Building a Workforce for an Aging America
<p>Between 2005 and 2030, the number of adults ages 65 and older will almost double--from 37 million to more than 70 million--bringing accelerating demands on the U.S. health care system. A new Institute of Medicine report, <a href="/topics/topics_show.htm?doc_id=687600">Retooling for an Aging America: Building the Health Care Workforce,</a> suggests our health care workforce is too small and too unprepared to meet the needs of the aging baby boomers.<br><br>The report, which was sponsored by a coalition of concerned funders including The John A. Hartford Foundation and The Commonwealth Fund, among other organizations, makes recommendations in three essential areas: enhancing the competence of all individuals--including professionals, direct-care workers, and informal caregivers--involved in the delivery of geriatric care; increasing the recruitment and retention of geriatric specialists and caregivers; and redesigning models of care while broadening provider and patient roles to achieve greater flexibility.<br><bR>For more information, read the <a href="/topics/topics_show.htm?doc_id=687600">complete report.</a></p>
http://www.commonwealthfund.org/publications/newsletters/ealerts/2008/jun/building-a-workforce-for-an-aging-america