Archive for ‘respect’

A Call to Direct Care Leaders: Let’s bring our best selves to the cause

Posted by Bridget Siljander on March 5th, 2010 at 10:31 am | 3 Comments »

Bridget Siljander

It is a critical time to become a leader…

We’re starting to coagulate as a direct care worker movement, and it’s more important than ever that we unite to get things done. This is an exciting time, but it calls for more strategic thinking.

Over the past year or two, I’ve been in many situations when direct care workers were connecting with each other. This can be incredibly inspiring.  Many of us are compassionate people who are drawn to this kind of service work because we want to put our hearts into nurturing and supporting others. At direct care worker gatherings, I have watched us uplift, encourage and comfort one another, creating a spirit of loyalty and kindness and mutual respect.  This is when we’re at our finest.  But like anything, there are two sides. There are times when we’re at our best, and times when we’re at our worst.  And because we’re at such a critical point in time, I wanted to offer some reflection and advice on focusing on our best selves. Continue reading »

The Rewards of Direct Care Work

Posted by Bob Stevens on February 10th, 2010 at 6:26 pm | 7 Comments »

Bob Stevens

In my seven years as a direct care worker, my profession has brought fulfillment and satisfaction to my life.

These are my rewards:

  1. Purpose. Helping people in need is a great reason for getting out of bed each day.
  2. Opportunity. Being in a position to make a difference by working and advocating for improved care is a privilege.
  3. Gratitude. I am showered with thanks and appreciation from the people I support, their families and friends, and my employer.
  4. Respect. I get treated with utmost esteem and courtesy for what I do by the people I support, their family and friends, my employer, my co-workers, healthcare professionals, my community and my family and friends. No office politics here!
  5. Knowledge. I constantly learn new things from the people I support and their environment.
  6. Training. My employers always make training opportunities available; some required, some not. I take advantage of every offering possible, as well as self-instruction online.
  7. Job Security. Since direct care work is among the fastest growing occupations and since there is such a shortage of workers, good direct care workers enjoy job security.
  8. Flexibility. I can work as many or as few hours as I want, when I want.
  9. Fair Wages. I receive fair compensation, consistent with that received by other direct care workers and health care industry professionals.

How could I reasonably ask for more?

See my next blog post for the answer – or tell me what you think by commenting below.

Bob Stevens
Direct Support Professional/Senior Caregiver
Graduate, 2009 Voices Institute National Leadership Program

US News Explains Role of Caregiving Staff in Culture Change

Posted by Elise Nakhnikian on January 31st, 2010 at 10:35 pm | 1 Comment »

As part of its annual Best Nursing Homes issue this month, U.S. News and World Report includes a feature on how culture change can transform a nursing home into a good place to live by respecting residents and fitting care plans and schedules to their individual needs – and by empowering caregivers and nurturing their relationships with the residents.

The feature begins with an anecdote about a man who loves to visit his mother at the home, Evergreen Retirement Community in Oshkosh, Wisconsin, because of “the easy warmth of the nurses and aides,” who he says are like “kid sisters” or his own daughters.” Continue reading »

DSPAM’s New President Plans to Build on Past Success

Posted by Lindsay Short on December 21st, 2009 at 9:20 pm | No Comments »

Lindsay Short

I am honored to have been elected president of the Direct Support Professional Association of Minnesota as of next year.

Being a part of DSPAM over the last two years has been an eye-opening, life-changing experience. I’ve had the opportunity to work with amazing people on the DSPAM board of directors, and I’ve watched DSPAM turn into an amazing organization, overcoming many milestones and accomplishing many of its goals.

Continue reading »

Committed Caregivers Flock to New Mexico Conference

Posted by Elise Nakhnikian on November 25th, 2009 at 4:49 am | 1 Comment »
(L to R) Connie, Alex and me on our panel

(L to R) Connie, Alex and me on our panel

The New Mexico Direct Caregivers Coalition’s 2009 summit was our first conference – we just started our coalition this year – so we were a little nervous going into it. But by the end of the day on November 6, we all felt great.

About 125 people from all across the state got a lot out of the summit. We packed the day with educational sessions, running three at a time in four time slots, and we had some great speakers.

Our educational sessions ranged from self-advocacy to job-related skills to what caregivers need to know about technology. Topics included Affordable Health Insurance for Direct Caregivers, Dementia vs. Hearing Loss – How to Recognize when Hearing Loss is Causing the Misunderstanding, Caring for Yourself First, Family Caregivers as Advocates, and Advocating your Cause: Caregiver Advocacy 101.

I was on one of the panels, along with my fellow 2009 Voices Institute National Leadership Program graduates Connie Kreider and Alex Brandt. I talked about why we direct care workers need respect and recognition. Connie told people about the DCA, and Alex talked about our generally low wages and why they need to improve. The people who came to hear us asked a lot of good questions. Continue reading »

Video from the Voices Institute: Direct Talk from Direct Care Workers

Posted by Elise Nakhnikian on November 12th, 2009 at 12:21 pm | 1 Comment »

This video was embedded using the YouTuber plugin by Roy Tanck. Adobe Flash Player is required to view the video.

In this video, shot by and starring graduates of the 2009 Voices Institute National Leadership Program, direct care worker advocates speak out about why they love their work and what needs to change.

How Do You Find and Keep Good Caregivers? Stand Up for Their Rights

Posted by Elise Nakhnikian on November 11th, 2009 at 4:05 pm | No Comments »

Next time someone asks you how to find a good home care worker, you might try referring them to this article.

disaboom-logo copyWritten by care recipient Laura Hershey for the Disaboom Network, an online resource for people with disabilities, the article is a realistic and respectful collection of tips on how to attract and keep a caregiver. In addition to discussing where to place ads and how to word them, Hershey recommends that employers pay well if possible and offer regular raises.

She also recommends advocating for better wages, health care coverage, and other benefits for direct care workers. “Granted, this is a longer-term strategy; it’s not going to get you a new personal care attendant tomorrow,” she writes. “On the other hand, when your current personal care attendants see you advocating for their rights, they just might think they have a pretty cool boss — and that might encourage them to want to keep their job.”

Elise Nakhnikian
Communications Director
Direct Care Alliance

Webinar, Report Relay Tips on Finding and Keeping Direct Service Workers

Posted by Elise Nakhnikian on November 11th, 2009 at 2:24 pm | 1 Comment »

rand_logoIf you want to find out what a CMS-funded study learned about how to improve retention rates among direct service workers, you can read a report by the Rand Corporation. Or you can sign up for a free webinar next Monday.

Sarah Hunter from RAND and Laura Steighner from American Institutes for Research will present the results of the Direct Service Workforce Demonstration grants on November 16 at 2:30 p.m. Eastern time. The webinar will be hosted by the National Direct Service Workforce Resource Center.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services awarded 10 demonstration grants in 2003 and 2004 to test the effectiveness of different workforce interventions on recruiting and retaining direct service workers. RAND’s report on their findings was published last month.

According to the report, the biggest hurdle to finding and keeping direct service workers is wages, which are too low for a job that is so challenging.

Many interventions failed because of an incomplete understanding of workers’ needs. “For example, the study found that some grantees who tried to implement health care coverage or training initiatives offered a package that did not meet the needs of the workers, thereby rendering the initiative ineffective at improving recruitment or retention,” the authors write.

Even when they failed to provide any concrete benefits, however, the attempted interventions sometimes boosted retention rates. That may mean that direct service workers are so used to being overlooked and underappreciated that they are more likely to stay when their employers make an effort to improve their jobs, even if that effort is not successful, since at least it lets them know that they are valued.

An intervention in which prospective new employees got a realistic job preview also improved outcomes, indicating that employers could reduce turnover by telling new hires more about the job before they start.

Register for the webinar

Elise Nakhnikian
Communications Director
Direct Care Alliance

DCA Video Diary: Renee Tillman

Posted by Renee Tillman on October 15th, 2009 at 9:31 am | 3 Comments »

Before heading to DC with the DCA this spring, CNA Renee Tillman, the founder and president of the Texas Association of Nurse Assistants, asked her colleagues what they wanted her to tell legislators about direct care work. Here’s what they said.

This video was embedded using the YouTuber plugin by Roy Tanck. Adobe Flash Player is required to view the video.

Voices Institute NLP Graduates New Crop of Direct Care Worker Leaders

Posted by Leonila Vega on October 15th, 2009 at 9:05 am | 3 Comments »
DCA board chair Vera Salter teaching members of the 2009 class

DCA board chair Vera Salter teaching members of the 2009 class

“Let the root thrive” was the birthing motto of the Voices Institute inaugural class, inspired by the lakeside location of the DeKoven Center in Wisconsin, where the first graduates launched DCA’s signature National Leadership Program (NLP) to turbo-charge direct care worker leadership and activism.

When I wrote, after the first class graduated, that the inaugural program was one “historic and successful step forward for the movement to empower direct care workers and to fix our broken long-term care system,” I was dreaming of the possibilities. From September 27 through October 3 of this year, direct care workers once again proved their capacity to make the seemingly impossible happen, and to claim the respect they deserve as professionals. The roots are thriving at the state and national level, and the new class of graduates have a place from where to build national policy success. Continue reading »

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