LeadingAge prepared this story so our members can more easily participate in National Caregivers Day, February 17—and so that our national, state, and local messaging is aligned. Use it on your website, in a newsletter or email message, for example. Brackets indicate text that should be modified for your organization. Revise the text as needed so it sounds authentic to your audience.
HED: Recognizing Professional Caregivers: the Backbone of Aging Services
SUBHED or TEASER: On National Caregivers Day We Applaud Those Who Provide Essential Services to Older Adults—and Press Lawmakers to Support Them
TEXT: At [ your organization ] we acknowledge the dedicated professionals who provide care and support to [ our residents/clients ] every day. Today, we are especially pleased to focus on these invaluable professionals on National Caregivers Day, which also recognizes the millions of family caregivers.
Meet a few of the valued caregivers here in our community.
[ Include 2-3 sentences from a few professional caregivers in your organization. If they have worked there a long time, include that. Refer to them as a professional caregiver (not worker). Include a photo, if possible. ]
“[ Quote from the CEO or other leader on the valuable contribution professional caregivers make to residents’/clients’ well-being. ]
The national workforce shortage is affecting aging services organizations locally. Aging services providers, especially nonprofits like ours, need public officials to act to help us continue to hire and retain the candidates best qualified to deliver quality care that meets our standards.
On National Caregivers Day 2023, we ask you to support our community and our devoted professional caregivers by contacting your elected officials [ either include a link to your LeadingAge state advocacy action or the federal action calling for cosponsors of the Better Care Better Jobs Act. ]
Just how important are these individuals to older adults and families nationally? Professional caregivers provide support to 20 million older adults who require assistance completing self-care and other daily tasks due to physical, cognitive, developmental, and/or behavioral conditions. It takes millions of skilled, devoted professionals to accomplish this.
Here’s a snapshot of the workforce in our state [To access your state data, click on PHI’s Direct Care Workforce State index, then your state on the map, then View State Profile from the pop-up box ] :
- [ # of direct care workers ]
- [ % of direct care professionals who are women ]
- [ projected growth of the number of new jobs needed to meet rising demand ]
Thank you for recognizing the exemplary caregivers in our community and taking action to support them.