Hundreds gathered on Monday to honor the latest group of direct care workers to graduate from PA Frontline Healthcare Training’s program.
CAMP HILL, PA — Family, friends, elected and state officials, and fellow caregivers were among the many supporters who turned out on Monday, June 8, at the Penn Harris Harrisburg Hotel and Convention Center in Camp Hill to celebrate the latest class of frontline caregivers to graduate from PA Frontline Healthcare Training’s program.
Close to 500 home care workers have completed the program this year, participating in 16 hours of specialized training in the areas of Aging and Physical Disabilities, Cognitive and Behavioral Impairments, Diabetes Care, Sensory Disabilities or 36 hours of enhanced training in areas like CPR, Care Team Integration, Medication Safety and Adherence, and more. Some have even completed both!
These training modules provide direct care workers with the tools and confidence they need to provide the most impactful and safest care and support possible. The program also helps caregivers learn new skills while strengthening the skills they already have and provides an opportunity for career advancement – a key component in solving Pennsylvania’s healthcare staffing crisis.
“We must advocate fiercely for continuing education,” Diane Parrish, home care graduate and resident of Philadelphia, told those in attendance. “Every single home care worker deserves access to high-quality training, and our healthcare system must invest in us. Education is the bridge that turns raw compassion into life-saving, specialized expertise.”
Pennsylvania’s Department of Labor & Industry also sees the program as extremely valuable for both PA’s caregivers and consumers. L&I are currently funding Frontline’s advanced track training program through a $560,000 state-funded grant.
“This is more than a piece of paper,” said Amanda Lapina, Director of Home Care Programs. “It represents the commitment and the heart it takes to care for others. Over the past year, Frontline has had the pleasure of training thousands of DirectCare Workers to improve the quality of care delivered in our state. Each of our graduates has earned this moment, and we are proud to recognize their achievement.”
“I want to talk to the families and the kids and the brothers and sisters and the mothers and fathers,” State Rep. Ismail Smith-Wade-El told the crowd. “Every occasion like this deserves a little celebration. You know intimately, first-hand, how hard these graduates worked. That they would take out of the limited time that they have in providing care to say, you know what, I want to provide better care. I want to level up what I do in my household for the person that I care for, for my loved one. And we need more people all across the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania in every profession who want to care a little more and want to care better.”
Participant-directed home care workers are a crucial part of our healthcare system, providing essential, skilled care that allows seniors and people with disabilities to live independently at home and participate fully in society. Unfortunately, Pennsylvania is suffering from a home care staffing crisis – one that Frontline is striving to help solve with support and training for participant-directed home care workers across the Commonwealth.
