Integrated Model for Personal Assistant Research and Training (IMPART)
Integrated Model for Personal Assistant Research and Training (IMPART)
A rapidly aging population highlights the urgency for quality healthcare services, which are both affordable and accessible at home. Due to peak demands, there is a critical shortage of trained personal care aides (PCAs) to support this accumulating elderly cohort. Employing an increased quantity of PCAs should be contingent on preserving overall PCA quality (i.e., competence and communication). As a result, employers are scrambling to recruit and retain skilled direct care workers and PCAs. Dr. Abujarad is collaborating on piloting an Integrated Model for Personal Assistant Research and Training (IMPART). The objective of the project is to create a larger and more adept PCA workforce, through the adoption of an integrated model. A diverse, statewide coalition of stakeholders will help forge feasible win-win strategies for ensuring access to a high-quality PCA workforce in Michigan.
PBS NewsHour recently aired a piece on the direct care workforce shortage. Parts 1 and 2 are available here.
As part of the IMPART team, Dr. Abujarad also works closely with the project PI Dr. Clare Luz (PhD, Michigan State University/College of Human Medicine (MSU/CHM) Department of Family Medicine), Zhehui Luo (PhD, MSU/CHM Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics), Sarah J. Swierenga (PhD, Director, MSU Usability/Accessibility Research and Consulting), Chris Curtin (RN-BC, Executive Director, Community Services Network) and Lauren Swanson-Aprill (M.A., Michigan Department of Health and Human Services). IMPART is supported by a grant from the Michigan Health Endowment Fund.
Collaborators
Sarah J. Swierenga, PhD, CPE
Director, Usability/Accessibility Research and Consulting (UARC)
Dr. Swierenga has extensive research experience and expertise in health information technology, user interface evaluation methodologies, and accessible electronic voting systems. As director of UARC (https://uarc.msu.edu/), she is responsible for developing and disseminating innovations in theory building, research methodologies, and technologies to enhance usability and accessibility in web and information technology contexts for users with and without disabilities. Dr. Swierenga will lead the mobile usability and accessibility evaluation studies for the IMPART Alliance project, and provide user interface design and health information technology expertise to address the research questions. She will also provide her research expertise in studying technology use and the impacts of technology on health and social relationships among older adults, qualitative and quantitative research methodology, and dissemination efforts.
Clare Luz, PhD, IMPART PI
Department of Family and Community Medicine.
Michigan State University
Dr. Luz is a gerontologist who has nearly 40 years of experience in the aging field and for the majority of the past 20 years, her research has focused on direct care workforce issues. She was the Research PI for the HRSA-funded Building Training…Building Quality™ (BTBQ™) project, a comprehensive PCA training program upon which IMPART is based. Dr. Luz will oversee all IMPART activities, and facilitate the establishment of a coalition comprised of employers, PCAs, clients and other stakeholders that can jointly generate innovative, feasible, affordable strategies that are beneficial to all parties.
Collaborators
Clare Luz, PhD, IMPART PI
Department of Family and Community Medicine.
Michigan State University
Dr. Luz is a gerontologist who has nearly 40 years of experience in the aging field and for the majority of the past 20 years, her research has focused on direct care workforce issues. She was the Research PI for the HRSA-funded Building Training…Building Quality™ (BTBQ™) project, a comprehensive PCA training program upon which IMPART is based. Dr. Luz will oversee all IMPART activities, and facilitate the establishment of a coalition comprised of employers, PCAs, clients and other stakeholders that can jointly generate innovative, feasible, affordable strategies that are beneficial to all parties.
Zhehui Luo, PhD
Department of Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Michigan State University
Dr. Luo is an economist and applied statistician trained in health economics, econometrics and biostatistics, with a focus on causal inference and economic evaluation in randomized experiments and non-experimental studies. Her expertise includes statistical methodology for causal inference, cost-effectiveness analysis in clinical trials, and mental health services research. For the IMPART Alliance project, Dr. Luo will oversee experimental design, analysis and interpretation.
Lauren Swanson-Aprill, MA
Michigan Department of Health and Human Services,
Aging and Adult Services Agency (AASA)
Lauren Swanson-Aprill has worked for AASA since 2002 with a primary focus on direct care workforce issues writing and implementing many grants with several partners that developed various trainings for direct care workers (DCWs)/personal care aides (PCAs). She most recently was involved with developing, piloting, and editing the Building Training…Building Quality™ (BTBQ™) curriculum and training process. Ms. Swanson-Aprill will provide ongoing consultation of the continued implementation of the BTBQ™ training throughout the state as part of the important next steps to build a strong Michigan DCW/PCA workforce with the IMPART Alliance project.
Chris Curtin, RN-BC
Executive Director, Community Services Network
Chris Curtin has been involved with training direct care workers in Michigan since the mid 1980's. She has been instrumental in the development and piloting of the BTBQ curriculum from it's beginning, and through Community Services Network, has developed a system for customizing direct care worker training to meet the needs of employers throughout northern lower Michigan. Ms Curtin will facilitate engagement of key stakeholders and development of relationships which will be crucial in moving the IMPART Alliance project forward.
Katherine Hanson, MS
Department of Family Medicine, Michigan State University
Katherine Hanson has served as project coordinator for several previous pilot studies based on the BTBQ™ curriculum. Her commitment to the direct care workforce supporting older adults and those with disabilities stems from her personal, family-related experience providing home care for many years. As project coordinator for IMPART Alliance, Ms. Hanson will be involved with project communications, data processing, supporting research activities and reporting.