WEST BLOOMFIELD, Mich. – A new program by Gesher Human Services expects to be a game changer by addressing a shortage in the talent pool for direct care workers in West Bloomfield.
The way they are doing that is not looking for a talent pool of workers but creating their own pool of talent by paying people to get trained.
Corey Zeigler had no idea his heartbreak was preparing him for something extraordinary for him, which was becoming his father’s caregiver as he had dementia.
He is a gem, and gems like Zeigler are in high demand. Because he was able to transfer what he learned in caring for his father to becoming a professional direct care worker at Gesher Human Services for developmentally disabled adults and adults with mental health needs in group homes.
In March of 2023, the state of Michigan declared a crisis in the direct care workforce through a survey conducted by MALA, the Michigan Assisted Living Association, and Michigan Plain Talk, people willing, able, and properly trained to care for a growing number of vulnerable are hard to find.
Gesher Human Services in Southfield, finding the pool of candidates increasingly shallow, has decided to create its own pool of professionals with an apprentice program that will pay people to learn the ins and outs of direct care.
The program takes about a year to complete, so pay, benefits, vaycay, and then at the end of the training, apprentices will get a nationally recognized journeyperson direct support specialist credential with no strings attached to get quality candidates into the pipeline.