Presidential Address: The Next Generation Workforce, A Call to Action

It is my great honor to close the 145 meeting of the American Association on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (AAIDD) and speak to you on this year’s theme, ‘‘Addressing Workforce Challenges: Promising Trends in Policy, Practice, and Research.’’ When I first chose this topic, I could not have predicted the workforce challenges that would be presented to each of us over this past year due to the impact of Covid 19. I chose this year’s theme for a much more personal reason. I was experiencing the medical, clinical, administrative, and direct support workforce through a new lens. A lens that would further shape my appreciation and offer me insight into some possibilities for the future. I recall the day vividly. In May 2017, my dad was diagnosed with dementia. We went to his favorite restaurant for lunch to celebrate his 87 birthday with his siblings, and then onto the VA hospital for a medical appointment. He had been spending more and more time at my house and I was getting concerned about him being alone. He had recently had his driver’s license revoked and was focused on getting it back. He needed a letter from his physician. I knew that he would not be getting his license back. Dr. Lawrence knew us well. She had been his primary care physician at the VA for many years. She knew how he prided himself on being in excellent health. She worked to adjust his metformin as his diabetes improved as he aged. Without a word spoken between us, I knew that she could sense my concern. She listened to my dad and suggested we meet with the social worker who could assess his ability to drive. Though I knew that he was forgetting things, it was not until I witnessed him take the cognitive assessment test that I realized the extent of his impairment. He could not tell the time on the clock, he could not recall the current president, and he certainly could not remember 5 words ‘‘Person, woman, man, camera, TV.’’ However, he was charming and flirtatious, and I realized he was very proficient at deflecting the questions and pretending to understand. At that time, I had been providing services and supports to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD) for 31 years. I had been a direct support professional in large institutional settings and in individualized community-based settings. I had coordinated in-home and out-ofhome respite for families. I had been in leadership roles ranging from Program Director to Executive Director. I had studied public policy at the Heller School at Brandeis University and earned a Master’s in Management of Human Services with a focus on Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities. But in that moment, my roles reversed from professional to family member, from service provider to service recipient. In the following three years, I would assist my dad to utilize in-home supports, respite, adult day habilitation, occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech therapy, self-directed supports, environmental adaptations, transportation services, assistive technology, psychiatry, social work, inpatient rehabilitation, and finally long-term care.