Services for Adults with Disabilities in Polk County

September 28, 2012

Goals of the System

• Independent or supported living

• Community participation• Employment

Adult Services in IowaA Year of Transition

• Moving from a County-Based System to a Regional or State System

• By next year counties will have to decide if they will go alone or partner with other counties

• The intent is to have an even set of services across the state and be able to add more services.

• Training and planning taking place now• Similar to building an airplane in flight

Funding

• Primary funding source for services is Medicaid which is a combination of federal and state dollars

• Pays for community living, employment, day services, respite, case management and other services

• Other sources include Iowa Vocational Rehabilitation Services (IVRS) and county

Case Management

System revolves around case management• Determine eligibility • Develop plans• Make referrals • Arrange funding • Help consumers and family members navigate

the system

Array of Services

• Community Living• Employment• Training• Post Secondary Education• Community Integration

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Community Living ProvidersLink Associates CandeoMainstream Living Easter SealsCrest Services BroadlawnsThe Homestead HOPEBehavioral TechnologiesChild ServeProgress Industries Behavioral Health

ResourcesOptimae LifeServices

Community Living Options

• Community Housing– Residences typically owned, rented, leased,

by the organization – Approximate other homes, apartments,

townhouses, in the neighborhoods in terms of size and number of individuals.

– Long-term housing that provides stable, supported community living and services are focused on home and community integration.

Community Living Options

Supported Living – Owned, rented, or leased by the person or

persons who live there.– Two to four persons living in a residence. – Service planning often identifies the

number of hours and types of support services provided.

– Generally long-term in nature but may change depending on the needs.

Community Living Successes

• Moved from institutional living in the 60’s to large group homes in the 70’s and 80’s and now to generally comparable living situations as people without disabilities.

• Successful in developing and maintaining integrated living arrangements for people with disabilities.

• However, in the U.S. we still have over 700,000 people with intellectual disabilities living with parents who are 60 and older

Community Living Challenges

• Homelessness still plagues people with mental illness

• Accessible housing in short supply• Lack of qualified direct support workers

– Totaling over 70,000, direct-care workers are Iowa’s largest occupation

– Need 12,000 more by 2018– 64% turnover rate

Employment Services

• Organizational Employment– Facility-based work

• Day Habilitation or Community Integration– Provides opportunities for the community

participation of the persons served when employment may not be an option.

• Group employment or enclaves– Takes place within a business or company

Employment Services

• Pre-Vocational Services• Skills Training• Job Placement or

Supported Employment• Supported Education

Employment Outcomes a Different Story Than Community Living

• Unemployment rate for people with disabilities is between 65% and 70% and many reasons– Changing Labor Market – Employer attitude– Lack of skills and education– Transportation– Social Security

Labor Market

For some decades now, the U.S. labor market has experienced increased demand for skilled workers.

– Job openings that require at least some postsecondary education or training will make up 64% of all job openings and will include the majority of long term career jobs.

– The majority of job openings for people with high school or less will be low-wage jobs and many of these will be part time or transitional jobs.

Survey Findings

Employers were asked to list the reasons why they thought people with disabilities were not actively recruited or hired.

• Costs of providing accommodations • The 'skills gap' - i.e. the mismatch between the nature

of the skills people with disabilities have to offer and those required by the labor market

• Concerns about attendance and retention• Fear of or experience with legal problems• Not sure how to find qualified candidates

The Risks of Hiring• One-third of hiring decisions turn out right

• One-third are minimally effective

• One-third are outright failures.

Skills Needed in the Workplace

• Highly motivated to work hard• Communication • Do More than required • Do not make excuses • Consistent • Team Work• Flexibility

Employment/Education/Training Options

Employability Project SEARCHSkills TrainingSupported Education

Employ Ability• Employ Ability is an internship program for individuals with

disabilities to learn community safety skills, employability skills, and work skills.

• Prepares individuals with disabilities for employment in the competitive workplace. Also learn how to create and update a resume, learn and practice interview skills, and complete applications.

• Exposes them to a variety of different work environments

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Project SEARCH

• 9 month program for students with disabilities in either their last year of high school or after graduation.

• Takes place in a hospital setting• Individuals served are 18 to 25 year with significant

cognitive and/or physical disabilities, and learning impairments

A typical day includes:• Classroom instruction in employability and independent

living skills • Participation at one or more worksite rotations

Employment Skills Training

Employment Skills Training Services are organized formal training services that assist a person seeking employment to acquire the skills necessary for specific jobs or families of jobs.

Short-term, typically 6 to 10 weeks with a combination of classroom and on-the-job training

Some provided by community organizations; others through DMACC

Skills Training

• Direct Support• Health Care• Manufacturing• Retail• Customer Service• Financial Services

Supported Education

• Emerging best practice in the employment field for individuals with disabilities.

• The goal of Supported Education is to assist individuals with disabilities so that they may access and sustain participation in a postsecondary educational setting of their choice.

What Is Supported Education?

• Broad range of services and supports designed to help people with disabilities access and succeed in post secondary education.

• Occurs in the community on an academic campus, such as vocational/ trade schools, colleges, and other post secondary educational settings.

Employment Preparation1) Job Application and Interview

Readiness 1) Resume2) References3) On line application4) Interview Attire5) ADA Training6) Interviewing skills

2) Supportive Services1) Transportation2) Job coaching3) Childcare

3) Soft Skills1) Attitude2) Time Management3) Optimism and self esteem4) Acceptance of supervision and

co-worker relationships4) Career Planning

1) Short- and long-term goals2) Skills are in alignment with

goals and commensurate with labor market

Job Development Planning

• Job Seeker Desires• Referral and assessment information• Opportunities in the labor market• Benefits planning• Transportation• Accommodations and DisclosureUse all this information to create a placement plan• Job objective• Roles and responsibilities

Job Development Activities

• Dual customer approach• Contacting employers and building networks• Information to the job seeker about current

openings• Work site analysis• Consultation to employer• Match the job seekers to the right position

Service Providers in Polk County for Employment/Training Services

• Link Associates• Easter Seals• Goodwill Industries• Candeo• Optimae LifeServices• Hope

Choosing a Provider

• Scorecard–Barriers to employment–Populations served–Type of job placements–Referral to placement time–Hours worked and wages earned–Job retention

Employer Survey Findings

• Twenty seven percent of companies recruit people with disabilities

• Nineteen percent report employing people with disabilities.

• Among small companies 10.7 percent report employing people with disabilities

• 22.6 percent of medium-sized companies • 53.1 percent of large companies report employing

people with disabilities.

Changing Perceptions

Change attitudinal barriers by• Providing facts and statistics to dispel myths and

misconceptions about people with disabilities. • Help employers understand the connection

between employing people with disabilities and gaining access to customers with disabilities, their family members, and friends.

• Personal Experience • Employer to employer

Changing Perceptions

Costs of Accommodations and Benefits Impact– Many cost $0. According to the Job

Accommodations Network, two-thirds of reasonable accommodations cost less than $500.

– According to a Cornell University study, human resource managers report their company’s health, life and disability costs rarely rise in response to hiring people with disabilities.

Changing Perceptions

Attendance, Punctuality and Performance– A review of multiple studies revealed that

employees with disabilities have better safety records, equal or better turnover and absentee rates, and equal or better job assignment flexibility, compared to non-disabled employees.

– A recent study found that nearly all the employers (97%) who had hired someone with a disability in the past indicated they would hire an individual with a disability again in the future

Economic Impact

– Eighty-seven percent (87%) of Americans say they prefer to patronize businesses that hire people with disabilities.

– A survey conducted by the Gallup organization asked customers what they think “makes a business a good one.” The top three responses

(1) Those that offer health care insurance (2) Those that treat the environment well (3) Those that hire people with disabilities

The ADA

• Passed in 1990 and amended in 2008• ADA is not an affirmative-action law but

an equal opportunity law.• The objective is not to create jobs for

people with disabilities or fill quotas, but instead make it possible for them to fill jobs that would exist in any case

The ADA and Disclosure

Every job seeker with a disability is faced with the same decision: "Should I or shouldn't I disclose my disability?“

The worker with a non-apparent disability must make a choice without knowing– How the employer will respond to disclosure– How far the information will spread in the workplace – What ways it might impact on his or her personal or

professional quality of life over time. Ultimately, the decision of whether to disclose is entirely up

to the person.

The Stigma Factor

Harris PollPercent of Public “Very Comfortable” with

Disability– Wheelchair User: 58%– Blind: 46%– Deaf: 38%– Intellectual Disability: 33%– Mental Illness: 19%

Solutions for Improving Employment

1. Improve secondary education for students with disabilities and enhance transition services from school to adult life

2. Increase access and support for postsecondary education and training

3. Better utilization of funding, moving away from segregated services to community employment

4. Extensive employer awareness campaigns5. Different employment models, including self employment,

staffing companies, and businesses operated by people with disabilities

Contact Information

Pat Steele515 288-2537E-mail

psteele@optimaelifeservices.com