HCBS Training

The Minnesota Team Checklist section on staff development and performance prompts teams to assess training systems.  Performance-Based Staff Development refers to the extent to which these trainings are assessed in a way that shows staff members are making observable progress learning new skills over time.  Item 21 addresses the extent to which the organization is assessing all aspects of staff development.  

Skills, knowledge, and attitudes all impact staff performance. An important goal of the team is to review the elements of person-centered practices that are already present in current trainings. Most teams update these curricula instead of creating a new training that only covers the topic of person-centered or positive support practices. However, training is not a one-time event.  It can be helpful for staff to be given the chance to talk about what they are learning and what they want or need to learn over time. The use of multiple adult learning strateiges are helpful to create ways for people to learn new skills across the year.

This module is not intended to teach how to implement one type of person-centered model or positive support practice. Instead, each HCBS provider chooses the type of person-centered and positive support practice that fits the organization and the people receiving support. Additional training often includes skills that are taught by a expert trainer. Teams often work with these expert trainers to ensure ongoing training is available and the content introduces the practices. 

Once the type of person-centered and positive support approaches and tools are chosen, the goal is for the team to create a plan to integrate and embed the information with assistance from an expert into: 

• Training for new and existing staff,
• Ongoing staff meetings,
• Introductory presentations on common practices,
• Written materials, and
• Other ways to share key content, tools, and details.

Review person-centered and positive support models by visiting the Module 6 Resource Page .

Key Elements of  Performance-Based Staff Development

Performance-based management approaches for training staff includes details by:

• Defining the mission and goals for training
• Creating a way to measure progress
• Using data to assess progress over time
• Creating ways to recognize and celebrate progress

Adapted from the U.S. Government Accountability Office (1996).Executive Guide: Effectively Implementing the Government Performance and Results Act, pp.10. Washington, D.C., 1996