Keywords

long-term care quality, paraprofessional workforce: staffing

 

Authors

  1. STONE, ROBYN I. DrPH
  2. DAWSON, STEVEN L. MA
  3. HARAHAN, MARY F. BS

Abstract

Quality of long-term care is significantly influenced by the attributes long-term care workers bring to their jobs, the education and training they receive, and the quality of their jobs. The attitudes, values, skills, and knowledge of these workers, how they are compensated and rewarded, and the way their jobs are organized and managed, all help to determine quality of care and life outcomes. The quality of the long-term care workforce, not just the quantity, needs to be addressed in long-term care policy debates. Workforce development activities designed to increase the capacity of these individuals to participate effectively in long-term care settings should be integrated into long-term care quality improvement and assurance initiatives.