Posted on November 19, 2024
Her personal experience helps her to better understand the people she supports.
Anja Allgood is a Direct Support Professional (DSP) at a Penn-Mar home in Glen Rock, Pa. where she supports four gentlemen with diverse disabilities. They range in age from 26 to 75. She credits a woman she supported with Down Syndrome in a home care environment for inspiring her to pursue a career in the human services field.
Anja worked in a nursing home while studying for her Certified Nursing Assistant credentials. But with so many patients and so few staff she was less than impressed with the quality of care.
She shared her concerns with a friend’s grandmother who owned a home care agency and in 2019 transitioned to home care before joining Penn-Mar in 2022.
“I started out in personal home care while still in high school,” she said. “I liked helping people who couldn’t always do things for themselves, and I always thought that if I were in their shoes I would appreciate someone helping me.”
But Anja has been a natural caregiver for as long as she can remember. She grew up with four older siblings, one of whom had undiagnosed autism.
One brother was very independent but growing up he would sometimes wander off and struggle to communicate his emotions. Anja stepped into a big sister role even though she was a year younger, supported him, and helped ensure he did not wander off unsafely.
“I know now that my parents couldn’t make sense of my brother’s behavior at the time,” she recalls. “I always felt like I had a natural desire to help and guide him.”
In fact, it wasn’t until he was older that he was finally diagnosed with autism, and at 19, Anja learned that she had bipolar disorder.
“All of us struggled with our challenges growing up but I have to say it made us closer and stronger,” she said.
Anja credits her family experience with helping her to better understand the gentlemen she supports at Penn-Mar. “When emotions bubble up, I acknowledge their feelings and help them cope by encouraging them to feel it and let it out.”
Anja and the gentlemen she supports also enjoy a lot of community-based activities together. “We have a lot of exciting stuff going on because [we go] out a lot,” she said. “It can be for weekly grocery shopping, going to the movies or bowling, or just looking around thrift stores for bargains.”
Anja always tries to find things nearby that appeal to the preferences of the people she supports. During the Halloween season, the group visited “The Field of Screams.” She also made a dream come true for one of the gentlemen who is all about carnivals, fairs, and amusement parks with a group trip to Hershey Park.
Since working for Penn-Mar, Anja has been very enthusiastic about the training opportunities. “They are a big bonus,” raved Anja. “Working with people with disabilities can be very humbling without proper training. Prior to working here, I felt like I was stranded on an island. The Penn-Mar programs are so in-depth, including online training opportunities for the learning disability workforce found on Open Future Learning.”
Anja has also been enrolled in the DSP Career Ladders program for the past year and is now moving on to the next level.
In addition, she started the clinical phase of a nursing program in January at Harrisburg Area Community College (HACC). “It’s a lot right now, but I am passionate about continuing to work with people with disabilities. Having my nursing degree will help me provide even more support to this very special group of individuals,” she said.