For Iowa DSP providers
Iowa, meet the training pathway built around your DSP requirements
Iowa's DSP requirements are set by the Iowa Department of Health and Human Services (Iowa Medicaid). Some training is due before a new hire works alone, some renews every year or every few years, and some has to come from an outside certifying program. Keeping it straight for every staff member is a job in itself.
TES turns Iowa's requirements into one checklist for each staff member. Mapped online courses are ready to assign, and outside certifications are tracked as evidence in the same record, so the file is ready when a reviewer asks.
Summarized from 441 IAC 77.37; Iowa Code § 235B.16; 481 IAC Chapter 57. Last reviewed August 25, 2026.
- 400+ courses and programs
- 200,000+ professionals trained
What Iowa requires
- Ongoing training
- No statewide annual hour mandate for general DSP work; facility settings follow in-service lists, and employment-services staff need 4 hours annually; dependent adult abuse mandatory reporter training within 6 months of hire and every 3 years (Iowa Code § 235B.16)
- Background check
- Required — criminal history and child/dependent adult abuse registry checks under Iowa provider rules
- 441 IAC 77.37 — HCBS Intellectual Disability Waiver Provider Standards. Sets staff training topics for waiver providers — rights, confidentiality, medication, abuse reporting, and individual support needs — plus the supported-employment training carve-out in subrule 77.37(16).
- Iowa Code § 235B.16 — Dependent Adult Abuse — Mandatory Reporter Training. Establishes dependent adult abuse identification and reporting training obligations for caregivers.
- 481 IAC Chapter 57 — Residential Care Facilities. DIA rules for RCF settings, including the in-service training list in 481-57.10(2) and the medication aide requirement in 481-57.19(3).
What the Iowa pathway tracks, and how
The Iowa DSP pathway in the TES catalog has 8 requirements. Each one shows how often it renews and how TES handles it.
| Requirement | Renews | How TES handles it |
|---|---|---|
| Consumer Rights | One-time | Training assigned during setup and tracked per staff member |
| Confidentiality | One-time | Mapped course: Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) (DSP) |
| Child & Dependent Adult Abuse — Identification and Reporting | Every 3 years | Training assigned during setup and tracked per staff member |
| Consumer Medication Awareness | One-time | Mapped course: Medication Administration |
| Individual Support Needs | One-time | Mapped course: Person Centered Planning for Direct Support Professionals |
| Certified Medication Aide — Approved Course + Challenge Exam | One-time | Tracked in TES as external evidence |
| Supported Employment Staff — 9.5 hrs (DirectCourse/ACRE) + 4 hrs/yr | Every year | Tracked in TES as external evidence, with its renewal date |
| BI Waiver — State Brain-Injury Modules 1-2 within 60 days | One-time | Tracked in TES as external evidence |
Where TES courses fit in Iowa
TES courses cover the topics your agency is allowed to deliver itself. Hands-on certifications such as CPR and First Aid, medication credentials and any state-delivered modules stay with their required sources, and TES tracks them as evidence next to your online courses.
The records are what get reviewed
When a reviewer asks, you need more than certificates scattered across platforms. TES keeps each staff member's completions, certification cards and renewal dates in one checklist, so you can show who was trained on what, and when, in seconds.
Built for managers who are stretched thin
- One checklist per staff member. Every state requirement, its due date and its status in one record, so you can see who is on track and who is about to slip.
- Due dates and renewals tracked for you. Each requirement shows when it is first due and how often it renews, from "before first shift" to annual and multi-year cycles.
- Outside training lives in the same record. CPR/First Aid cards, medication-administration certifications and state-platform completions are tracked as external evidence next to your online courses, so one record shows what a reviewer asks for.
- Mapped online courses ready to assign. Self-paced courses from the TES catalog cover the topics your agency is allowed to deliver itself.
- NADSP Accredited Education provider. Completed TES hours can also count toward NADSP DSP-I and DSP-II accredited education through the NADSP E-Badge Certification Program.
Pricing
The Iowa DSP pathway includes the requirement checklist, due-date and renewal tracking, and the trainings mapped to the pathway. See the Iowa pathway in the TES catalog.
Buying for a team? Contact us or use "Request a team purchase" on the pathway page.
Frequently asked questions
What ongoing training do Iowa DSPs need?
No statewide annual hour mandate for general DSP work; facility settings follow in-service lists, and employment-services staff need 4 hours annually; dependent adult abuse mandatory reporter training within 6 months of hire and every 3 years (Iowa Code § 235B.16)
Does TES provide CPR, First Aid or medication certification?
No. Those come from their certifying programs. TES tracks each certificate and its renewal date in the same record as your online training.
What does the Iowa pathway cost?
Pricing depends on your team size and states. Individual pathways are listed in the TES catalog; for an agency quote, contact our team.
Make Iowa's requirements the easy part
See every staff member's Iowa checklist on one screen, with renewals and outside certificates tracked. We'll walk you through the Iowa pathway with your team in mind.