The Maine Department of Health & Human Services’ Worker Portability and Advancement Initiative was launched in 2022 “to create a base credential usable by individuals in at least two current roles: Personal Support Specialist (PSS) and Direct Support Professional (DSP), with consideration also being given to developing a base credential for Mental Health and Rehabilitation Technician (MHRT) I.” We are happy to provide this status report.
The base credential, Direct Service Worker (DSW), will replace the current Personal Support Specialist (PSS). The DSW curriculum consists of approximately 12 hours of online, asynchronous learning modules and an 8 hour in-person skills demonstration. The DSW Course is complete and is hosted in the Learning Management System (LMS) housed at the University of Southern Maine (USM), the goal is for the online portion of training to be free for learners.
For more information on these pilots, the curriculum, and the required live skills demonstration, you can peruse these excerpts from a presentation made to the Essential Support Workforce Advisory Committee during their September 8, 2025 meeting by committee member, Jaime Spencer, Director of Workforce Initiatives, Office of Aging & Disability Services.
The first “add-on” credential, Direct Support Professional (DSP), will replace the current Direct Support Professional (DSP) by requiring those new to the field to complete the DSW course and the new DSP Add-on. This new add-on credential has been completed and instructors across the state have been invited to review this new curriculum and provide feedback.
Because implementation state-wide requires policy revisions in MaineCare Sections 19 & 96, there is no timeline for the full roll-out of this new curriculum. These sections of policy and waiver state that a PSS worker must have a combined 50 hours of training. Two pilots of the DSW core curriculum have included Personal Care Agencies that do not serve MaineCare clients. Those two pilots have resulted in over 120 certified DSW workers in the state.
The State is continuing to participate in the Direct Care Worker Strategy Center Peer Learning Collaboratives (PLCs). This year’s technical assistance will focus on building upon Maine’s existing work through the Direct Service Worker (DSW) Core Curriculum and the forthcoming Direct Support Professional (DSP) add-on credentials. They will be emphasizing:
- strategies to strengthen long-term career development and workforce stability;
- the creation of specialized tracks that recognize areas of expertise and enhance the portability of credentials across care settings; and
- alignment with current discussions on micro-credentials in dementia care, which demonstrate potential for specialty training and credential stacking.
Jake McDonald, Senior Policy Advocacy Specialist at PHInational.org, is Maine’s subject matter expert and they will be working together through the Spring of 2026. Their current focus is evaluating promising practices from around the country for applicability here in Maine. You may recognize Jake from his work with the Partnership over the last three years.
In addition to the State’s work to roll out the DSW and the add-on DSP certification to new workers statewide, the State is considering the following:
- the rules and processes for workers who currently hold PSS & DSP credentials; and
- the potential to develop a base credential for Mental Health and Rehabilitation Technician (MHRT) I.
Jaime Spencer, who is spearheading this project, has been generous with her time and knowledge. We look forward to continuing to support Maine’s Department of Health & Human Services’ efforts and will keep sharing what we know.