The Road to Becoming and Remaining a Top Notch Licensed Residential Provider
What separates a good from a great residential provider? According to the Chief of the Office of Licensing, Sean O’Brien, Associate Division Director for Housing and Resources, Amy Scartocci and the Supervisor of the Technical Assistance Unit in the Office of Licensing, Kathryn Stalker, a strong quality assurance system.
Kathryn and Sean discussed the questions providers should ask and answer while considering licensure and, if they want to take the leap, seven steps they will need to take. In addition, issues which should be addressed on an ongoing basis and include staffing and management, how the residential agency wants to be recognized (marketing is vital), going the extra mile (the regulations are just the minimum), relationships with stakeholders, preventing small problems from spiraling out of control and burnout.
Amy discussed types of settings including those outside the generally approved rules, the DDD licensing process, and compliance with HCBS final setting rules. She stressed the importance of the provider choosing individuals they can serve and anticipating changes over time.
Reasons why good providers’ services deteriorate include, loosing staff and not having an attrition plan, not archiving information, not having a reliable quality assurance program, managers/supervisors overseeing too many group homes running while having to fill in when a staff is out, and overcommitment – too many homes and too much growth too fast.
Manage your growth and the needs of the people you serve and have a strong quality assurance system.
It was a very dense and thorough presentation. Our thanks to Amy, Sean and Kathryn for the presentation, answering our questions, and for all the work they do to support provider efforts in the and the safety of our community.
