OIS

I am a "mandatory reporter" now; if I see or suspect abuse, I must report it.

Today was day one of two days of training for Oregon Intervention Service, OIS. It’s required every two years, and we must stay current; things change.

It’s all about our clients; we work for them. Our goal is to allow them to participate in all that life offers, despite their Disabilities. Today’s training also included defense against clients that may attack or be aggressive. Our defense is totally oriented towards deflection and stepping out of the way, NOT hurting the clients in any way.

(Last week, my two clients, both 17 year old girls, did get in a spat and said things and thew things at each other, and, not really knowing what the protocol is, I didn’t really touch them but I did separate them, spending some time with the girl who began the tiff and talking to her through a closed bathroom door where she was hiding. Our job, MY job, is not to be The Punisher or the aggressor, it is to protect my clients from themselves and each other. Listening to today’s lecture, I think I handled it well, and the one girl volunteered to apologize to the other without any prompting by me.

That girl turned 18 on Friday, so she will be moving to a Group Home, and I doubt I will see her again. I bought her a birthday card last week, that said something like "I believe in you!" and signed it with my name; I kinda hope it read well with her.

I was sort of surprised when some of the other people today agreed that this was a low-status job; people here on OD and in Real Life think I am doing a needed and wonderful job, HELPING people. No one that I have mentioned the job to has indicated to me that it’s a low status job; everyone thinks or thought I am rather special for doing this job, one that everyone so far had lauded as an Important Job.

I think my life has prepared me for THIS job; the OIS lecture hasn’t been "surprising" in any way; it all makes sense to me.

The next thing will be Thursday afternoon or Friday, to meet a new client, a boy, and to attend am Individual Service Plan meeting. That will be nice, this company believes in fully supporting it’s employees to perform our jobs. I take it that I was just filling in last week; another LST quit with no notice, and while I did wonder what exactly I should be doing, I winged it, and if doing what the girls wanted to do involved watching "Sponge Bob Squarepants" on Nickelodeon TV, well, I’m getting paid to watch kiddie shows, aren’t I.

Later this month, I have a day’s course on "The Fatal Four", the four main reasons our clients die or suffer: Aspiration, Constipation, Dehydration, and Seizures.  I guess this training is more oriented towards Group Home residents, but ti does apply to all our clients.

I was alone that first day, but the second and third days I had another LST with me, who I was hoping to ask questions of and to learn more about the job and what is expected, but, it turned out that I was the "senior" LST; the young woman I was working with was completely new on the job.  She was sort of frustrated just watching TV….

"Fake it till you make it" is an AA saying, and it worked for me in Japan, teaching English, although, there, if you "look like" what you claim to be, in this case a teacher, well, that’s 3/4s of the battle. right there, "The Golden Rule" is THE rule – don’t do anything to anyone else that you wouldn’t want done to you.

I can do that, or not do that, as the case may be.

After tomorrow, I will be a "Direct Service Professional".

The car payments go back to full payments next month, $362 vs. the Interest Only payments of $90 that I’ve been making for the last year, so it is vitally important that the job begins in ernest and that the pay checks flow in. It would be too sad, too ironic, if, now that I have a JOB, that I lose the car. Rent starts again in October, and the monthly expenses run about $800, car, insurance, rent, and misc. bills.  The Unemployment was less than that, so I have used up all my savings and am all but broke.

I am sort of stressing on it, thank god for these anti-depressants, but…

Onwards.

 

*****