Archive for ‘Voices Institute’

2011 DCA Voices Institute Training a Smashing Success!

Posted by on May 16th, 2011 at 4:23 pm | 1 Comment »

Tracy Dudzinski

This letter was contributed by DCA Board Chair, Tracy Dudzinski.

Another VI class has come and gone and what a week it was!  First off, I would like to thank all the workers who took the time to come to Wisconsin and develop their leadership skills.  It was a wonderfully diverse group filled with the talented and inspiring people our movement needs to be successful in the coming weeks, months and years.

The 2011 Voices Institute was a full circle moment for me.  I attended in 2008 as a worker and was privileged to come back this year and have the opportunity to expand my leadership skills as a facilitator.  When I arrived on Saturday and walked in the front door of Taylor Hall the memories overtook me.  It was like I was back in 2008 arriving as a student and I couldn’t wait to get started!  It was an exciting week and I enjoyed watching the new class find their voice.  Although some of our attendees were quiet at the beginning of our training, by the end of the week they blossomed like the magnolia tree in the garden, turning into the leaders who will expand this movement in all corners of the country.

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Caregiver Advocate Looks to Hone Skills at 2011 VI Leadership Training

Posted by on April 18th, 2011 at 5:55 pm | 2 Comments »

The following story was contributed by Meriam Jawhar

My name is Meriam Jawhar, and for the last ten years I have been a proud advocate for elders and people with disabilities, working to ensure that the most vulnerable in our society are given the voice they deserve.

As an elected member of the New Mexico Direct Caregivers Coalition, for several months I have been leading New Mexico’s advocacy coalition on behalf of caregivers across the state  in an attempt to better educate and inform local legislators on the need for greater job security for direct care workers.  In so doing, our coalition has stressed the importance of professionalizing the direct care workforce through competitive salaries, training and benefits for workers. 

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Humble Heroes: Caring and Supporting Beyond the Care Plan

Posted by on March 21st, 2011 at 3:21 pm | No Comments »

Leonila Vega

Meeting with direct care workers whether they work in nursing homes, assisted living or providing care and supports to elders and people living with disabilities in their homes, is both humbling and profoundly inspiring.  The stories I hear or moments I witness are examples of exemplary heroism and personal sacrifice.  These are the kind of stories that refuel your faith in people today, that there are those who – without regard to money, comfort or even means – will take extraordinary steps to help others in need,  whether they be families members or not.  Forty-two personal care assistants received PCA of the Year Award and nine others received outstanding PCA awards.

Recently, I met such humble heroes at the 2011 In-Home Care Workers Have Heart Conference in Oklahoma.   These “humble heroes” possess the qualities I want in a person caring for me, when I need home care as I know some day I will.  I am certain you too want this very type of home care worker to be there for you.   Read more and see for yourself what it means to receive good care, care beyond the plan of care, those essential documents put together by nurses, doctors and others to ensure elders and people living with disabilities have the care they need:

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Making Strides in Philadelphia

Posted by on March 14th, 2011 at 9:27 am | 2 Comments »

This is a guest post by Noel Mendez of the Philadelphia Chapter of the Pennsylvania Direct Care Workers Association

from left: Chris Langston, Margaret Bernger, Brenda Natchway and Noel Mendez

The Philadelphia Chapter of the Pennsylvania Direct Care Workers Association continued to make strides by hosting another successful membership meeting and participating in the Long Term Quality Alliance annual meeting.  On Friday 25, Brenda Nachtway, National Membership Director for the Direct Care Alliance, accompanied PADCWA members Peg Ankney, Margaret Beringer and myself to Washington, DC, where we attended the Inaugural Annual Meeting of the Long-Term Quality Alliance.  This event was held at the National Press Club where we met with Leonila Vega, Executive Director of the DCA.  Throughout the day we listened to industry and government leaders talk about issues that affect direct care workers and those in our care.

Mary Naylor of the University of Pennsylvania gave the welcome address and talked  about quality measurement, tangible improvements in care, and advancing policies that lead to improved care, among other important issues.  Kathy Greenlee, Assistant Secretary for Aging, focused on government policy, budgetary provisions and outlined features of the CLASS Act.  Topics covered by other speakers included the Affordable Care Act, dual eligibles, quality measurement, outreach and public awareness.

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Direct Care Workers & Allies Advocating Together: Voices Institute model trains leaders in Wisconsin

Posted by on October 25th, 2010 at 1:43 pm | 1 Comment »

This is a guest post from John Shaw, Community Outreach/Advocacy at the Wisconsin Board for People with Developmental Disabilities.

This year, the Direct Care Alliance’s Voices Institute, the Wisconsin Board for People with Disabilities (BPDD), and the Wisconsin Direct Caregiver Alliance launched an exciting new initiative called Advocacy Voices Together – a unique training program for people who want to improve the lives of direct care workers and the people they support.

An inspiration for this project, the Voices Institute gathers direct care workers from across the country to learn leadership and advocacy skills.  BPDD and WIDCA recognized a need in the community to develop these skills in direct care allies, uniting stakeholders to call for change.  With this in mind, the three organizations launched Advocacy Voices Together to do just that.

Anne Rabin (right) and daughter Emily create an action plan for continuing to advocate along with a family member living with disabilities.

During the training event, direct care workers and people who receive long-term care services  worked together in teams to learn advocacy and leadership skills.  The group learned how to build support for better wages, benefits and working conditions for workers, and how to advocate for family members and self advocates with disabilities. The training incorporated the core curriculum of DCA’s Voices Institute, along with key principles from disability community self advocacy.

“This is another huge milestone for the Voices Institute,” said Tracy Dudzinksi, Vice Chair of the DCA Board of Directors, Chair of the Board for the Wisconsin Direct Caregiver Alliance, and President of the Board for Cooperative Care in Wisconsin. Continue reading »

More Direct Care Worker Leaders Emerge in PA

Posted by on August 16th, 2010 at 10:21 am | 2 Comments »

Noel Mendes & Margaret Beringer at the workshop

On Saturday, July 17, the Direct Care Alliance held a Voices Institute Leadership Training Workshop in Valley Forge, Pennsylvania, which I led with Brenda Nachtway. Eight direct care workers attended the workshop that included leadership self-assessment  and modules on personal power, membership recruitment and building relationships with allies. The attendees were especially inspired to hear that the Direct Care Empowerment Act was about to be introduced into the U.S. House of Representatives and they practiced visiting with allies to gain support for the bill. On completion of the workshop, five participants – Clara Glenn, Margaret Beringer, Rolanda Crawley, Soon Hong and Noel Mendes – formed a Leadership Circle and are working together to build a chapter of the Pennsylvania Direct Care Workers Association in the Philadelphia region. Continue reading »

DCA Ramps Up Membership, Advocacy Efforts with New Staff

Posted by on July 19th, 2010 at 10:41 am | 2 Comments »

Roy Gedat

Former National Advocacy Director Roy Gedat will re-join the DCA staff as State Advocacy Director to lead the development of its membership program, focusing on recruiting and developing direct care worker leaders and connecting with supporters and advocates across the country. Roy will also support the implementation of the Langeloth Foundation grant to provide worker leadership training in New York and Maine. His work was instrumental to the DCA’s early success, and we’re thrilled to have him back! Roy has over 35 years in human services including 20 as the Executive Director of a child health agency. He was the founding director of Maine’s direct care worker organization Maine PASA, a direct care worker and a political activist who has run for office, and is currently the Treasurer of Oxford County, Maine. Roy has recently been focusing his energies on starting a private duty home care agency, raising money for several local and state-wide organizations and political campaign

Helen Hanson

Helen Hanson, a great friend of the DCA and a strong advocate for direct care workers in Maine, is joining our staff as a Worker Advocate to assist in grassroots organizing and strengthen our advocacy efforts  in Maine and across the country.  Helen is a graduate of the DCA’s Voices Institute and has excelled so much since!  She is a Certified Nursing Assistant and works with elders in their homes as a Personal Care Attendant. She’s been a direct care worker for eight years and has been an active advocate for change, leading Maine PASA and serving on a committee established to advise the Department of Health and Human Services on how to improve its long-term care system. She is currently running for the Maine House of Representatives.

Helen and Roy are huge assets to DCA and will be key to our continued growth. Please join me in welcoming them aboard!

Courageous Acts: Finding inspiration in direct care work

Posted by on May 13th, 2010 at 9:57 am | 3 Comments »

Vicki Erickson

I am one of the original 24 direct care workers selected from around the country to participate in the inaugural class of Voices Institute in 2008 . I am very proud to be a graduate of the very 1st Voices Institute.

One of the many things that has stuck with me is when we talked about the most courageous acts of our lives. For me, it was joining Iowa Caregivers Association because it brought my passion back to direct care. I was getting burned out and was ready to leave the direct care field at the time, but the Iowa Caregivers Association has taught me to have voice to talk to other CNA’s about what is going on in the health care field. Continue reading »

Creating the Workplaces We Deserve

Posted by on March 12th, 2010 at 12:50 pm | 6 Comments »

This is a guest post from Voices Institute graduate Angel Saylor.

Angel Saylor (right)

Over 200 Certified Nursing Assistants and their allies came together in Charlottesville, Virginia, on February 16 to share ideas on improving the workplace. The conference was hosted by the Community Partnership for Improved Long-term Care, an initiative of the Legal Aid Justice Center. It brought together direct care workers, elders, advocates, employers, doctors, nurses and others to:

• Exchange information and best practices;
• Recognize the challenges and celebrate the accomplishments of long-term care workers and caregivers from all settings;
• Learn how to enhance professionalism, leadership and teamwork, and offer solutions to reduce turnover; and
• Participate in skills training for caregivers to better meet the needs of disabled persons and seniors living with the challenges of aging. Continue reading »

I Don’t Do this Job to Win an Award – But It Sure Feels Good to Get One

Posted by on January 19th, 2010 at 2:28 pm | 10 Comments »

Timothy Doe

You must first be a believer if you would be an achiever.

Late last year, something happened that humbled me more than anything else in the five years that I’ve worked at the Catholic Community Services (CCS) Community Living Program in Tucson: I was chosen as our 2009-2010 Employee of the Year.

I have been assisting people with disabilities since I was in high school. I do this work because I love it, to accomplish goals, and to feel that I am contributing to something. I usually don’t feel as if anyone other than the person I am assisting is aware of what I do. If you’d asked me about that, I would have said it didn’t matter, but this award has made me realize how good it feels to have your work acknowledged.

It has also made me think about the road that led me to this profession that I love. Continue reading »

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