HHS Announces $7 Million for Innovative Projects to Support Family Caregivers

9/26/2002

From: AoA Press Office, 202-401-4541 http://www.hhs.gov/news

WASHINGTON, Sept. 26 -- HHS Secretary Tommy G. Thompson today announced the award of $7 million to help families provide care to loved ones. The grants will be used to develop and continue successful innovative approaches to assist family caregivers, including grandparents and older relatives.

"All too often, a family caregiver seeks assistance only when a crisis occurs. These grants are allowing us to test new and promising ways of supporting families so that they can be better prepared to care for their loved ones if the need arises," Thompson said.

Eleven new grants and 28 continuation grants are being awarded as part of the National Family Caregiver Support Program, launched in 2001 by HHS' Administration on Aging (AoA). The grants are being awarded to state and area agencies on aging, nonprofit community service providers, institutions of higher learning and national organizations with a demonstrated expertise in serving family caregivers. Many of the projects focus on unique caregiving approaches within rural, urban, ethnic and faith-based communities.

"I am excited about the progress of these innovative grants. The variety, complexity and creativity of caring for family members demonstrated thus far have been very impressive," Assistant Secretary for Aging Josefina G. Carbonell said. "We are working closely with these projects to translate their success to caregivers in communities throughout the United States."

The 11 projects of national significance will work in partnership with the AoA to provide technical assistance, resource materials and training to the aging and caregiver communities nationwide.

The projects are:

-- American Society on Aging, San Francisco, Calif. -- $184,847

In collaboration with the American Nurses Association, National Association of Social Workers and the American Occupational Therapy Association, the American Society on Aging will increase the skills and knowledge of nurses, social workers, and occupational therapists regarding the needs of family caregivers, the National Family Caregivers Support Program and the aging network. More than 10,000 professionals will be trained over the next two years.

-- University of Southern California (USC), Los Angeles, Calif. -- $150,000

USC will create improved supportive systems to increase caregiver utilization of environmental coping strategies to reduce physical burden and strain. This two-year grant will focus on providing knowledge to the aging network and caregivers on the benefits of utilizing home modifications, assistive devices and other strategies.

-- Family Caregiver Alliance, San Francisco, Calif. -- $191,400

The Family Caregiver Alliance will examine the growth and development of services and funding for family caregivers in the United States. Through an analysis of state programs and legislation, this project will assist the aging network in program development and identify best practices to improve the effectiveness of the National Family Caregiver Support Program and its coordination with other home and community-based programs.

-- Easter Seals, Inc., Chicago, Ill. -- $184,997

Easter Seals will focus on enhancing the national aging network's capacity to address transportation issues of caregivers and their loved ones. The network will receive extensive support in three areas: safety, community-based alternatives, and education on accessing services.

-- Generations United, Washington, D.C. -- $185,000

Generations United will continue to develop technical assistance materials and recruit a national network of experts in the area of grandparents and other relatives who are caregivers of children. The two-year project will focus on providing skills to the aging network to more appropriately respond to the needs of these caregivers.

-- National Association of Area Agencies on Aging (N4A), Washington, D.C. -- $149,950

N4A will focus on strengthening the ability of area agencies on aging and Native American aging programs to serve family caregivers through a campaign to involve physicians in identifying caregivers and referring them to caregiver support services.

-- National Association of State Units on Aging (NASUA), Washington, D.C. -- $185,000

NASUA will assist State Units on Aging with the implementation of the National Family Caregiver Support Program and integration of these services into existing home and community-based services. This two-year project will focus on the development of tools to allow states to self-assess their progress with implementation.

-- AARP Foundation, Washington, D.C. -- $150,000

The AARP Foundation will research the benefits of caregiver coalitions to promote the expansion, outreach and evaluation of caregiver services. They will produce materials on the development and maintenance of coalitions and disseminate them to the aging and caregiving networks.

-- National Family Caregivers Association (NFCA), Kensington, Md. -- $150,000

NFCA will train professionals and caregiver advocates to train family caregivers to advocate more persuasively on behalf of their loved ones with health care professionals. By the end of this two-year grant, NFCA will have reached approximately 15,000 caregivers and provided them with skills to assure better continuity of care and improved access to health care resources.

-- The ARC of the United States, Silver Spring, Md. -- $184,997

The ARC will enhance the capacity of aging and disability provider organizations to plan, coordinate and provide supportive services to older caregivers of children and adults with developmental disabilities.

-- Council on Aging of Southwestern Ohio, Cincinnati, Ohio -- $150,000

The Council on Aging of Southwestern Ohio will provide in-home training for family caregivers in two area agencies on aging in southern Ohio. The goal of the project is to reduce caregiver stress, burden and injuries, and increase caregiver knowledge of appropriate care strategies, thereby allowing them to continue in this role and improve the quality of caregiving.

Following is a list of the 28 Innovative Caregiver Support Program grantees listed alphabetically by state:

-- Pima Council On Aging, Tucson, Ariz. -- United Cerebral Palsy of Southern Arizona, Tucson, Ariz. -- Contra Costa County Aging and Adult Services Bureau, Martinez, Calif. -- Asian Community Center, Sacramento, Calif. -- University of Denver, Institute of Gerontology, Denver, Colo.

-- Alliance for Aging, Miami, Fla. -- Hospice Institute of the Florida Suncoast, Largo, Fla. -- Georgia Department of Human Resources, Division of Aging Services, Atlanta, Ga. -- Georgia Southwestern State University, Americus, Ga. -- University of Hawaii Center on Aging, Honolulu, Hawaii -- The Healthcare Consortium of Illinois, Dolton, Ill. -- Mather Lifeways, Evanston, Ill. -- Illinois Department on Aging, Springfield, Ill. -- Ten County Aging Board, Inc. Arkansas City, Kan. -- Commonwealth of Massachusetts, Boston, Mass. -- Eastern Area Agency On Aging, Bangor, Maine -- The Center for Social Gerontology, Inc., Ann Arbor, Mich. -- Normandale Ministry for Healing and Wholeness, Edina, Minn. -- St. Andrew's Resources For Seniors, St. Louis, Mo. -- New Jersey Department of Health and Social Services, Division of Senior Affairs, Trenton, N.J. -- Senior Service Centers of the Albany Area, Inc., Albany, N.Y.

-- Catholic Charities of the Diocese of Rochester, N.Y. -- Ohio Department on Aging, Columbus, Ohio -- Mid-County Senior Services, Newtown Square, Pa. -- Philadelphia Corporation For Aging, Philadelphia, Pa. -- Pennsylvania Department of Aging, Harrisburg, Pa. -- Pennsylvania State University, Gerontology Center, University Park, Pa. -- Virginia Department for the Aging, Richmond, Va.