Direct Support Professionals - Then and Now
/Any of us who have been active in the disability support system, have done, or know folks who do direct support work. This includes staff who support people with disabilities in residential, vocational, or skill-building settings. Like many of you who might be reading this blog, I started my career doing direct supports back in 1971 and over the years, although my responsibilities changed, have always understood the critical input of DSP’s.
Recently, for a different reason, I went back to review a book I wrote in 2000, titled “Cultural Shifting” (TRN Press, 2002). This book was a macro look at shifting the culture to be more receptive to folks with disabilities who were being reconnected to community. While reviewing this book, I came across a passage I wrote relating to Direct Support Staff. I want to share this passage with you here, but want you to keep in mind that I wrote this in 2000, some 20 years ago. Think about what you were doing in 2000, what we are doing today in 2020, and if these words from the past still ring true:
“If a human or social services agency employs you, there are probably some unique aspects about you. For the most part, you are probably driven by the notion of service to others. You have decided that you wanted to make your life count for some human betterment. As Pollyanna as it may seem, you have decided that justice and fairness for people is important and the employment choice you have made is probably tied to this agenda. Certainly you do not do this work for the money. We all know that human service workers are grossly underpaid. Still, you stay and continue to attempt to address the specific aspect of your agency’s mission. To this end you are particularly vulnerable.
This vulnerability is tied to three converging issues. One is that you are sincerely interested in the people you serve and their full participation in the community. If you work for a vocational agency you want to see people get jobs; if you work for a residential agency, you want to see residents safely involved and accepted in the community….Yet, the reality is that the challenges remain, regardless of your hard work. For every person you help get a job, five more are waiting for you. For every person connected to the community, seven more are still at risk, and on and on. This struggle continues until you slowly begin to feel that anything you do will not really support people in meaningful ways.
Then, add this to the challenging schedules of this type of work and the number of hours you invest or ask your people to work. Most of us employed in human service know that the hours seem to never end. There is always another meeting to attend or person to support. There is always another shift to fill or person to call. These demands are pressing. Additionally, the ante gets upped when the work that is performed is vital. In my organization, if the staff is not on duty, then a person might not get up for the day. Or if a staff member does not show up, a critical medicine might be missed, or a meal might not be rendered. These are not small issues; agencies are experiencing a rising number of abuse cases, as noted by news reports and lawsuits.
The final vulnerability for human service staff rest with salaries. If there is one major problem that almost every human service organization I know faces, it is low salaries paid to their front-line workers. Yet the problem of low salaries is multifaceted. Over the years the allotted funds available for direct services have not kept up with inflation. Organizations keep falling more and more behind. Another reason for low salaries is tied to the societal devaluation of vulnerable people….Quite simply, the question begs to be asked: if vulnerable people are not seen as valuable by society, why should people who care for them be paid adequately. Remarkably, in my city of Pittsburgh, attendants who work at the Pittsburgh Zoo, are paid more than our staff who support people with disabilities.
These 3 notions, those of limited success, difficult work/hours, and low wages can converge to take the wind out of the sails of people who work for human service agencies. The net result is a sense of resignation. This leads to high levels of turnover or burnout, that make the noble work of human services challenging and, often times, thankless.”
These reflections, from 20 years ago, still plague our human service system. Why are we still caught in the same basic web. More, what might we do today that will promote a change. One way is to organize and bring these issues to a greater head. This option is much more viable today with the development of of the National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals (NADSP). If you are not aligned with this group, plan to do so. You can find them at www.nadsp.org and learn more about their work in a simple google search.
Together we can make a change. Lets not have another 20 years go by!