Direct Care Recommendations for Severe Challenging Behavior
January 24, 2025
As part of a comprehensive plan to strengthen the State’s direct care workforce, the New Jersey Department of Human Services (DHS) hosted three virtual listening sessions which served as an open forum for members of the public who are involved in the direct care space to offer feedback on their experiences in the field. Direct Support Professionals provide important assistance that allows individuals to live, work, volunteer, and participate in their communities.
The sessions were meant to inform DHS when developing new policies and programs to support direct care workers, as well as those who are employers and those receiving services. They are part of a larger project led by DHS with a goal of evaluating the State’s efforts to strengthen the direct care workforce and create a strategic plan to support these vital workers. This project has been made possible through an intensive technical assistance opportunity that DHS was awarded through the Administration for Community Living’s Direct Care Workforce Strategies Center.
The sessions focused on three different stakeholder groups:
- January 14, 2025 – Direct Care Workers
- January 15, 2025 – Direct Care Employers
- January 16, 2025 – Direct Care Consumers
Autism New Jersey’s Public Policy team attended all the sessions and listened to the feedback that was given. Some of the concerns that were raised by the participants included low pay, poor benefits, inadequate training, and lack of growth in the profession.
Autism New Jersey submitted written testimony that focuses on staff serving individuals with profound autism and severe challenging behavior. Specifically, the testimony outlines challenges, recommendations to recruit and retain staff, and a summary of families’ experiences. The recommendations include training and professional development, compensation and incentives, flexible and supportive work environment, and organizational support.