CareAcademy Launches Program to Extend College Credit to Homecare Workers

BOSTON (April 28, 2021)—CareAcademy, a homecare and home health workforce empowerment platform, announced the launch of the “CAREer Path Initiative,” an all-encompassing program designed to address critical industry constraints and attract more workers into the profession. In addition to helping accelerate new entrants into the field, the program will extend college credit to thousands of direct care workers as they complete professional training within the CareAcademy platform for no additional charge.  

The CAREer Path Initiative is launching in collaboration with CareAcademy’s core education partner, Southern New Hampshire University (SNHU), and with support from national homecare agency partners, including VNSNY, Best of Care and Comfort Keepers. Together, the combined force of the participants will provide upskilling pathways to the direct care workforce, while seeking to attract and retain new workers to fill the massive worker shortfall the industry faces. 

The CAREer Path Initiative is designed to achieve three objectives: 
1.    Provide upskilling opportunities for direct care workers to continue to grow their skills and improve their earning potential 
2.    Attract new entrants into the direct care profession 
3.    Improve career opportunities for those who want to advance their education through a strategic partnership with SNHU 

“Health care is shifting squarely to the home, and we have a clear mandate to create solutions to meet the needs of a rapidly growing workforce, while recognizing the talent and hard work those in the industry are currently undertaking to address this new challenge,” said Helen Adeosun, CEO and founder, CareAcademy. “Our partners in the CAREer Path Initiative are equally committed to recruiting new entrants to the market, providing them with top-quality training, and creating pathways to advance their education while gaining college credit. This Initiative firmly places allied health care workers on the same footing as employees from other learning-oriented companies such as Starbucks or Amazon.” 

CareAcademy has partnered with SNHU to enable caregivers to earn college-level credits for their homecare training completed within the CareAcademy platform, and then to apply that classwork toward an SNHU degree. This strategic higher-education partnership opens new doors for direct care workers to advance their career development by offering for the first time new educational pathways based on experience and learning enabled via CareAcademy’s platform. 

“We are proud to help launch the new CAREer Path Initiative in collaboration with CareAcademy,” said Paul LeBlanc, president, SNHU. “Through this partnership, direct care workers will be able to earn college credit by completing professional training, creating new pathways to higher education and healthcare careers. Our hope is that this program will put education in the hands of caregivers across the nation and provide opportunities to unlock their full potential.”

The CAREer Path Initiative will help further drive agency recruitment opportunities and career development in home care to meet the accelerating shortfall of industry workers. A recent PHI study indicates that as many as 7.4 million new workers will be needed by 2029 to meet the industry demand. Homecare agencies will be better positioned to attract new entrants to the profession by offering training that transfers into college credits, retain workers who are seeking professional experiences while fulfilling college-accredited training, and increase client confidence by providing best-in-class training. 

“The skyrocketing demand for care in the home has created a substantial growth opportunity for our members,” said Vicki Hoak, Executive Director, Home Care Association of America. “We have long championed the role of training and upskilling as a key component in the recruitment and retention of direct care staff, which is even more necessary today to address this growth. We are pleased to support initiatives like this that seek to provide even more access and create pathways for ongoing learning. The relationship between CareAcademy and SNHU highlights the innovative approaches needed to meet the future opportunity head on.”  

“By joining the CAREer Path Initiative, participants are committing to working across the industry to create opportunities and pathways for both existing direct care workers and new entrants to advance their skills and deliver the best possible outcomes for their clients,” Adeosun continued. “We are pleased to stand with SNHU and our launch partners to bring this critical initiative to the industry.”  

Homecare agencies that are interested in joining the CAREer Path Initiative should visit careacademy.com/careerpath to learn more. CareAcademy will host a webinar on May 4, 2021 at 1pm ET to provide additional details, register for the webinar here.