Maltreatment Investigator Training

The Arkansas Department of Human Services (DHS) is committed to protecting the health and safety of residents who live at the Division of Developmental Disabilities Services (DDS) Human Development Centers (HDCs) across the state. The division also makes continuing education for its staff a priority to better serve DDS clients.

To be sure that staff remain alert in looking out for the best interests of our clients, DDS recently held a refresher training for all investigators, HDC superintendents, and DDS staff who work in our five facilities across Arkansas. Dana Harvey, Assistant Superintendent of the Southeast Arkansas Human Development Center (SEAHDC), led the training which focused on the staff’s and investigators’ duties to report suspected maltreatment or abuse and provided education on how to detect and prevent maltreatment.

“As someone who works with clients at SEAHDC but who is also a certified investigator, I think it is great that our division focuses on educating and empowering staff at all levels so that our residents have a high-quality of life in our centers,” Harvey said. “It is important for our staff to know what they should do if they suspect a client is being mistreated by anyone, and it is important to know the signs to look for in a vulnerable population.”

Assist. Superintendent Harvey has been a certified maltreatment investigator since 2010 and a Licensed Nursing Home Administrator since 2018. The Conway Human Development Center hosted the event for the division.

DDS operates five residential HDCs in Arkadelphia, Booneville, Conway, Jonesboro, and Warren, which are home to nearly 1,000 clients with developmental and intellectual disabilities. The Division’s mission is to work with clients so they can be as independent as possible and have a high quality of life.