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Four individuals, 3 women and one man, are seated around a table engaged in conversation. The woman on the left, with light skin and blonde hair, wears glasses and a black top with white polka dots. Beside her, a woman with medium skin and a beige headwrap is dressed in dark clothing and is speaking. A man with dark skin, seen from the back, wears a light-colored sweater, and another individual, a woman with curly hair and light skin, wears a striped shirt and uses an electric wheelchair. The setting is an indoor room with light walls and soft lighting.

Direct Support Workforce Solutions is a national consulting group addressing the workforce needs of organizations providing community-based supports for individuals with disabilities.

Drawing on more than 30 years of research, training, outreach, and evaluation, Direct Support Workforce Solutions helps organizations develop and implement workforce strategies that reduce turnover; attract, recruit and retain qualified talent; and engage and prepare their workforce to deliver high-quality services. 

The direct support workforce has been in a persistent and growing crisis for years. Almost half of DSPs leave their jobs within the first year and most within the first six months. The demand for services is increasing yet staff turnover and vacancy rates remain high. Staff shortages affect the quality and availability of essential services for individuals with disabilities and their families and are extremely costly to the human services system. Finding, training, and keeping workers has never been more important. Solutions to the direct support workforce crisis are critical to ensure that people with disabilities can live, work and participate fully in their communities.

 

Low wages plus unaffordable benefits plus limited training and development plus lack of career advancement opportunities causes pervasive long-term challenges in recruiting and retaining high-quality employees results in low quality services & poor outcomes for people receiving supports.

Direct Support Workforce Solutions can help. Learn about what we do and how we can help your organization . 

The University of Minnesota stands on Miní Sóta Makhóčhe, the rightful homelands of the Dakhóta Oyáte. ICI recognizes the U.S. did not uphold its end of these land treaties. It is the current and continued displacement of the Dakhóta Oyáte that allows the University to remain today. At ICI, we affirm our commitment to address systemic racism, ableism, and all other inequalities and forms of oppression to ensure inclusive communities.