California is
facing a critical shortage of trained home care caregivers, putting
thousands of patients at risk for high-quality care
OWINGS
MILLS, Md., June 20,
2024 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Minority
Health Association (NMHA), a national health-equity advocacy
group, has announced the successful completion of the
organization's effort to bolster the workforce of home and
community-based healthcare providers in California. The NMHA won the grant in
partnership with the grant in partnership with Nevvon, a leading
online healthcare training company.
The need for caregivers is acute. In California, the population of individuals over
the age of 60 is expected to increase by 166% by 2060, a rate of
growth that is three times faster than that of the total U.S.
population. By 2020, 1 in 4 Californians will be over the age of
60. On this current trajectory, the state will hit a massive
caregiver crisis in just a few short years. The shortage is
projected to be between 600,000 and 3.2 million workers.
Under a state of California
$31 million grant,
the Caring4Cal program allowed participants to earn up to
$2,750 in incentives for completing
essential training and retention milestones. To have been eligible
for the program, caregivers needed to be residents of California, and either currently work in an
eligible job role, or be interested in becoming an eligible
provider in a home or community-based setting.
At launch, the NMHA initially identified a sign-up goal of
10,000 individuals. In a few short months, the campaign had reached
more than 30,000 people across the state, enrolling over 19,000 and
certifying more than 13,000 caregivers.
"We knew we had to think outside of the box for this unique
challenge. The NMHA developed a forward-thinking approach to
address the caregiver shortage. To support it, our team developed a
messaging suite grounded in inspirational language that spoke to
the heart, encouraging a groundswell response from California's future caregivers,"
said Burgess Harrison, NMHA, executive director. "We are
honored to have had the opportunity to act as stewards of this
grant and support the investment in the future of California's caregiving workforce."
The grant initiative was part of a $31
million program spearheaded by the California Department of
Healthcare Access and Information (HCAI) designed to increase
access to health services for rural communities, children with
complex medical conditions, older adults and individuals with
disabilities.
"A majority of the individuals that NMHA enrolled in the
Caring4Cal program are net new to the healthcare field, with 67% of
all enrollees having never worked in healthcare before, and were
inspired to begin a new and meaningful career as a community health
worker," said Sara
Moore, NMHA, chief operating officer.
For more information, please visit
https://www.thenmha.org/caring4cal.
About NMHA.
The National Minority Health Association is a 501c3 non-profit
organization founded in 1988. The NMHA delivers on its mission of
health equity through innovative programs including, Equity for
All, Health is for EveryBODY™
(www.healthisforeverybody.org ), Operation Healthy
You™, Equityville™, and The Art Alliance, to
name a few. The lack of health equity in underserved, marginalized,
and hard-to-reach communities translates into lost lives, adverse
health outcomes, higher costs, diminished productivity, and
declines in quality of life and well-being for everyone. For more
information visit www.thenmha.org.
For More Information
John
Gonda
616-309-4888
JGonda@sage-growth.com
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SOURCE National Minority Health Association