Positive Support Professional

Role Summary

The Positive Support Professional provides services that consist of developing, implementing and monitoring person-centered, individually designed, proactive plans to address challenging behaviors. A Positive Support Professional develops this plan to enhance a person’s quality of life through the process of teaching or increasing positive behavior. This position leads the process to develop a positive behavior support plan and/or positive support transition plan.

This role partners with the Services Team to execute the organization’s mission and maintain excellence in service delivery to individuals with developmental disabilities or other special needs.

Key Responsibilities

Roles and Responsibilities · Work with the individual served and their team to develop a person-centered, positive-practice, individualized behavior support plan that identifies specific, proactive and reactive intervention strategies. · Distribute the plan(s) to the individual served and their team members. · Provide onsite instructional learning to staff about the plan(s) and the use of behavioral interventions. · Evaluate the effectiveness of the service, interventions, and the plan(s). · Modify the plan(s) as necessary. · Review incident reports, Behavior Intervention Report Forms, and Emergency Use of Manual Restraint Forms to identify behavioral patterns and provide coaching and training to the staff. · As identified in statute, develop a Functional Behavioral Assessment and Positive Support Transition Plan in consultation with the person’s expanded support team. · Review the Positive Support Transition Plan with the expanded support team according to statute and implement the phase out plan according to statute. · Conduct site visits to provide proactive and reactive behavioral support, coaching, and retraining. · Serves as an active member of the Safety Committee.

Crisis Respite Specific Roles and Responsibilities

· Develop a formal written assessment to determine the factors that resulted in or contributed to the crisis. The written assessment must be based in data collection and analysis and include, at a minimum: o Description of the factors that resulted in or contributed to the crisis. o Description of the data that will be collected to determine how the person’s behavioral, mental health and/or medical symptoms changed from baseline and in response to interventions. o Information about the person’s trauma history and how trauma may influence their behavior. o Consideration of the person’s cultural background and how cultural factors might influence behavior, mental health and medical treatment to ensure the intervention is respectful and appropriate.

· Develop an individualized 4 stage crisis intervention plan that is:

o Based on the findings, data and analysis of the formal written assessment, including data collection and analysis. o Person-centered. o Inclusive of specific proactive and reactive intervention strategies. o Trauma-informed. · Oversight of the individualized crisis intervention plan, including adjustments to the plan based on data collection and analysis. · Provide on-site and remote instructional learning for staff regarding the use of positive supports related to the person’s assessed needs and the implementation of the individualized crisis intervention plan. · Develop a formal written transition plan focused on supporting the person’s return home or to other community-based services, within 15 calendar days of service initiation, including: o A process for ongoing technical assistance to the provider or caregivers to implement the individualized crisis intervention plan. o Recommended positive support strategies and revisions to the person’s applicable support plans to prevent or minimize future crisis and increase the person’s stability living in the community.

An individual in this position must be able to successfully perform the essential duties and responsibilities listed above. Reasonable accommodation may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of this position.

Qualifications

· Must meet at least one of the following requirements o Psychologist licensed under https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/148 o Independent clinical social worker licensed under https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/148E o Master’s degree in social work from an accredited college or university with at least 4,000 hours of post-master’s supervised experience in the delivery of clinical service in the competency areas listed below o Physician licensed under https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/147 and certified by the American Board of Psychiatry and Neurology, or eligible for board certification in psychiatry with demonstrated experience in the competency areas listed below o Licensed professional clinical counselor under Minn. Stat. §148B.50 to148B.593 with at least 4,000 hours of post-master’s supervised experience in the delivery of clinical services with demonstrated competencies in the competency areas listed below o Master’s degree from an accredited college or university in one of the behavioral sciences or related fields, with at least 4,000 hours of post-master’s supervised experience in the delivery of clinical services with demonstrated competencies in the competency areas listed below o Master’s degree or Ph.D. in one of the behavioral sciences or related field with demonstrated expertise in positive support services, as determined by the person’s case manager, based on the person’s needs outlines in their assessment summary. o Registered nurse licensed under https://www.revisor.mn.gov/statutes/cite/148 who has demonstrated experience in the competency areas listed below and fulfills one of the following requirements: § Certification by a national nurse certification organization as a clinical specialist or nurse practitioner in adult of family psychiatric and mental health nursing § Master’s degree in nursing or one of the behavioral sciences or related fields from an accredited college/university or its equivalent with at least 4,000 hours in post-master’s supervised experience in the delivery of clinical services o Completed a competency-based training program as determined by DHS · Experience working with people with special needs.

• Must have a valid driver's license, a clean driving record, and access to a reliable insured vehicle.
• Proficiency in Microsoft 365, including Outlook, Excel, Word and Teams.

Key Competencies

· Ethical considerations. · Functional behavior assessment. · Functional analysis. · Measurement of behavior and interpretation of data. · Selection of intervention outcomes and strategies. · Person-centered thinking strategies. · Positive behavior support strategies. · Behavior reduction/elimination strategies that promote least restricted, approved alternatives. · Data collection. · Staff and caregiver training. · Support plan monitoring. · Treatment of co-occurring mental disorders and neurocognitive disorders. · Demonstrated expertise with development/intellectual disabilities and mental health diagnoses. · Demonstrated skills in reading, writing, and speaking the English language fluently. · Ability to plan, organize, develop, and implement goals and objectives, policies, and procedures. · Ability to make independent decisions when circumstances warrant such action. · Willingness to take initiative, adapt to circumstances, and work independently. · Guarantees that all policies, procedures, guidelines, and practices meet or exceed requirements under local, state, and federal laws and regulations to retain compliance and licensure. · Ensures that risk management measures are implemented to avoid risky practices, non-practices/incorrect practices, or violations of any sort. · Assures all information is secure and safe. · Ensures communications are correctly and promptly provided to appropriate people. · Strong organizational and analytical skills.

Work Environment and Travel

This role is based at Synova Group's headquarters in Brooklyn Park, Minnesota, with travel to homes and project sites across the portfolio. Work is performed both at a desk using a computer, phone, and other standard office equipment as well as at the service homes. The role requires sitting for extended periods as well as standing, walking, bending, and lifting up to 20 pounds while moving frequently throughout the workday. Travel also includes meetings with staff and teams, and attendance at conferences or training sessions to stay current on regulations and best practices. The role is subject to frequent interruptions and imposed deadlines. The role also involves encountering individuals who are physically aggressive or in distress, as well as staff, family members, or members of the public who are upset. While generally predictable, additional hours may be required to meet critical deadlines.