Direct Support Professional/Art Instructor - Scranton

A Direct Support Professional (DSP) helps individuals achieve their personal goals, increase independence, and participate fully in their communities while ensuring their health, safety, and well-being.

Primary responsibilities include:

• Always be compliant with all company and regulatory policies and procedures.
• Sets positive examples for Individuals at all times.
• Adheres to the person-centered plans, and behavior plans as written for each Individual.
• Provides opportunities throughout the day to help Individuals meet their goals.
• Provides quality of care and a safe and healthy setting free from harm while upholding the rights of all Individuals.
• Protects all Individuals from abuse and/or neglect and immediately reports any occurrence to appropriate entities.
• Maintains and protects the confidentiality of all Individuals.
• Follows and upholds all house guidelines.
• Cook meals as necessary for Individuals based upon food specifications, diets, food exchanges and documentation.
• Understands process for food supply and storage.
• Transports Individuals and attends appointments with Individuals and advocates and obtains necessary documentation, when needed.
• Utilize Individual funds as applicable to help Individuals budget when needed.
• Completes required documentation before the end of shift, including, but not limited to progress notes, miscellaneous notes, daily support logs, event reports, incident reports, LOA forms, Individual inventories, etc.
• Assists with supervision of Individuals doing their laundry as needed per assignment sheet.
• Coaches and assists Individuals with bedroom cleanliness per house guidelines.
• Responsible for cleanliness of home site according to the assignment chart. (Inspection ready at all times.)
• Must remain awake and immediately accessible in all homes requiring 24/7 care.
• Administers medications as needed.
• Hand off communication to next shift staff.
• Cooperates with Beacon Specialized Living, the Department of Human Services (DHS) staff or any other regulatory body during any inspection, investigation or inquiry.
• Performs other duties as assigned or requested.
• Adheres to BSLS Core Values, Mission Statement, and Corporate Philosophies.

Team member expectations include:

• Must be compliant with company and regulatory policies and procedures.
• Preserve and protect the privacy, confidentiality and security of all medical records, proprietary and other confidential information relating to Beacon Specialized Living, its Individuals served, Team Members, activities and affiliates, in accordance with all applicable laws (especially HIPAA) and contract terms.
• Promote Beacon in a positive manner and lead by example, modeling our core values in everyday behavior.
• Monitors and corrects employee gossip, harassment, favoritism, and other negative social workplace behaviors to ensure a positive and productive work environment.
• Understand how to approach and communicate with everyone at all levels.
• Treat everyone with dignity and respect while responding to their needs.
• Maintain and sustain a safe community environment and workplace
• Follow Beacon's policies, procedures, and manuals.
• Accept other duties as assigned.

Professional conduct and management effectiveness includes:

• Job Knowledge: Depth and breadth of knowledge supporting our organization goals.
• Quality of Work: Freedom from errors and mistakes, timeliness. Accuracy, quality of work in general.
• Quantity of Work: Work output of the employee.
• Reliability: The extent to which the employee can be depended upon to be available for work, do it properly, and complete it on time. The degree to which the employee is reliable, trustworthy, and persistent.
• Initiative and Creativity: The ability to plan work and to go ahead with a task without being told every detail and the ability to make constructive suggestions.
• Judgment: The extent to which the employee makes decisions which are sound. Ability to base decisions on fact rather than emotion.
• Cooperation: Willingness to work harmoniously with others in getting a job done. Readiness to respond positively to instructions and procedures.
• Compliance: Always be compliant with all company and regulatory policies and procedures.
• Attendance: Faithfulness in coming to work daily and conforming to scheduled work hours.
• Planning and Organizing: The ability to analyze work, set goals, develop plans of action, utilize time, and delegate work as appropriate. Consider the amount of supervision required and the extent to which you can trust employees to carry out assignments conscientiously.
• Directing and Controlling: The ability to create a motivating climate, achieve teamwork, train, and develop, measure work in progress, take corrective action.
• Decision Making: The ability to make decisions and the quality and timeliness of those decisions.
• Problem Solving: The ability to assess a problem, identify options or solutions, formulate a plan, execute the plan, and achieve and sustain positive outcomes.
• Embrace, support, and manage the business in accordance with Beacon's Mission and Core Values.

Education and qualifications include:

• High school diploma or GED preferred. (required in certain states)
• Must be 18 years or older.
• Must pass criminal background checks, central registry check (in applicable states) and child abuse registry (in applicable states).
• Must complete and pass a drug test, in applicable states.
• Must possess a valid Driver's License and have reliable transportation.
• Proficient in speaking, reading and writing the English language.
• Approved by state, federal and government entities to work within BSLS programs.
• Ability to use office equipment, including BSLS information technology systems.
• Ability to physically and emotionally work with individuals who possess mental illness and co-occurring disorders.

Skills and abilities include:

• Must be able to communicate and function in an interdisciplinary team.
• Strong computer skills utilizing various software programs and applications.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills.
• Ability to create professional employee communication materials.
• Capable of working well with all levels of the organization.
• A professional demeanor.
• Demonstrated ability to multi-task.
• Ability to work with little daily supervision.

Work environment includes:

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee regularly works in a typical home setting or in the community at various stores, restaurants, entertainment venues, etc. Work may involve the treatment of non-cooperative Individuals with psychosocial problems and needs, or chronic and acute health problems.
• The work environment presents situations that cause stress and anxiety due to Individual behavior.
• The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.
• The employee may be exposed to cold, heat, dust, or smoke.

Physical demands include:

• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to talk or hear. Specific vision abilities required by this job include close vision and the ability to adjust focus. This would require the ability to lift files, open filing cabinets, and bend or stand on a stool as necessary.
• While performing the duties of the job the employee must be able to move about the home or community 50% of the time and have the ability to bend, squat, stand, kneel, push, pull, walk, and reach above shoulder. Employees must be able to remain in a stationary position 50% of the time.
• Ability to lift and carry objects up to 50 pounds for short distances (5-10 feet) daily.
• The employee will climb (approximately 8-12) stairs 8-10 times per day.
• The employees will operate a computer and other office productivity machinery, such as a copy machine and computer printer. Ability to access, input, and retrieve information from the computer and use information technology systems as noted above.
• The employee must be able to prepare meals which require the use of an oven, stove or microwave that may require overhead reaching.
• Complete laundry services that include sorting,