Direct Support Connect® is a job board for individuals who hire direct support workers and for Minnesota direct support workers, home care workers, and PCAs (Personal Care Assistants) who are looking for employment
Direct Support Connect® was created to help address the shortage of direct support workers in Minnesota. The resource is funded through collective bargaining agreements with the State of Minnesota and Service Employees International Union (SEIU) Healthcare Minnesota — the union that represents direct support workers in PCA Choice, Consumer Directed Community Supports and the Consumer Support Grant.
Direct Support Connect® is designed for individuals who hire individual direct support workers. This includes people on waiver programs, PCA Choice, Consumer Directed Community Supports (CDCS) and Consumer Support Grants (CSG).
Direct support workers (or people interested in becoming direct support workers) can also register with Direct Support Connect®.
The site is not designed for agencies to create an account to assist in finding workers. However, agencies can encourage workers and individuals to create their own accounts.
No, using the site is free.
The Minnesota Department of Human Services takes data privacy and security seriously and is committed to protecting user information. The Direct Support Connect® website is secure and collects only the minimum amount of data needed to help users connect.
If you need direct support but don't know if you qualify for PCA services, Consumer Directed Community Supports (CDCS) or Consumer Support Grant (CSG), contact the human services office in the county where you live to discuss options and eligibility.
You can request a MnCHOICES assessment and a certified assessor will meet with you to determine what services and programs you qualify for based on your needs, and then you choose what services and programs are right for you.
Search for a provider by TYPE, example: Personal Care Services.
Search for an agency by any criteria, such as county or zip code.
Or search on MinnesotaHelp.info, using a keyword, example: Personal Care Assistant (PCA).
The Minnesota Department of Human Services supports Meet My Rumi, a website specifically designed to assist individuals in locating caregiver-roommates. Visit www.MeetMyRumi.com for more information.
For Individuals Hiring
If you're an individual looking to hire you can register with the website, create a new profile and select I’m Hiring to complete your profile. Then create a job posting(s) with Direct Support Connect® that tells direct support workers:
Who you are.
What supports you need.
When you need direct support
Direct Support Connect® will automatically match direct support workers to each of your job postings. If you locate a good match you can then securely message individuals to introduce yourself using the Message Me feature.
Fill out the online registration form and agree to the Terms of Use
Select Register
After registering for the site you will be asked to complete a basic profile and then select that you are creating an I’m Hiring profile.
If you have created a profile and want to create a new profile select the user icon in the gold banner at the top of the page and Create New Profile from the drop down menu.
In the gold banner at the top of the page, select Jobs and then select the green New Job Opening button.
Complete all the required fields and select Submit.
Note: A job posting must be created in order for Direct Support Connect® to automatically match direct support to your job posting on the site.
Direct Support Connect® will automatically list the direct support professionals whose profiles have the highest percentage match to your job posting(s).
To view your matches select Jobs in the gold banner at the top of the page, select a job posting to view the job opening details and a list of matched direct support workers.
The job posting may have a schedule or areas of support needed that do not match any direct support professionals’ profile.
In the gold banner at the top of the page select Jobs.
Open the job posting which you would like to close.
Select the blue Close Job button.
Choose the reason for closing the job posting and select Submit.
Direct Support Connect® will display profiles which have the highest percentage match to your profile. If you think a profile may be a good fit, select Message Me next to the individual’s name. You can then type a message to start a conversation and select Submit. The individual will receive an email notification alerting them of a new message. Private messages can be sent back and forth within the site to ensure they are a good match.
Select the star icon next to an individual’s name to add them to your favorites list. This ensures you are able to message the individual even if you are not matched in the future.
Once you are signed into your account, select the envelope icon in the gold task bar at the top of the page. In this section, you can access your sent and received messages.
In the gold banner at the top of the page, click on Welcome (your name). This will allow you to see an overview of your Direct Support Connect® account including the following sections: Matching Job Openings, My Job Postings, Messages, and My Favorites List.
You will receive an email with a link to reset your password. If the email is not received immediately check your spam/junk email folders.
Click on the password reset link and follow the instructions on how to reset your password.
Email the Direct Support Connect® team by selecting Contact Us in the gray banner at the bottom of the home page.
For Direct Support Workers
If you're a direct support worker you can register for the website, create a new profile, and select I’m a support worker option to complete your profile with Direct Support Connect® that tells individuals looking to hire:
Who you are.
What experience you have.
When you're available to work.
Direct Support Connect® will automatically match you to the job postings of individual hiring. If you locate a good match you can then securely message individuals to introduce yourself using the Message Me feature.
Fill out the online registration form and agree to the Terms of Use
Select Register
After registering for the site you will be asked to complete a basic profile and then select that you are creating a Worker profile. Only one profile of this type can be create on the site.
If you have created a profile and want to create a new profile select the user icon in the gold banner at the top of the page and Create New Profile from the drop down menu.
Direct Support Connect® will automatically match you to the job posting of individuals hiring.
To view your matches, select Jobs in the gold banner at the top of the page and scroll down to the Matching Jobs section and select a job to see additional details.
Your profile may not be complete enough to be matched to job openings. You are encouraged to answer all questions in your profile to increase your chance of being matched with job openings.
Direct Support Connect® will display profiles which have the highest percentage match to your profile. If you think a profile may be a good fit, select Message Me next to the individual’s name. You can then type a message to start a conversation and select Submit. The individual will receive an email notification alerting them of a new message. Private messages can be sent back and forth within the site to ensure they are a good match.
Select the star icon next to an individual’s name to add them to your favorites list. This ensures you are able to message the individual even if you are not matched in the future.
In the gold banner at the top of the page, click on Welcome (your name). This will allow you to see an overview of your Direct Support Connect® account including the following sections: Matching Job Openings, My Job Postings, Messages, and My Favorites List.
You will receive an email with a link to reset your password. If the email is not received immediately check your spam/junk email folders.
Click on the password reset link and follow the instructions on how to reset your password.
Email the Direct Support Connect® team by selecting Contact Us in the gray banner at the bottom of the home page.
SEIU is the healthcare union representing all types of healthcare workers, including direct support workers in PCA Choice, Consumer Directed Community Supports and the Consumer Support Grant, throughout Minnesota.
Direct support workers are not required to be union members to register with Direct Support Connect®.
If desired, information about SEIU is available by contacting:
A Unique Minnesota Provider Identification (UMPI) number is what MHCP (Minnesota Health Care Program) enrolled providers use to bill the state, so a worker can get paid. As a PCA, CSG, or CDCS direct support worker, you receive this number after enrolling with the Minnesota Department of Human Services and becoming affiliated with an MHCP enrolled provider agency.
An UMPI number is required by the Minnesota Department of Human Services when providing care for someone who is receiving Medical Assistance (Medicaid) and some MinnesotaCare recipients.
Providing an UMPI number in your profile will display the agencies or fiscal management service (FMS) entities you are affiliated with.
You are not required to provide an UMPI number to register with Direct Support Connect®.
If you forget your UMPI number, contact your current provider agency or fiscal management service (FMS) entity.
A learner ID is an identification number you receive after registering on Direct Course. a website which offers online training courses for direct support workers through The College of Direct Support.
If you lose your learner ID, you can recover it by visiting the College of Direct Support login page and clicking Forgot Password.
Adding your learner ID to your profile will display a list of courses you’ve taken in Direct Course. These courses highlight your training and skills and may help you make a connection on the site.
Note: You are not required to provide a Learner ID to register with Direct Support Connect®.
