Shortage of Caregivers for Elderly Population

NEW YORK CITY, April 23 - The graying of America is occurring at warp speed, but there is a dearth of trained professionals working to help seniors and their families with the variety of health, medical and social services they require.

Meeting the needs of the swelling elderly population, and getting current and future health care professionals interested in careers working with the elderly, are challenges at the heart of a Wednesday, April 24 conference, "Can My Eighties Be Like My Fifties?" The conference will be held at The New York Academy of Medicine (NYAM).

The 2000 U.S. Census counted 35 million people age 65 and older. By 2020, the nation will be home to at least seven million people over age 85. At least half of those oldest-old are expected to need help in the basic activities of daily living. The invitational conference is the second in a three-part summit to pinpoint the future needs of the nation's 78 million baby boomers, and ensure that those needs are translated into effective college educational curricula and teaching methods. Among those professionals that will be sorely needed: social workers, nurses and physicians specializing in gerontology.

The shortage of geriatrics professionals in the labor force, in the face of a swelling elderly population, is a frightening trend that must be reversed, said Patricia Volland, NYAM's Senior Vice President of Finance and Administration, who helped organize the event.

Some factors contributing to the shortage include low salaries for social workers, a lack of hands-on training to help students feel more comfortable working with the elderly, the ever-increasing lifespan of adults, and a lack of aging-rich curricula in colleges.

"We need large numbers of providers, in all health fields, who are adequately prepared to meet the challenges of an increasingly diverse population of older adults," Volland said.

Sue Woodman, contributing editor to AARP's My Generation magazine, will be the keynote speaker at the event. Leading educators in the fields of social work, nursing, policy and medicine/gerontology will be panelists in a brainstorming session. They will discuss how to educate current and future health care professionals to the current needs of older adults and the projected needs of baby boomers. They will then gather in small workgroups to discuss the needs with boomers, one on one.

The panelists are: Katherine Briar-Lawson, Ph.D., Dean of the School of Social Welfare at the University at Albany; Ronald Adelman, M.D., Co-Chief of the Division of Geriatric Medicine and Gerontology, and Associate Professor of Medicine, at Weill Medical College of Cornell University; Mathy Mezey, Ed.D., RN, FAAN, Independence Foundation Professor of Nursing Education at New York University; and, Michael Diaz, M.D., Assistant Clinical Professor of Medicine at Mount Sinai Medical Center, and a practicing Internist and Hematologist/Oncologist.

Social workers of tomorrow will need to equip themselves for the new dynamics of 21st century geriatric care. Many of the baby boomers they'll be aiding in years to come will be the oldest-old, ages 85 and above. Larger numbers of elderly will have no family-members to rely upon for caretaking, since they may not live near their children or perhaps never had children. Social workers and other caregivers will have greater responsibility than ever before.

NYAM has been diligently working towards expanding the social work labor pool, and improving their skills, with help from The John A. Hartford Foundation in New York City. In March, the Foundation awarded Volland a three-year, $950,000 grant to continue the "The Hartford Geriatric Practicum Partnership Program Coordinating Center." This Academy-based center helps ensure that graduate students in social work education programs nationwide get real-world training. They spend time working directly with older adults and their families, and are leaving the program more eager to care for these seniors.

The Academy's third and final Baby Boomer summit in October will feature a speech by Donna E. Shalala, president of the University of Miami and former secretary of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services.

The Wednesday event will take place from 8:30 a.m. to 1 p.m., and lunch will be served. Please e-mail kcervino@nyam.org to be included on the media guest list, or phone 212.822.7285.

The conference is funded by The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and co-sponsored by: NYAM Social Work Fellows; Brookdale Center on Aging of Hunter College; The International Longevity Center -USA, Ltd.; Bronx VAMC Geriatric Research, Education And Clinical Center; Mount Sinai School of Medicine; AARP; and, The Consortium of New York Geriatric Education Centers.

The New York Academy of Medicine is a non-profit organization founded in 1847 that is dedicated to enhancing the health of the public through research, education and advocacy, with a particular focus on disadvantaged urban populations.

Posted on April 23, 2002

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Contact:
Andrew J. Martin
Director of Communications
The New York Academy of Medicine
1216 Fifth Avenue
New York, New York 10029
212-822-7285
amartin@nyam.org

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