Thank you for joining us at the Time to Care Summit!

The “Time to Care” Summit asked the question, “As we age, how will we care for each other” – as people, as communities, as businesses, and governments?  What can we do right now to assist older people who are not getting the care they need?  How can we move from “no care” to “person centered care”? What is the role of volunteers, community organizations, and businesses in filling the care gap?

We had nearly 200 people from across the region (and beyond!) join this important conversation to help answer these questions and inspire action in our communities, states and regions.

Throughout Northern New England, we don’t have enough formal “direct support workers” to provide care to people across all settings.  We know the downstream impacts of this shortage:  informal care partners are leaving the workforce to take care of older relatives, long wait lists for home care and residential services are leaving too many without care, and hospitals are becoming the default care homes for people who cannot be discharged to home or residential care.  Our workforce shortages in every sector mean that this problem will not be solved easily or quickly.  While state officials and providers work diligently to grow this workforce, it’s time for us to act to support those who are not getting care!

Thankfully, our region is home to hundreds of business, government, and healthcare leaders who are aware of and engaged in finding solutions to these challenges.  Our region is also home to hundreds of thousands of healthy older people who are starting “third act” careers, leading lifelong community efforts, and volunteering in every sector.  Many of these older people are ready, willing, and able to help!  This Summit brought people together to learn about state and regional efforts to grow our formal “direct support workforce,” and discuss ways we can design new systems of care that can fill care gaps.

Thank you to all who were able to join us live for this important and inspiring event!

The Tri-State Learning Collaborative on Aging wishes to thank our funders for their support of the Time to Care Summit.