Transcript Personnel Practices to Enhance Program Implementation

Personnel Practices to Enhance
Program Implementation
Living the Vision of Family Centered
Services in Natural Environments…
Your Program Vision
 Is the picture that drives the action
 Includes deeply felt values of personnel and
their strategic plan
 Empowers people to change
 Is clear enough to use as a decision making
criteria
 Is easy for participants and consumers to
understand
 Translates paper strategies into way of life
Living the Vision
 Identify 5-7 key behaviors required by the
vision
 Set goals, action plans and criteria for using
the behaviors
 Demonstrate the behaviors to maximize
visibility
 Identify opportunities to practice behaviors
 Reinforce each other for using the
behaviors
 Communicate with each other and with
consumers using the vision
A Vision and Key Behaviors
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All children learn during everyday activities and routines
with their families and caregivers.
Teaching and Learning occurs between EI activities…
our role is:
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Providing information and support to families and caregivers in
varied formats to enhance their knowledge and skills regarding
the child’s development
Offering choices of routines, activities and methods for the
family to use that match their preferences and priorities and
maximize child learning
Identifying the family’s everyday places, materials and toys
that support child engagement and enjoyment
Problem-solving and practicing with the family the what, how,
and when to embed intervention for the child
Monitoring the child’s development and the family’s and
caregiver’s satisfaction with their child’s success
Respecting family’s values and lifestyle, their decisions and
choices and not placing barriers to access
Communicating to Personnel About
Your Program Vision
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The vision must be integral to the program
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The vision must be inclusive of all races, ethnicities,
languages, classes, educational levels, economic levels
Decisions based on the vision must be shared widely
Actions speak louder than words so illustrate the vision
through your activities
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Communicate positively about families
Embrace change as opportunities to improve the program and
strengthen the vision
Just like with families… the vision for personnel:
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Must be visible
Needs to be from communicated from day 1, regularly
practiced, and illustrated in multiple formats
Needs to be reviewed, input sought, and revised as the times
change
Must make a difference to others in the program including
families served, the community at large, and co-workers
Including the Vision in Hiring
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While most agencies have hiring procedures that we can’t
change, we can…
 Clearly illustrate the vision and commitment to family
centered services in NE
 You aren’t hiring a discipline service, but a consultant
with expertise in child development and family support
 EI personnel must have knowledge of typical and
atypical development, instructional methodology and
adult learning
 Ask questions that provide opportunities to illustrate the
program’s commitment to the vision
 Family A requests services at the hospital clinic after
work for convenience, how would you respond?
 The family resources are limited. The parents don’t
seem to be “getting it” or care. They don’t complete
your assignments. What strategies would you use to
engage the family?
 Wait… don’t hire and hope… personnel DO exist
If not, offer provisional/contractual status with training
Including the Vision in Job
Descriptions and Responsibilities
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Review your current job descriptions and look for the vision
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If standard agency positions are required, then add specifics:
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Visualize what you want the person to do when they are
engaged with families… describe it in observable terms
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EI staff:
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Personnel are committed to providing resources and supports
to enhance the family’s ability for their child with disabilities
Services and supports are delivered in the natural environment
Provide services within natural environment using the child’s
and family’s toys and materials
Problem solve strategies with families on how to embed
intervention during the day
Model strategies the family can use in their routines between
visits
Develop collaborative plans with team members
Review at hiring and during performance evaluations
Link specific responsibilities to your coaching plan
Including the Vision in Your
Contracts
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Provide clear examples of what NE is and what isn’t…
identify performance standards
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Not just clinic at home… everyday materials and activities
must be incorporated
Adult learning knowledge is essential… intervention occurs
between visits by caregivers
Include staff development, reading lists, and competency
check-offs
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Provide examples of NE plans that meet your expectations
Identify staff development requirements within contract
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Include contract staff in your trainings
Share materials with contract staff regularly
Require “team” communication activities and participation in
team meetings with families
Supervise contract staff as you do your own
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Observe implementation and review documents
Provide coaches or mentors
Including the Vision in Staff
Development
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Develop an annual plan for staff development on the vision
(or components – Adult learning, Family centered services)
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Identify specific outcomes for personnel
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Annual priority – everyone gains knowledge and skills for
implementation
Team – specific groups (assessment team) or components (transition
planning)
Individual – leadership, specialized expertise (medically fragile, autism)
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Agency training activities
Coaching/Mentoring; Work groups
“Virtual” experiences, Readings, Individual study plans
Conferences, state workshops, discipline meetings
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Include multiple strategies and formats
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Expect a deliverable outcome from each activity
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10 minutes of information, resource sharing, presentation of
family story, evidence update keeps vision in view and
provides a “sound bite”
Use “Training 10s” in team/staff, family, and advisory
meetings for annual priority
Including the Vision in Family
Activities and Advisory Committees
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Vision guides the agenda and activities
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“Adopt a daycare”
Veteran parents
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Story hour at library
Agency picnic at the rec center
Arts in the park
Adult ed tech house play group
Family activities expand NE opportunities
Families contribute to program development
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Family support groups expand networking between parents
Families contribute to slide show sharing favorite routines for
new families to view as they enter the program
Families participate in advisory committee
Policies developed support implementation of vision
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Members contribute ideas and resources from family and
community perspectives
Review and revision of vision as committee responsibility
Including the Vision in Team
Meetings
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Connect the agenda to your vision
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Include a “Training 10”
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Schedule appointments for family assessments, intervention,
consultation
Engage team members in planning and guiding
(Use adult learning strategies to maximize participation)
Journal article, website, video on a topic related to annual
priority
Encourage sharing successes by members
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Around the Room, Wall chart, Volunteer Vision
Video Review or Family Story with documentation
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Use process (appropriate for families) with team
Brainstorm creative and collaborative ideas
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Direct, Coach, Problem Solve, and Delegate
Model problem-solving
Incorporate Situational Teaching into Action Plans
Including the Vision in Performance
Evaluations
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Link performance evaluation to job description and to
annual staff development plan
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Include specific data (self-evaluation, family feedback,
coach or mentor input, documents review) that supports
the implementation of the vision
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Review how vision is integrated into each position
Reflect on participation in staff development (not just specific
training activities)
Ask person to share greatest accomplishments and support
with data
Share overall program data with staff
Use the opportunity to discuss change, successes, barriers,
future opportunities for individual and contributions to
program development
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Develop an individual staff development that reflects the
program needs for the next year and is congruent with the
vision
Including the Vision in Motivating
Performance
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Look at the vision from the family perspective
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Share family stories at team/staff meetings
Gather and share family satisfaction data
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Ideas spread more smoothly from peers and are often improved upon
through collaboration
Personal relationships improve performance and satisfaction
Strategic and supported risk taking increases frequency and decreases
resistance to change
Use your teams; group thinking produces greater ideas and
encourages risk taking by individuals
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Monitor consistency and effectiveness of staff development
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Motivation moves through downward… make sure coaches and mentors
are motivated and motivating others
Celebrate success openly
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Keep staff apprised of program improvements
Use wall charts, newsletters, photo albums to identify quality
performance of individuals and teams
Managing Change…
Maintaining Momentum
 Involve staff in the change process
 Initiate change with practical work
 Get assignments & logistics established
 Identify short-term outcomes to achieve quickly
 Involve everyone
 Use situational learning
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Don’t make access to any person a barrier to progress
 Communicate often and honestly
 Keep the vision in view during change… where are we
going and how are we going to get there
 Advertise and monitor expectations and
accomplishments
 Action plans need timelines and due dates
 Use planning tools, charts, spreadsheets to manage
the change process and share them to advertise
accomplishments
Using the Vision to Decrease Stress
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The vision is based on prevailing values… everyone should believe in it…
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Review values with staff feeling stress
Conduct team activities embracing family centered practices
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Assignments may need to be rearranged to meet family and child needs
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Celebrate success and each other in “healthy” activities
Organize contingency plans for high stress periods or cycles
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Avoiding discussion only increases resistance… but
Review assignments recognizing implementation of the vision is not equal
for all families all of the time
Recognize that change brings stress that is highly personal and variable
Relieve pressure by discussing the behaviors necessary to implement the
vision openly and in context
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Limit “whining”
Use solution finding approaches with follow-up
Expect small but positive steps toward change
Provide individualized supports and training
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Get involved in the coaching and mentoring
Analyze with the individual the causes of the stress and prioritize those behaviors
Make an effort to get what staff thinks is necessary PT wants a PT coach and you
don’t have one… contact APTA, use email resources, “rent” one from another EI
program, use tele-strategies…