This announcement provides information on the registration process for ODP’s newly added 2024 virtual QM Certification classes.

Please review the announcement for additional details.

Below are the PA Family Network workshop and support groups for September. Thank you for sharing these important workshops and Good Life Groups with your network! Register for upcoming events at www.pafamilynetwork.org/events

Support Groups

The purpose of this communication is to notify stakeholders that ODP has published a Performance-Based Contracting (PBC) Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ). 

Please review the announcement for additional information and details.

The Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) requests your assistance sharing a new tool designed to support Administrative Entities and ODP staff when Providers or Supports Coordination Organizations (SCOs) choose to provide agency-developed or agency-identified training that meets the General Orientation and Annual training requirements of the 55 PA Code 6100.The reviewer determines if the identified staff completed each required annual training core courses based on Provider training records including, but not limited to: a description of the course, sign-in sheets, transcripts or certificates of completion from the training. ODPANN 24-036 is being included as a reminder of the annual training requirements.

Please review the tool and announcement for details.

The purpose of this announcement is to communicate the availability of the 2024 Certified Investigator (CI) Manual and the 2024 CI Manual Overview Updates document.

Please review the announcement for additional information.

The Office of Developmental Programs’ (ODP) requests your assistance sharing the September 2024 training and events calendar. Please share widely.

Message from ODP to providers:

Exciting news! We're thrilled to announce the release of Version 3.0 of the Office of Developmental Programs' Comprehensive Guide to Electronic Visit Verification (EVV). This updated guide is packed with valuable information to support you in navigating EVV requirements effectively.

• Trauma-focused mental healthcare
• Types and prevalence of trauma
• Disclosures of abuse
• Ethical principles of reporting abuse
• Expressions of trauma
• Assessing trauma and trauma-focused interviews
• Psychoeducation
• Trauma response management strategies
• Trauma processing
• Resiliency and self-care

This program was developed for

• Therapists
• Counselor
• Clinical social workers
• Participants who already have experience working with clients who have an ID/A diagnosis and are looking to gain knowledge and skills related to trauma therapy. Therapists who do not have experience with ID/A clients are also welcome to participate, but the expectation is they would be committed to taking such clients into their practice after completing the program as the purpose is to build capacity in this area across the state.

Requirements

The purpose of this communication is to provide guidance for implementing changes to Assistive Technology and Remote Supports in the amendments to the Consolidated, Community Living, Person/Family Directed Support (P/FDS) and Adult Autism Waivers. Please note: this communication is being reissued with an update to Attachment B only. The other attachments are being included for reference.

Please review the announcement here.

• Attachment A - Guidance to Enter Remote Supports Services on Plan in HCSIS
• Attachment B - Guidance to Enter Remote Supports Services on ISP in HCSIS for AAW Participants
• Attachment C - Remote Supports Device or Assistive Technology Device Decision Tree

The Bureau of Epidemiology will be hosting two webinars for LTCFs related to respiratory virus prevention and outbreak control available on PA-TRAIN. Act 58 CE credits are available and NHA CE credits are pending.

• September 4 @ 1 PM: “PA-EPI: LTCF Readiness and Prevention of Respiratory Viruses.” ID: 1120331
• September 18 @ 1 PM: “PA-EPI: LTCF Respiratory Virus Outbreak Control and Response.” ID: 1121319

Message from OVR:

As you all know, OVR has resumed their Supported Employment Office Hours. They are held once per month for the providers, and then also once per month for OVR staff.

The Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) is excited to announce the annual publication of the Resource Guide for Supporting Deaf, DeafBlind, and Hard of Hearing Individuals. The purpose of this guide is to offer resources in one central location for those who support or care for someone who is Deaf, Hard of Hearing, or DeafBlind and receives supports from ODP. The Guide provides some of the most frequently accessed resources to assist in addressing the unique needs of these populations, such as information about American Sign Language (ASL) courses, home modifications, assistive technology, a foundational organizations directory, and so much more!

Development of this guide included input from individuals within the Deaf, DeafBlind, hard of hearing, and hearing communities and will be revised annually.

In accordance with DHS rebranding and the Governor’s Office Customer Service Transformation Initiative, the Office of Medical Assistance Programs will be implementing changes to the old URLs to reach PROMISe hosted applications and websites. The old URLs, using a domain naming convention of dpw.state.pa.us, will be changing to dhs.pa.gov in phased implementations beginning August 7th, 2024, and wrapping up in October 2024. Please review the attached pdf containing the impacted production environment URLs.

Who is Impacted?

The purpose of this announcement is to communicate that registration for the September – December CI Initial Certification Course cohorts is now open in MyODP.

Please review the communication for additional details.

The ODP's Supportive Technology Open House scheduled on August 6, 2024 hosted on Temple University’s campus is being rescheduled. It was recently shared that a presidential candidate will be holding a rally on Temple's campus that day, which will cause disruptions with crowds, traffic, parking, and public transportation in the area. For those reasons, ODP has made the decision to postpone this event until a later date. Stakeholders will be notified once the new date and time have been scheduled.

ODP Technology Open House August 6

The purpose of this announcement is to inform residential providers that the link to the Performance-Based Contracting (PBC) Data Submission Tool is now available.

Please review for additional information.