Adults with developmental and intellectual disabilities (IDD) experience disproportionate rates of unemployment; only 27.8% of individuals with cognitive difficulties are employed in the United States (Institute on Disability, 2018). Job coaches work with adults with IDD to promote employment outcomes. However, these job coaches often receive limited training (Kluesner, Taylor & Bordieri, 2005) and are not prepared to teach skills to promote independence (Towery, Parsons & Reid, 2014). There are inconsistencies among best practice guidelines for supporting individuals with IDD in the workplace (Migliore, Butterworth, Nord, Cox and Gelb, 2012). This project uses an adapted social-ecological model to allow for an understanding of how factors within various levels of the model (individual, employer, vocational rehabilitation, societal and policy levels) influence factors within another level, and often work together as a system to support or act as a barrier to searching for, gaining, and maintaining employment. The proposed program, Training Job Coaches in Implementing Evidence-Based Strategies: An Occupational Therapy Designed Program also uses a social-ecological model in considering how to target multiple levels of the model, specifically the individual, employers/workplace environment, vocational rehabilitation, and societal levels. In the program, job coach participants will complete eight online modules that will be completed over the course of two months, taking approximately 1-1.5 hours per module. The module includes information about client-centered approaches, supporting an employee, building natural supports, accommodations, environmental modifications, building and maintaining relationships with employers and community advocacy. Each module includes a PowerPoint presentation, reflection assignment and group discussion. Participants are required to keep a weekly log of challenges. Participants will then engage in four individual follow-up sessions with the program leader, with two being conducted in-person at a workplace. The follow-up sessions provide allow further opportunities to provide individualized feedback and address specific challenges. Overall, Training Job Coaches in Implementing Evidence-Based Strategies: An Occupational Therapy Designed Program is an innovative, comprehensive, evidence-based, theory driven training program that seeks to provide job coaches with information and skills relevant to their work duties.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bu.edu/oai:open.bu.edu:2144/39312 |
| Date | 27 January 2020 |
| Creators | Saner, Jennifer |
| Contributors | Jacobs, Karen |
| Source Sets | Boston University |
| Language | en_US |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis/Dissertation |
Page generated in 0.0021 seconds