Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 27, 2025
09:03
Nasal Brushing Sampling and Processing Using Digital High Speed Ciliary Videomicroscopy – Adaptation for the COVID-19 Pandemic
Published on: November 7, 2020
4.9K
The Direct Support Workforce: An Examination of Direct Support Professionals and Frontline Supervisors During
Sandra L Pettingell1, Julie Bershadsky1, Lynda Lahti Anderson1
1Sandra L. Pettingell, Julie Bershadsky, Lynda Lahti Anderson, Amy Hewitt, John Reagan, and Alicia Zhang, University of Minnesota.
Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities
|June 11, 2023
Summary
Direct support professionals (DSPs) and frontline supervisors (FLSs) face significant challenges impacting recruitment and retention in disability services. Findings reveal disparities in demographics, wages, and work-life quality, necessitating policy reform.
Area of Science:
- Health and Social Care
- Disability Studies
- Public Health
Background:
- Direct support professionals (DSPs) and frontline supervisors (FLSs) are essential in providing home and community-based services for individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
- Persistent issues of low wages and high responsibilities have historically created recruitment and retention challenges within the DSP and FLS workforce.
- The COVID-19 pandemic has significantly worsened the existing workforce crisis in the disability support sector.
Purpose of the Study:
- To compare the demographic characteristics and work-related circumstances of DSPs and FLSs.
- To identify key factors contributing to the ongoing workforce crisis in direct support roles.
- To inform policy recommendations aimed at mitigating the workforce crisis.
Main Methods:
- Utilized data from the third Direct Support Workforce COVID-19 Survey, a national sample of DSPs and FLSs.
- Employed comparative analysis to examine differences in demographics, working hours, wages, wage augmentations, and quality of work-life.
- Statistical analysis to identify significant variations between the two professional groups.
Main Results:
- Identified significant differences between DSPs and FLSs across various demographic variables.
- Revealed disparities in reported hours worked, wage levels, and the availability of wage augmentations.
- Observed notable variations in the quality of work-life experienced by DSPs and FLSs.
Conclusions:
- The findings underscore the critical need for policy interventions to address the workforce crisis in direct support roles.
- Policy recommendations are proposed to improve recruitment, retention, wages, and overall work-life quality for DSPs and FLSs.
- Addressing these issues is crucial for ensuring the continuity and quality of care for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities.
Related Concept Videos
01:26Standard Precaution
2.0K
Standard precautions are the minimum infection control safeguards used while caring for all patients, irrespective of their disease condition. They help prevent the spread of common infectious microorganisms to healthcare workers, patients, and visitors in all healthcare settings.
Hand hygiene is the most crucial means to prevent the transmission of disease. Employers are legally required to provide their workers with personal protective equipment (PPE) to minimize exposure or contact with...
Hand hygiene is the most crucial means to prevent the transmission of disease. Employers are legally required to provide their workers with personal protective equipment (PPE) to minimize exposure or contact with...
2.0K
01:10PPE Use in Healthcare Settings II: Doffing
973
The sequence of removing or doffing PPE starts with the gloves, as they are the most contaminated. Next is removal of the face shield or goggles, as they would interfere with removing other PPE. Then remove the gown, followed by the mask or respirator. Perform hand hygiene between steps if hands become contaminated and immediately after removing all PPE. Generally, the outside front and sleeves of the isolation gown, the goggles or the mask, the respirator, and the face shield are contaminated.
973
01:17Transmission-based Precautions I: Contact, Enteric, and Droplets
3.7K
Transmission-based precautions are for patients known to be infected or suspected to be infected or colonized with organisms that pose a significant risk to others. Some transmission-based precautions include contact, enteric, and droplet.
Contact Precautions:
Contact precautions are the measures taken to prevent the transmission of infectious agents, especially epidemiologically important microorganisms such as MRSA or influenza, primarily transmitted through direct or indirect contact with an...
Contact Precautions:
Contact precautions are the measures taken to prevent the transmission of infectious agents, especially epidemiologically important microorganisms such as MRSA or influenza, primarily transmitted through direct or indirect contact with an...
3.7K
01:25Transmission-based Precautions II: Airborne and Protective Environment
1.3K
Transmission-based precautions are for patients infected or suspected to be infected (or colonized) with organisms posing a significant risk to others. The transmission precautions include airborne and protective environment precautions.
Airborne precautions:
Use airborne precautions when treating patients known or suspected to have diseases that spread through the air—for example, tuberculosis or measles. These organisms are present in smaller droplets expelled by an infected person and...
Airborne precautions:
Use airborne precautions when treating patients known or suspected to have diseases that spread through the air—for example, tuberculosis or measles. These organisms are present in smaller droplets expelled by an infected person and...
1.3K
01:18Steps in Outbreak Investigation
155
In the ever-evolving field of public health, statistical analysis serves as a cornerstone for understanding and managing disease outbreaks. By leveraging various statistical tools, health professionals can predict potential outbreaks, analyze ongoing situations, and devise effective responses to mitigate impact. For that to happen, there are a few possible stages of the analysis:
155