Workforce development to provide person-centered care.

Area of Science:

• Gerontology
• Public Health
• Healthcare Management

Background:

• Dementia and depression significantly impact patients and caregivers, necessitating specialized support.
• Developing a skilled workforce is crucial for effective patient-centered care delivery in community settings.

Purpose of the Study:

• To describe the development of care coordinator assistants (CCAs) for patient-centered care in dementia and depression.
• To analyze CCAs' case reports on their experiences and identify key themes.
• To present lessons learned from implementing a collaborative, community-based care model.

Main Methods:

• Sixteen CCAs were recruited and trained in person-centered care, technology, and community resources.
• Qualitative analysis of 73 quarterly case reports using NVivo software.
• Tracking CCA visits for care coordination, home visits, and phone consultations.

Main Results:

• Six patient-centered care themes emerged: patient familiarity, engagement, care flexibility/continuity, caregiver support, training integration, and teamwork.
• Patient familiarity (91.8%), teamwork (67.1%), and flexibility/continuity of care (61.6%) were most frequently reported.
• CCAs provided over 1200 patients with an average of 15.7 visits within 12 months.

Conclusions:

• Well-trained CCAs can effectively implement person-centered care in community settings.
• The collaborative care model utilizing CCAs shows promise for improving care for individuals with dementia and depression.