It has been a hectic time. I got a promotion at work. I have been doing some new tasks, and there has been a lot of training. I am still doing my old job too, at least for a while longer. I am not complaining because I love being busy.
My passion is community living for people with disabilities. All people deserve to live independently with the proper support services, and not in a nursing facility or institution.
I have mentioned that I love the job I do in an earlier blog. http://www.lindadezenski.com/sometimes-i-just-have-to
The additional responsibilities I was given include reviewing a service plan for the individual, and hopefully being able to approve it without sending it back for changes. And then this week, I was given a spreadsheet of newly enrolled people. I have to look in the system and see if their services started within 45 days of their enrollment.
There are a bunch of technicalities that can stop the services, but the biggest at the moment is the effects of the pandemic. Paid support people are hard to recruit and keep. It can be tough work, and there are advocacy groups fighting for better pay and benefits. Family members can be paid too, and there are mandated screenings and training. All of this takes time.
It’s a lot like detective work (or at least how I imagine investigating is). I confirm that the service plan is approved, and that the billing has been authorized. I look to see if billing is happening. Sometimes I find that services are being provided, but the agency has not billed yet. If these elements are missing, I have to follow up to see what steps are being taken.
But there are other reasons that slow the process. There are new agencies who are learning as they go. Sometimes support people don’t gel with the person they are assigned to, and hiring new people may be necessary. Because of the pandemic, people are receiving some services, but not all. A lot of the services that are provided in groups are just starting up again.
I am a person who loves to dive into the story. It can be exhilarating to find out the person is getting services. But the broken-down scenarios fit my advocacy skills to a tee. I am finding it to be very rewarding. It is the intangibles that keep me doing this work.