The US faces a shortage of professional in-home care workers. The Bureau of Labor Statistics has projected both the growing availability of home care jobs and the shortage of people to fill them. Some states will confront daunting shortages within the next few years: Minnesota will need to fill almost 60,000 direct-care and support positions by 2020, particularly as the state shifts funding toward care in the community rather than in nursing facilities. The problem is worse in Alaska – where many care workers are nearing retirement age themselves. Over time, as AARP has predicted, the care gap will widen as boomer population ages – and their care needs catch up with them. And finally, in nursing, the future has arrived. “Between 2006 and 2016, the U.S. Department of Labor (2007) projected that registered nurse job growth in the home healthcare sector (39.5%) will be larger than in the hospital sector (21.6%).”
It’s really too bad that AARP ended its national events. The last one was in Miami last year – it was a good one – and Atlanta must still be reminiscing about that spectacular 2013 Life@50 event – which provided a pavilion and ramp-up for its AARP TEK training program. From 2013: “AARP TEK’s activities in Atlanta also will include youth volunteers known as “Tech Wizards” from 4-H Clubs of America and local colleges and universities, who will help boomers and seniors learn technology basics and how it can enhance their lives day-to-day."
Imagine the coordinated care scenario that includes…home care. In July of 2012, The Future of Home Care Technology was published, based on interviews with 21 industry executives and a survey of 315 home care managers (including non-medical care, home health care, geriatric care managers, organizations and franchises) who represented 34,509 workers across multiple states. And as market research reports tend to do, this one tries to predict the future use of technology. It s worth a look back, both to re-read a much-downloaded report and place it in 2016 context of actions, announcements, and industry change.
LifeAssist (http://www.lat.care), a leader in caregiving solutions for professional care providers, families and seniors, announces the launch of Circura, its enterprise communication, family engagement, content delivery, and collaboration platform.
grandPad®, respected for its ongoing commitment to seniors, is excited to announce an industry revolutionizing partnership with Comfort Keepers®, a widely recognized leading provider of quality in-home care for seniors and other adults.
Staying up-to-date by rounding up recent announcements. As the recently published 2016 Technology Market Overview noted, most older adults will remain in their own homes, served by home/companion and home healthcare providers and assisted by a variety of tech-enabled products and services. Over the past month, new offering announcements have that can help seniors, care providers (family and professional) meet the objective of remaining at home. Here are five, noting as always, that all material is provided from the websites/announcements from the companies themselves.
SANTA MONICA, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Today, HomeHero (www.homehero.org), the trusted senior home care marketplace, has pledged to convert 100% of their care providers from independent contractors to W-2 employees. These “Heroes” will form the foundation of the HomeHero Collaborative, a new care management platform for hospitals and health plans that connects and extends the health system into the home.
Consider this a heads up about new technology-enabled options for older adults. Sometimes it is helpful to know about offerings before or just as they are being released, if only to look for their availability in the future. The five interesting offerings that are noted below are all going to be available within the next six months, possibly sooner. Each in its own way strives to solve a problem experienced by older adults or those who serve them:
The US faces a shortage of professional in-home care workers. The 