Direct Support Professional (Citizens) - Complex Support Program

Overview

Practice and promote the agency’s mission statement and guiding principles in every interaction.  Provide ongoing support to the people that live in the Residential Services program to ensure that a high quality of life is maintained. Provide support in the areas of, for example, self-care routines, health, safety, household chores, socialization, and overall wellbeing. Values and Embraces Diversity in backgrounds and experiences for every person in every community. Strive to create an open, inclusive environment in which every employee has the opportunity to flourish Demononstrates a commitment to understanding cultural differences and supports a culture of diversity, equity and inclusion.

Responsibilities

Primary duties and responsibilities include but not limnited to:

• Practices and promotes Citizens mission statement in every interaction.Through family and community engagement, Citizens supports people to live the life they choose.

• Provide ongoing support to people during overnight and morning hours (i.e., self-care routines to include toileting, feeding, showering, dressing and diapering), health, safety, alternate positioning and overall well being and to ensure that a high quality of life is maintained.
• Ensures a safe and clean home by providing support to people to assist them with the completion of household chores and by participating in said household chores as needed (i.e., laundry, etc.).
• Follows all treatment plans and utilizes all corresponding adaptive and safety equipment needed for each person to promote independence and ensure their health, safety and well-being
• Reports and documents any events/activities that may hinder the health, safety and well-being of the person that reside there (i.e., allegations of abuse, injuries, broken equipment, falls, etc.).
• Reports to the Justice Center as a mandated reporter if there is reasonable cause to suspect abuse or neglect. Additionally, must follow all agency incident policy and procedures.
• Adheres to Federal and New York State regulations, agency policy and procedures, the employee handbook and agency and program training requirements.
• Successfully completes and maintains AMAP certification and assists people supported with medication administration according to the AMAP policy and procedures.
• Arrives to work by the start of scheduled shift, adheres to agency policy and procedures in regard to call offs and overtime to ensure quality support is provided to people each day.
• Supports people in the morning with preparing meals by teaching concepts such as diet adherence, portion control and cooking skills.
• Supports people with starting the day on a positive note by waking and greeting them with a soft and kind tone of voice and by supporting their preferred morning routine.
• Assists people with medication administration according to the AMAP policy and procedures.
• Accompanies or transports the people supported using safe driving practices to their day programs, or job locations.
• Implements and documents all treatment plans and other agency related materials via Medisked or paper documentation (i.e., overnight checklists, goals, valued outcomes, medical case notes, communication logs, BM and menses charts, sleep charts, seizure logs, behavioral data, etc.) to assist person in achieving independence in their selected goals and to ensure their health, safety and well-being.
• Serves as member of the inter-disciplinary team by attending and participating in all meetings to discuss person’s progress and goal achievements and to offer and gather information and ideas.
• Mentors and acts as a role model for new Direct Support Staff by demonstrating supportive routines and by reviewing training manuals to ensure new employees are sufficiently groomed to complete responsibilities.
• Performs all other duties as requested by supervisor.

This position requires regular and substantial unsupervised or unrestricted physical contact with people receiving services and, therefore, is subject to successful completion of fingerprint/criminal background check.

Qualifications

• High School Diploma or GED preferred
• Qualified New York State Driver’s license that is also qualified in accordance with agency’s insurance standards
• Successful completion and maintenance of AMAP status
• Ability to communicate and understand written and oral directives/information and an excellent team player with a positive attitude.

Qualified driver status is required for overnight Direct Support Professionals that work 11pm – 9am as they are needed to assist with morning transportation of the people we support.