Brenda (L) with Jackie Merkel at the 2008 Voices Institute National Leadership Program
A is for the award-winning experience
W is for a wonderful, worthy cause
E is for exposure to new ideas
S is for soothing smiles and soul
O is for the overwhelming openness of my newfound friends
M is for meaningful memories
E is for everlasting
Brenda Nachtway
DCA Direct Care Worker Specialist and graduate of the 2008 class of the Voices Institute National Leadership Program
Tracy Dudzinski
I is for the inspiration I received from the other workers
N is for the newfound confidence that I have in myself
C is for the catalyst of change I have become
R is for the roar I have developed
E is for the extra friends I’ve made
D is for the defining moments that have changed me as a person
I is for the insight I have about myself
B is for the belief I now have in myself
L is for the lion I’ve become
E is for the endless memories I took home with me
Tracy Dudzinski
DCA Board member and graduate of the 2008 class of the Voices Institute National Leadership Program
The Iowa CareGivers Association (ICA), the Florida Professional Association of Care Givers (FPACG), and the New Mexico Direct Caregivers Coalition are all hosting their annual conferences this fall.
Iowa CareGivers Association
The ICA’s event, Cracking the Caregiver Code, will be held on October 9 in Des Moines. It will feature educational sessions on caregiving topics, like “The Top 10 Things to Know About Autism” and “A Crash Course in Preventing and Managing Conflict,” as well as sessions aimed at honing attendees’ self-care and leadership skills. Attendees can get free bone density, blood pressure, and body mass index screenings, and blood lipids and glucose screenings will be offered for a minimal fee. Continue reading »
Muhannah S. Kakish
You know how usually you get a sponsor and then create an event? Well, we created an event and then got the sponsor.
On September 13, DSPAM (Direct Support Professional Association of Minnesota) is commemorating National Direct Support Professional Recognition Week with a special day for direct support professionals (DSPs). That’s the term NADSP uses for the personal care assistants, personal attendants, in-home support workers, and other direct care workers who provide support for people with disabilities.
We started out planning to just having a picnic. Then the DCA gave DSPAM some incentive money to seed a grassroots fundraising effort, and we started to think bigger. Our idea grew into Making Changes Together (PDF), which is a full-fledged event with catered picnic food, beverages, door prizes, games for the kids, and entertainment – all free for direct support workers and their friends and families. We’ll also have free haircuts, mani-pedis, makeovers, and massages, because DSPs work so much and we wanted to do something for them. And we’ll be giving out the DSP Choice Awards (PDF) to honor five outstanding direct support workers. Continue reading »
Faye Miller
Faye Miller Honored as South Dakota’s DSP of the Year
A special issue of The DSP Chronicles is devoted to Faye Miller, South Dakota’s Direct Support Professional of the Year. Miller was honored by ANCOR (the American Network of Community Options and Resources) for her dedication to the people she assists, who have an array of disabilities, including mild intellectual disabilities, autism, cerebral palsy, defiant disorders and traumatic brain injury. “Faye is the total package of a DSP — talented, very professional. Kind,” says Gigi Healy, the supervisor who recommended her for the award. “She’s never in a hurry or too busy to listen. She brainstorms things with the people she supports and always has creative thoughts. She loves them and they love her.”
Healy says Miller helped one of the people she works with get meaningful employment and helped another publish a book he had written. “My work is about the relationships, getting to know everyone I support as an individual,” Miller says. “Sometimes they are shy. I take them to lunch, I listen to them and their stories and their lives. It’s an investment of time, finding out where they want to shine. I network in town, and assist individuals in integrating into the community. It’s about having a one-on-one relationship with every person I support. Learning to know someone in depth is a gift.”
“Family members of residents comment that Eileen is never rushed when working with residents,” says Dana Reese, administrator of the Good Samaritan Center in Manson, Iowa. “Her beaming smile and contagious laughter help her to communicate with residents regardless of their cognitive state.” Reese is talking about Eileen Alig, 81, the Good Samaritan Society’s 2009 Certified Nursing Assistant of the Year. According to an article in the August 10 Fort Dodge, Iowa, Messenger, Alig started working as a CNA 44 years ago. She still works three days a week and alternating weekends.
Alig was chosen for the national award from a pool of more than 7,000 CNAs who work for Good Samaritan at more than 230 locations. “She is definitely the moral compass of the Alig clan and her priorities are always in order,” said her granddaughter, Sara Martin. “She treats everyone with respect because she expects the same respect in return. Her faith carries her, and the rest of us every day and I can only hope to mimic her poise, service and character as I try to raise my own grounded family.”
Joseph Kearney Jr. (L) with his father
Chronicle of a Young Man’s Journey to Caregiving
An article in the August 11 Des Moines Register describes the “passion for nursing” 18-year-old Joseph Kearney Jr. discovered five years ago, when he began caring for his father after he was paralyzed in a car crash. “The crash put Joseph Jr. on a fast track to adulthood,” says the article.
Graduating early from high school, Kearney enrolled in a summer nursing assistant program. People who read about him in another newspaper article donated money toward the cost of the classes, giving him added confidence as well as needed funding to help with tuition. Kearney recently passed his final clinical exam to become a CNA and hopes to start work at a nursing home soon.
Darlene Ricco, ANCOR's 2009 DSP of the Year
If there’s a direct support professional in your life who you’d like to thank for his or her good work, mark your calendar for this year’s Direct Support Professional Recognition Week, September 13-19.
This is the second year for this initiative, which the ANCOR National Advocacy Campaign created to honor direct support workers and recognize the difference they make in the lives of the people they support.
“Direct support professionals provide critical daily supports to individuals with disabilities, allowing them to live more meaningful and productive lives within their community by promoting inclusion and independence,” says ANCOR CEO Renee Pietrangelo. “DSP Recognition Week is but one way we all can show our appreciation for the role they play in strengthening our communities and supporting our most vulnerable neighbors, friends and family.”
Check out ANCOR’s website in the coming weeks for more information on DSP Recognition Week 2009 and how to observe it.
Elise Nakhnikian
Communications Director
Direct Care Alliance
In the past few weeks, I was invited on a TV talk show here in Maine (see video) to talk about the work I’ve been doing to make health care more affordable for direct care workers. I’ve attended and spoken at direct care worker conferences in Texas — both Houston and Killeen – and in Pennsylvania. I’ve helped organize and participated in more than 50 visits with House and Senate members in Washington DC by direct care workers and their allies. And I’ve met with new DCA partners in New Mexico.
Change is in the wind! To see what I mean, come along while I revisit the highlights of the last two or three months: Continue reading »
Newly chosen members of the Voices Institute’s 2009 National Leadership Program were recognized at the 12th annual Celebrating Nursing Assistants event in Charlottesville, Virginia, on June 16.
Two hundred and thirty-seven CNAs from Central Virginia attended the event, which opened with a musical selection by the Charlottesville Threshold Choir. The choir sings at the bedsides of people who are ill or dying, for their caregivers, and for others in need of musical healing.
Following a buffet dinner and a talk by Dr. Wendi El-Amin, a family practitioner from the University of Virginia, certificates were awarded to Voices Institute inductees Geraldine (Liz) Rush and Robert Stevens and to Angel Saylor, who was on a waiting list at the time. Ms. Saylor has since been accepted.
Awards were then given in recognition of the CNAs with the most years of service and to the Nursing Assistant of the Year in each of five settings: hospital/acute care, community/home health, nursing home, assisted living, and companion/sitter.
The Vermont Governor’s Commission on Healthy Aging is requesting nominations for a Caregiver Champion as part of its 4th Annual Healthy Aging Awards. Nominations are due August 1. The winner must provide “outstanding care, compassion, devotion and professionalism in the field of caregiving.”
According to the application, nominees must “exemplify the profession through demonstrating person-centered care, positive attitudes, strong communication skills, compassion, being advocates for the individuals receiving care, teamwork, knowledge, and skills.” The award is open to direct care workers in any home, community-based, or health care facility setting.
For details or to apply, download a the award application as a Word or PDF document.
Arkansas nursing assistants were honored for their service by the Arkansas Advocates for Nursing Home Residents (AANHR). The 110 men and women at the June 8 banquet were nominated by their supervisors or by the resident council at their recognized for the loving care they have provided for the infirm – some for 10, 15, or even 20 years – despite low pay and few words of thanks.
Honorees from 63 nursing homes across the state received personal thanks for their untiring service. They were joined by directors of nursing, administrators, friends, and family members.
I read a proclamation from Governor Mike Beebe, which he created from a form I downloaded from the Career Nursing Assistant Network website’s resources for celebrating Nursing Assistant Week. I also read out each honoree’s name and the tribute his or her sponsor had written as he or she approached the front of the room to receive a framed certificate of merit, a pin, and a Wal-Mart gift certificate.
A number of cash prizes were awarded during the luncheon, which is an annual affair. This year’s was attended by 220 people. We were joined, as always, by State Ombudsman Kathie Gately and Carol Compas, Nursing Home Quality Initiative Project Manager for the Arkansas Foundation for Medical Care, our states Quality Improvement Organization. Kathie gave an inspirational speech and handed out some of the prizes, and Carol talked about culture change and how person-centered care means assigning CNAs to always work with the same set of residents, so they can get to know each other and become a true family.
In the latest issue of our newsletter, (PDF) we featured photos of all of the CNAs who were honored this year. It’s the least we can do for these caring caregivers, who have done so much for us.
Martha Deaver
President, AANHR
Visit us on:
