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!

The Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) requests your assistance sharing the attached communication, ODPANN 25-082: Reminder for Certified Trainers: Medication Administration Guidance for training at multiple Eligible Providers. The purpose of this announcement is to provide guidance for Certified Trainers that train for multiple eligible providers.

Maintaining your Trainer Certificate Attachment. 

The Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) requests your assistance sharing the attached communication, ODPANN 25-081: The Important Role of The Incident Management (IM) Representative Training Now Available on MyODP. The purpose of this announcement is to advise Provider and Supports Coordinator Incident Management Representatives (IM Reps) that a new training is available on MyODP. The training should be considered a prerequisite for future trainings, technical assistance, and skill building opportunities that may be offered through ODP. Please review the announcement for additional information and details.

The Office of Developmental Programs requests your assistance sharing the attached ODP Health Alert: A Late Summer Increase in COVID-19 Activity in Pennsylvania. The Health Alert provides information on increasing COVID-19 rates in Pennsylvania, recommended actions for preventing and treating the virus, and a list of resources to help better understand the current situation.

TRAIN: Autistic and intellectually disabled people are at increased risk of being victimized and experiencing trauma, however, few therapists are skilled in both supporting these communities and providing trauma-focused care. To bridge this gap, psychologists with the ASERT team created the TRAIN program—12 weeks of self-guided learning and live webinars for mental health therapists licensed in Pennsylvania who are currently working with Autistic and/or intellectually disabled adults. TRAIN is an integrative and neuro-affirming approach to trauma-focused care with neurodivergent adults, centering clinical work with the Autistic and intellectually disabled communities. After completing the 12 weeks of learning, participants have the option to continue their training through clinical consultation with the developers of TRAIN. This program covers:

• Trauma-focused mental healthcare

• Types and prevalence of trauma

• Expressions of trauma

• Neurodiversity and Neuro-affirming practices

• Navigating disclosures of abuse and ethical considerations of reporting abuse and neglect of dependent adults

• Assessing trauma and using trauma-focused interviews

• Trauma-focused and neuro-affirming psychoeducation

• Trauma response and nervous system regulation strategies

• Trauma processing techniques

• Resiliency and therapist self-preservation

Target Audience: This program was developed for therapists, counselors, and clinical social workers who already have experience working with clients who have an Intellectual Disability/Autism (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. You must currently be licensed and provide 1:1 talk therapy sessions to adult clients at the moment to qualify for this course and participate in the case consultation presentations.

Good Afternoon:

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

The Office of Developmental Programs’ (ODP) requests your assistance sharing the September 2025 training and events calendar. Please share widely.

The Office of Developmental Programs (ODP) requests your assistance sharing the attached communication, ODPANN 25-070 Update: Department of Human Services (DHS) Choking Prevention Website Now Available. This communication announces the release of the Department of Human Services’ (DHS) Choking Prevention website. This communication is being reissued to provide an updated link to the DHS Choking Prevention website. Updates appear in red text.