
strategies, etc. from providers.
- Providers interface with businesses and
the larger community through connections with chambers of commerce,
service clubs, and other organizations.
Organizational Practices
That Support Quality Services
Most personnel involved in supported
employment are affiliated with a community rehabilitation program, mental
health center, or supported employment organization. Unless such
organizations are structured to provide integrated employment and related
community services with a clear mission to do so, personnel in direct
service roles will have difficulty providing quality services.
- The organization has established a clear
vision and mission that promotes integrated employment, community
inclusion, and zero exclusion.
- The organization works toward a flat
organizational structure, with most personnel in direct service roles.
- The organization promotes stakeholder
involvement in planning and decision-making through various informal
and formal means.
- The organization supports staff to be
involved in person-centered/person-directed planning that addresses
individual interests, preferences, and support needs.
- The organization supports individualized
jobs and related supports for all service recipients, including people
with high support needs.
- The organization pursues flexible,
individualized funding that allows sufficient support for individuals
with high support needs.
- The organization has job descriptions
that promote the focus on integrated employment and related community
supports.
- The organization configures staff to
provide holistic supports in a collaborative fashion (e.g., full
service, self-directed teams), and supports reasonable
staff-to-individual ratios.
- The organization has a staff recruitment
and retention process that promotes hiring and keeping high quality
personnel.
- The organization invests in staff
development through extensive, ongoing training and support.
- The organization promotes a learning
culture in which creativity, innovation, and risk taking are supported
and where staff feel empowered.
- The organization operates with an action
bias, focusing on continuous evaluation and improvement of outcomes.
- The organization collects and uses data
on consumer outcomes, staff productivity, customer satisfaction, cost
efficiency, and other process and outcome variables.
- The organization has a staff
compensation and reward process that reinforces desired outcomes.
- The organization promotes leadership at
all levels of the organization.
- The organization has developed marketing
materials and approaches that coincide with common business practices
and promote a positive and professional image.
- The organization has developed
partnerships with the business community and other external entities
in the community, state, and nation. APSE views this material as a
"living document," open to continuous evaluation and
improvement as the field progresses. APSE invites your feedback about
how the document is being used and welcomes suggested changes.
These quality indicators have been
developed through the efforts of several people who have volunteered, at
various times, to be part of APSE's Quality Indicators Work Groups: Karen
Flippo, Pat Keul, Tom Harrison, Debra Martin Petty, Brenda Harvey, Dale
Dutton, Renee Drouet, Bob Niemiec, Rebecca McDonald, Sue Killam, Pat Rogan,
Tammara Geary, Linda Quinn, Dale DiLeo, Rob Hoffman, and the New Jersey
APSE Chapter. This final version was compiled by Pat Rogan.
© APSE, 1627 Monument Avenue, Richmond,
Virginia 23220 phone: 804-278-9187 fax: 804-278-9377 e-mail: Tammara@apse.org
Please email
us with your questions or comments.
|
Brown Bag Series
