Strategic Workgroups

Direct Care Worker Employer

Workgroup leader:

Dennis Sonnenberg, The British Home Community

Goals

This workgroup is designed especially for those who employ or work with direct care workers (homecare workers and staff at long term-care facilities and hospitals). This workgroup will address barriers, such as inconsistent training, to a stable and efficient direct care work force and identify ways to recruit the best possible workers to meet the long-term care needs of the area.

Initial workgroup efforts focused on implementing a pilot training program for new direct care workers and a career ladder program. After learning more about these programs and meeting with the U.S. Department of Labor and others, members of this workgroup decided to redirect efforts in order to take best advantage of the collaborative efforts of Aging Well and have the largest impact on the community.

Workgroup members are now in the process of researching existing models to recruit and support direct care workers. Nationwide, there are concerns that an impending shortage of direct care workers will cause a crisis in long-term care. Efforts of this workgroup will focus on recruiting and retaining high quality direct care workers to meet the long-term care needs of greater Lyons Township.

Accomplishments

• Researched existing career ladder and apprenticeship models for direct care workers
• Identified methods to increase the recruitment of direct care workers

Strategic
Workgroups

Central Access Point

Community Outreach

Direct Care Worker Employer

Isolated Older Adults

Planning for the Future

Transportation