Julie Bershadsky

Effective support for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities relies on the presence of competent, qualified, and dedicated direct support staff. In Maryland, several provider …

People with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) want to live and work in their communities. They need a committed direct support workforce to support these goals, but this workforce …

The purpose of this study is to lay a foundation for illustrating the importance of longitudinal data collection by sharing the results of the Independent Monitoring for Quality (IM4Q) program in …

Background : Deinstitutionalization research shows better services and outcomes relative to institutional life but has not compared formerly institutionalised and never-institutionalised service …

This brief contains findings from a recent study of COVID-19 and vaccination rates among DSPs. Conducted by ICI and the National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals, the study showed signific…

Choice making is an important aspect of everyone’s life in terms of fully becoming an adult within a democratic society. People with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) are at risk …

This Policy Forum, held on March 22, 2024, discusses the recent Policy Research Brief titled, The Employment Impacts of Being a Family Caregiver . Discussants include ICI's Lynda Lahti Anderson; …

Background: Requiring adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities to go on community outings with co-residents and staff is contrary to community-living policy's focus on person …

Family members play essential roles in the lives of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities, including providing medical, emotional, financial, and day-to-day support. Family …

This article examines everyday choices made by 8,892 adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) and support-related choices made by 6,179 adults with IDD receiving services from …

Direct support professionals (DSPs) and frontline supervisors (FLSs) have critical roles in home and community-based services for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Low wages …

The term polypharmacy refers to taking five or more medicines. Each state might define polypharmacy in different ways, including how many medicines a person must be taking to be considered overmedi…

The Research and Training Center on Community Living and Participation for Persons with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (RTC-CL) at the University of Minnesota has engaged in research, …

What, exactly, is cultural competence in a research context? How do people with disabilities from historically marginalized communities learn about job opportunities and how can we get information …

Direct support professionals (DSPs) and frontline supervisors (FLSs) play an invaluable role in delivering home and community-based services to people with intellectual and developmental disabiliti…

This Policy Forum from February 14, 2023 discussed the Policy Research Brief titled, Overrepresentation of People with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities Moving Between Large State-run …

A brief reporting findings from a recent study exploring direct support professionals (DSPs) providing support during the COVID-19 pandemic confirmed the critical shortage of DSPs supporting …

The U.S. Department of Education defines physical restraints as a restriction that immobilizes or reduces the ability to move torso, arms, legs, or head freely. Because of the inherent dangers of …

Background: Individuals with Intellectual and Developmental Disability (IDD) participate in a variety of day/employment activities including community-based activities and work and facility-based …

Objective. We identified trends in the receipt of preventive health care by adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities by type of residential setting. Methods. We used data from the …

This Policy Forum from June 23, 2022 discusses the recent Policy Research Brief titled, Are Large Institutions for People with Intellectual or Developmental Disabilities a Thing of the Past? …

This brief contains findings from a recent study exploring direct support professionals (DSPs) providing support to individuals with intellectual and developmental disabilities during the COVID-19 …

Mainstream media does not use consistent language to talk about the role of direct support workers. This inconsistency makes it difficult to communicate the value and complexity of the direct …

Background : Community-based employment is a key step for many adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD), a group prone to high unemployment, poverty, and dependency. It is …

This Policy Forum, held on November 13, 2024, discusses the recent Policy Research Brief titled, Access and Unmet Needs for Technology for People with IDD: Results from FINDS Survey. Discussants …

This Policy Forum addresses work life and wage augmentation in the direct support workforce, revealed in a survey of approximately 9,000 DSPs during the COVID-19 pandemic.

This Policy Forum from November 1, 2022 discusses the recent Policy Research Brief titled, Most People with IDD Getting Long-term Supports Live with a Family Member . Slides from the presentation …

Self-direction allows people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) to control most aspects of their home- and community-based services. Other names that states use for self- …

This brief uses publicly available data from the National Core Indicators® (NCI)-IDD Staff Stability Survey to compare wages of direct support professionals (DSPs) to what people earn in other …

In 2014, the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) launched the Home and Community-Based Services (HCBS) Final Rule intended to improve the quality of HCBS for people with disabilities. …

Direct support professionals (DSPs) may be at increased risk of contracting COVID-19 due to the proximal nature of their work. In response to the pandemic a three-wave study was launched to …

This Policy Forum from October 3, 2023 discussed the Policy Research Brief titled, Institutional Bias in Long-Term Services and Supports for People with IDD . Slides from the presentation are …

As youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) are transitioning from the school systems and special education supports, many of them are moving into the adult service system (e.g …

The "2022 State of the Science Conference on Community Living: Engaging persons with intellectual and developmental disabilities from underserved racial, ethnic, linguistic, and cultural groups in …

Low wages are a major factor contributing to the direct support workforce crisis. This recording of the Policy Forum held on April 6, 2022 discusses the recent Policy Research Brief , which …

This Policy Forum addresses low wages and racial disparities in the direct support workforce, revealed in a survey of approximately 9,000 DSPs during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Background: The onset of the COVID-19 pandemic forced an immediate change to the delivery of employment supports and services for jobseekers and workers with intellectual and developmental disabili…

This Policy Forum addresses predictors of annual turnover among direct support professionals, using data from the National Core Indicators (NCI) Staff Stability Survey.

Reports on the findings of a survey—conducted by ICI in partnership with the National Alliance for Direct Support Professionals—of approximately 9,000 direct support professionals (DSPs) from …

Assistive technology helps people in daily activities, such as text-to-speech software for communication, transition planning software, and virtual reality for learning job and interview skills. …

This Policy Forum, held on September 12, 2024, discusses the recent Policy Research Brief titled, The Unrestrained Use of Physical Restraints in Schools . Discussants include Anna Heinzerling, …