BOSTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--CareAcademy, the leading home care and home health workforce empowerment platform, today announced the launch of the “CAREer Path Initiative,” an all-encompassing program designed to address critical industry constraints and attract more workers into the profession. In addition to helping accelerate new entrants into the field, the program will extend college credit to thousands of direct care workers as they complete professional training within the CareAcademy platform for no additional charge.
The CAREer Path Initiative is launching today in collaboration with CareAcademy’s core education partner, Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU), and with support from national home care agency partners, including Visiting Nurses of New York (VNSNY), Best of Care, and Comfort Keepers. Together, the combined force of the participants will provide upskilling pathways to the direct care workforce, while seeking to attract and retain new workers to fill the massive worker shortfall the industry faces.
The CAREer Path Initiative is designed to achieve three objectives:
- Provide upskilling opportunities for direct care workers to continue to grow their skills and improve their earning potential for the training they are already completing for as part of their regular training curriculum
- Attract new entrants into the direct care profession
- Improve career opportunities for those direct care workers who want to advance their education through a strategic partnership with SNHU
“Healthcare is shifting squarely to the home, and we have a clear mandate to create solutions to meet the needs of a rapidly growing workforce, while recognizing the talent and hard work those in the industry are currently undertaking to address this new challenge,” said Helen Adeosun, CEO and Founder, CareAcademy. “Our partners in the CAREer Path Initiative are equally committed to recruiting new entrants to the market, providing them with top-quality training, and creating pathways to advance their education while gaining college credit. This Initiative firmly places allied healthcare workers on the same footing as employees from other learning-oriented companies such as Starbucks or Amazon.”
CareAcademy has partnered with SNHU to enable caregivers to earn college-level credits for their home care training completed within the CareAcademy platform, and then to apply that classwork toward an SNHU degree. This strategic higher-education partnership opens new doors for direct care workers to advance their career development by offering for the first time new educational pathways based on experience and learning enabled via CareAcademy’s platform.
“We are proud to help launch the new CAREer Path Initiative in collaboration with CareAcademy,” said Paul LeBlanc, President, SNHU. “Through this partnership, direct care workers will be able to earn college credit by completing professional training, creating new pathways to higher education and healthcare careers. Our hope is that this program will put education in the hands of caregivers across the nation and provide opportunities to unlock their full potential.”
The CAREer Path Initiative will help further drive agency recruitment opportunities and career development in home care to meet the accelerating shortfall of industry workers. A recent PHI study indicates that as many as 7.4M new workers will be needed by 2029 to meet the industry demand. Home care agencies will be better positioned to attract new entrants to the profession by offering training that transfers into college credits, retain workers who are seeking professional experiences while fulfilling college-accredited training, and increase client confidence by providing best-in-class training.
“The skyrocketing demand for care in the home has created a substantial growth opportunity for our members,” said Vicki Hoak, Executive Director, Home Care Association of America. “We have long championed the role of training and upskilling as a key component in the recruitment and retention of direct care staff, which is even more necessary today to address this growth. We are pleased to support initiatives like this that seek to provide even more access and create pathways for ongoing learning. The relationship between CareAcademy and SNHU highlights the innovative approaches needed to meet the future opportunity head on.”
“By joining the CAREer Path Initiative, participants are committing to working across the industry to create opportunities and pathways for both existing direct care workers and new entrants to advance their skills and deliver the best possible outcomes for their clients,” Adeosun continued. “We are pleased to stand with SNHU and our launch partners to bring this critical initiative to the industry.”
Home Care Agencies interested in joining the CAREer Path Initiative should visit https://www.careacademy.com/CAREerpath to learn more. CareAcademy will host a webinar on May 4, 2021 at 1 p.m., EDT to provide additional details. Click here to register for the webinar.
The CAREer Path Initiative launch is supported with quotes from the following industry leaders:
James Rolla, Senior Vice President, Partners in Care, VNSNY
“This past year has tested our direct care staff and our entire team in ways we would have never thought possible, and I am so proud of the work we have done to meet this challenge head on. However, to meet the massive growth opportunity that lies ahead we must work collectively across the industry to bring new workers into the profession and retain our current workforce. Programs like the CAREer Path Initiative are important steps to lead us forward.”
Kevin Smith, CEO of Best of Care, President Home Care Council of Massachusetts
“We are pleased to join with CareAcademy to launch the CAREer Path Initiative. Our ability to support our clients and meet the needs of the aging community we serve is directly tied our ability to recruit, onboard, train, and retain high quality direct care staff. With a historically high rate of growth, and a flat labor pool, it is more important than ever to take on these critical issues.”
Nicole Long, Director of Human Resources, Comfort Keepers Franchising Inc.
“At Comfort Keepers, we are excited to join in partnership with CareAcademy, to offer educational opportunities that will help caregivers grow their careers. Being a caregiver is one of the most rewarding and selfless careers a person can undertake. It is a career that looks first at providing for the needs of others. It is our privilege to honor their commitment of “service before self,” by ensuring that we put to the forefront the needs of those working at Comfort Keepers. We believe that having access to flexible and affordable education will not only help caregivers gain knowledge, and grow their skills, but will ultimately help them achieve their long-term career goals.”
About The CAREer Path Initiative
A recent PHI study has indicated that as many as 7.4 Million new care workers will be needed by 2029 to meet the growing demand for care workers in home care. The CAREer Path Initiative seeks to bring together key industry participants to create an accelerated pathway to recruit new entrants to the direct care profession, provide ongoing career opportunities, and create meaningful growth. To support this effort, CareAcademy is committed to developing a credentialing ecosystem to enable direct care workers to earn college-level credits for their training and providing upskilling pathways for them to achieve their learning objectives. The company has partnered with SNHU as its first education partner enabling direct care workers to earn credits toward a degree from SNHU for their regular training conducted within the CareAcademy platform. This first-of-its-kind higher-education partnership opens up new doors for direct care workers to advance their career development by offering new educational pathways based on experience and learning. Learn more at https://www.careacademy.com/CAREerpath.
About CareAcademy
CareAcademy creates online training that empowers senior care professionals to deliver the highest caliber of service and improve the lives of older adults. More than 150,000 direct care workers are learning and growing professionally through CareAcademy. Coupled with its advanced reporting, training, and compliance management dashboard, CareAcademy is an end-to-end, scalable training solution that transforms home care businesses into efficient industry leaders. Learn more at https://careacademy.com.
About Southern New Hampshire University
Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU) is a private, nonprofit institution with an 88-year history of educating traditional-aged students and working adults. Now serving more than 150,000 learners worldwide, SNHU offers approximately 200 accredited undergraduate, graduate and certificate programs, available online and on its 300-acre campus in Manchester, NH. Recognized as the "Most Innovative" regional university by U.S. News & World Report and one of the fastest-growing universities in the country, SNHU is committed to expanding access to high quality, affordable pathways that meet the needs of each learner. Learn more at www.snhu.edu.
