Press Releases

Are Professional In-Home Caregivers Receiving Proper Training?

NEW YORK (January 29, 2008)— Who are the professional, in-home caregivers of older Americans and how are they trained? Those are the questions being answered in a new initiative of The Caregiving Project for Older Americans, funded by a $264,000 grant from the UniHealth Foundation. The Caregiving Project is housed within the International Longevity Center-USA (ILC-USA).

“Our population is aging rapidly and there is a well-documented need for more trained professional caregivers, especially in the home setting,” says Dr. Robert N. Butler, president and CEO of the ILC-USA. “In order to tackle this inevitable crisis, we must have a better understanding of who are the current professional caregivers and how they are trained.”

Ten distinguished caregiving experts have joined the Caregiver Training Task Force, serving as key advisors for the project. Major initiatives include a review of the caregiving curricula and training programs through the country, and a consensus conference in Los Angeles on May 8, 2008. While the review will be national in scope, special emphasis will be on Los Angeles and Orange Counties in Southern California, two of the most diverse and populous areas in the country

UniHealth Foundation President Mary Odell says, “The availability of well-trained in-home caregivers is crucial to enabling older adults to lead active and independent lives, a mission of the UniHealth Advancing Healthy Aging initiative. The research and ideas generated from this project will provide valuable insight on how to best recruit and retain a well-trained caregiver workforce.”

Caregiving Training Task Force Members Include:

Donna Benton, Ph.D., Director of the Los Angeles Caregiver Resource Center at the University of Southern California
Marie A. Bernard, M.D., Professor and Chair of the Donald W. Reynolds Department of Geriatric Medicine at the University of Oklahoma, College of Medicine
Cordula Dick-Muehlke, Ph.D., Executive Director of the Adult Day Services of Orange County
Kathleen Kelly, M.P.A., Executive Director of the Family Caregiver Alliance
Mary Ellen Kullman, M.P.H., Vice President of the Archstone Foundation
Vera Salter, Ph.D., Director of the National Clearinghouse on the Direct Care Workforce at the Paraprofessional Healthcare Institute
Vicki Schmall, Ph.D., Professor Emeritus in Gerontology at Oregon State University and Executive Director of Aging Concerns in West Linn, OR
E. Percil Stanford, Ph.D., Chief Diversity Officer at AARP, Office of Diversity and Inclusion
Monika White, Ph.D., Executive Vice President of External Affairs & Program Innovation at WISE & Healthy Aging
Beth Vaughan-Wrobel, EdD, RN, Associate Director at the Schmieding Center for Senior Health and Education

The UniHealth Foundation, based in Southern California, is a non-profit philanthropic organization whose mission is to support and facilitate activities that significantly improve the health and well being of individuals and communities within its service area. This grant is supported from their annual Advancing Healthy Aging initiative.

About The Caregiving for Older Americans Project

The Caregiving Project for Older Americans is an action-oriented collaboration that aims to improve the nation’s caregiving work force through training, the establishment of standards, and the creation of a career ladder. A joint venture of the International Longevity Center-USA (ILC-USA) and the Schmieding Center for Senior Health & Education (SCSHE), the effort combines the talents of a policy research center with a clinical outpatient and health education program. To learn more about the project visit http://www.ilcusa.org/prj/caregiving.htm.