http://phinational.org PHI works to improve long-term care -- by improving the jobs of home health aides, certified nurse aides, & personal care attendants. Fri, 18 Jul 2008 21:04:32 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en A newly awarded federal grant will fund continuing research and analysis on how to strengthen and support the personal assistance services workforce. The University of California San Francisco's five-year-old Center for Personal Assistance Services (PAS Center) learned last week that is has been funded for another five years by the National ... http://phinational.org/archives/pas-center-grant-will-fund-continuing-research-on-direct-care-workers/ "If I had only one sentence, this would be it: Direct support work is a highly skilled job," says Amy Hewitt. "It's not viewed that way by society - or, frankly, by many employers - but not everybody can do this job. You have to be smart; you have to be ... http://phinational.org/archives/amy-hewitt-direct-support-work-is-a-highly-skilled-job/ When long-term care opinion leaders were surveyed about the challenges facing our long-term care delivery and financing system, the challenge they named most often was the workforce. The first national survey of what long-term care experts think about the state of long-term care in the U.S.A. and how it can be reformed tallied the responses ... http://phinational.org/archives/opinion-leaders-rank-workforce-top-among-ltc-challenges/ A blog sponsored by the College of Direct Support posts stories for direct support professionals, consumers, and other members of the direct support community, inviting feedback and input. On the same page, you'll find a link to the CDS's podcasts, which will include A Day in the Life of a DSP. Currently on that ... http://phinational.org/archives/cds-blog-podcast-offer-window-on-direct-support-work/ "The residents come to know you better and trust you," says a CNA of the changes a nursing home experienced after implementing consistent assignment. The new system also benefits the home's direct-care workers, according to a one-page report (pdf) by the Iowa Foundation for Medical Care, the Medicare Quality Improvement Organization ... http://phinational.org/archives/iowa-residents-cnas-reap-the-benefits-of-consistent-assignment/ When direct-care workers and their clients can't get the support they need through government agencies, they can always try the courts. That's what Oregon resident Clay Freeman is doing in a federal civil-rights lawsuit, which would require the state to increase the base pay for some home care aides in the ... http://phinational.org/archives/civil-rights-lawsuit-calls-for-higher-pay-for-oregon-home-care-workers/ There is general agreement among policy makers and providers that high turnover rates among direct-care workers hurt care quality and need to be lowered. But we can't even define the scope of the problem, let alone assess how effective interventions may be, without a consistent method of measuring turnover, according ... http://phinational.org/archives/standard-measure-of-turnover-needed/ [wpyt-post]qW0QMaD9V-w[/wpyt-post] "The Baby Boom generation will need care, and most people today prefer to stay in their homes, so in order to attract and maintain people like Rosa, we need to make sure they're paid a livable wage, that they have health care benefits and that they have the training they ... http://phinational.org/archives/video-washington-governor-walks-a-day-in-a-home-care-aides-shoes/ Tameshia Bridges, PHI's Michigan senior workforce advocate, has been chosen to join a selective national network of policy and advocacy leaders. The Progressive Leadership and Advocacy Network (PLAN) is for "emerging advocacy leaders working to effect positive change for low-income women and their families." It helps participants become more effective advocates by ... http://phinational.org/archives/phis-bridges-chosen-for-competitive-program-for-emerging-leaders/ A July 6 feature in the New York Times details ways that high gas prices are making it difficult for elders nationwide to access Meals on Wheels, home care, and other social services. As Gas Prices Soar, Elderly Face Cuts in Aid is brimming with sobering facts, figures, and quotes - ... http://phinational.org/archives/high-gas-prices-cost-elders-in-lost-services/