The following is a list of PAS Workforce resources related to Wyoming.
The list is provided and maintained by the National
Clearinghouse on the Direct Care Workforce. Each citation contains
an abstract and information about how to obtain the entire version.
Wyoming Department of Health Developmental Disabilities Division. (November 2002). Report to the Joint Appropriations Committee on the impact of funding for direct staff salary increases in adult developmental disabilities community-based programs.
Abstract:
The 2002 Wyoming State Legislature provided major funding to improve the salaries of direct care personnel in adult developmental disabilities community-based programs. This report documents the positive impact of an increase in average direct staff wages from $7.38 an hour to $10.32 an hour. Turnover dropped nearly one-third in only the first 90 days after implementation of salary improvements.
Paraprofessional Healthcare Institute and the North Carolina Department of Health and Human Services. (March 2004). Chart of direct-care workforce activities in Wyoming.
Abstract:
This chart describes existing or enacted direct-care workforce initiatives in this state as of March 2004. The information was collected as part of a national survey of state initiatives on the long-term care direct-care workforce. Additional details about this state may be found in the full report.
Mckee, Garry L. (December 2001). Report to the joint appropriations committee on study of nonprofessional direct care staff recruitment, retention, and wages. Wyoming Department of Health.
Abstract:
This report from the Wyoming Department of Health urges the state to boost the wages of direct-care workers across the spectrum of long-term care and disabilities services by at least $3 an hour over the next two years. The findings identify that direct-care worker turnover rates of over 50% place patients and disabled individuals at risk. Low pay, a shortage of fellow staff members to share work, and a lack of career opportunities are the most commonly cited reason for leaving the field.
House, Peter J. (March 2002). The direct care paraprofessional workforce providing long-term care services in the United States: Wyoming case study. Center for Health Workforce Studies and the University of Washington.
Abstract:
This paper is part of a larger National Study by the Center for Health Workforce Studies that explores the extent to which policy makers at the state, local, and institutional levels have adequate data on the staffing shortages of paraprofessional workers. Information was collected for the study via reviewing written materials, interviewing key players in state policy, and visiting a long-term care facility in rural Wyoming. All key players expressed interesting in learning more about the cause of staffing shortages. The author found that the greatest contributors to the staffing shortages are low wages, lack of access to training, difficulty of recruitment and retention in remote and isolated communities, and lack of opportunity for career advancement.
Lynch, Robert M., et al. (October 2005). Wyoming demonstrates major improvements in retention by enhancing wages and training. Links. American Network of Community Options and Resources (ANCOR).
Abstract:
In 2002, the Wyoming legislature approved a 28% increase in funding for Medicaid Home and Community-Based Services program for adults with developmental disabilities. Funding was targeted to increase wage compensation for Direct Support Professionals (DSPs). Wyoming was also one of the first states to develop an apprenticeship program for DSPs in 2004. This article documents the positive impact that both initiatives had in decreasing turnover, which dropped nearly 40% from 2001 to 2004.
This article is reprinted with permission from LINKS Volume 35, No. 9 October 2005, published by the American Network of Community Options and Resources (ANCOR). ANCOR is a national network of providers offering quality supports to people with disabilities.
