Data Opportunities to Advance Dementia Home- and Community-Based Services Through Direct Care Workforce Measurement and Analysis

High-quality home- and community-based services (HCBS) for persons living with dementia depend heavily on the direct-care workforce. Despite widespread recognition of workforce shortages, turnover, and training challenges, researchers have historically lacked standardized, multi-state workforce data that can be linked to service quality and outcomes. 

This webinar will introduce two datasets that can be used to advance research on HCBS quality through direct care workforce measurement and analysis:

• National Core Indicators State of the Workforce Aging and Disabilities Survey
• National Dementia Workforce Study Home Care Survey

Learning Objectives

• Describe datasets available for measuring the direct-care workforce in dementia-relevant HCBS
• Compare the strengths, limitations, and linkage opportunities of workforce datasets that can be used to study dementia HCBS outcomes, like access and quality
• Identify research opportunities that leverage workforce data to examine how workforce capacity, characteristics, and policies may influence outcomes for HCBS care recipients living with dementia and their caregivers

Speakers

• Rosa Plasencia, Senior Director, National Core Indicators – Aging and Disabilities, Advancing States
• James Wagner, Research Professor, Survey Research Center, Institute for Social Research, University of Michigan; National Dementia Workforce Study, Data Collection Core Lead