NEWS

Rosalynn Carter Institute and its partner CARE-NETs are launching a "practice community" to be part of the National Quality Care Network. The Georgia Quality Care Network (GQCN), supported by a grant from the Healthcare Georgia Foundation, will work to improve the quality of long-term, home and community-based care by providing statewide training of caregivers in evidence-based programs.

Training for these programs will be initiated in the state of Georgia in 2008. The first three programs to be introduced in Georgia are listed below. Training in additional program models will be added in 2008 and in 2009.

“Win a Step Up” educates and supports career nurses aides and frontline supervisors working in nursing homes throughout the state. In 2004, the U. S. Department of Health & Human Services identified “Win a Step Up” as one of three programs nationwide proven to be effective in reducing nursing aide turnover.

Evaluation of the program indicates that it improves morale, retention, and quality of care delivered by frontline caregivers, while lowering organizational turnover. “Win a Step Up” synergizes financial, educational, and human resources to support caregivers combining funds from Civil Monetary Penalties (federal fines from nursing homes) with the instructional resources of the University. Nurses aides agree to continue working for their employer after finishing a 30-hour curriculum, while employers use their staff development coordinators and reward nurse aides with a bonus or raise.

The Savvy Caregiver

The Savvy Caregiver Program is a 12-hr Dementia Family Caregiver Training Program designed to introduce family caregivers to the caregiving role, provide them with the knowledge, skills, and attitudes needed to carry out that role, and alert them to self-care issues.

Results of the program have been positive. Virtually all respondents reported increased skill, knowledge, and confidence, and all would recommend the program to others. A pre-intervention versus post-intervention analysis indicates that caregivers' reaction to the overall behavior of the persons for whom they provide care (i.e., "total reaction"), their self-reported burden,and their beliefs about caregiving (emotional enmeshment) changed significantly in directions indicating better caregiver well-being.

Under the leadership of Dr. Eric Coleman, the aim of the Care Transitions Program SM is to improve the quality and safety of care hand-offs for persons with complex care needs.

During a 4-week program, patients with complex care needs receive specific tools, are supported by a “Transition Coach,” and learn self-management skills to ensure their needs are met during the transition from hospital to home.

Advantages of the Program:

• Reducing re-hospitalization helps contain costs for complex patients and improves hospital bed capacity for patients admitted with more favorable DRGs.

• The program is self-sustaining.

• The program is consistent with both Medicare Advantage and Medicare fee-for-service financial incentives.

• The program promotes better performance on new JCAHO initiatives aimed at post-hospital care.

Key Findings:

Patients who received this program were:

• Significantly less likely to be readmitted.

• More likely to achieve self-identified personal goals around symptom management and functional recovery.

Findings were sustained for as long as six months after the program ended.