Institute of Medicine Report on Long Term Care 

In its report, the Institute of Medicine (IoM) recommends improvements in training, wages, and benefits to attract and retain direct care workers within a field known for excessively high turnover. Specifically on training, the panel recommends increasing the federal minimum training hours for Certified Nurse Assistants and Home Health Aides to 120 hours from 75, and establishing requirements for personal care attendants to ensure that training adequately prepares workers for the increasing demands being placed on them. And to improve financial incentives for workers to pursue careers in direct care, the IoM recommends that state Medicaid programs should use available means to improve pay and benefits for direct-care workers. (October 2008)

State Chart Book on Wages for Personal and Home Care Aides, 1999-2006   

The Chart Book, prepared by PHI, provides a first-of-its-kind look at wages and wage trends for Personal and Home Care Aides (PHCA). Prepared as a resource guide on wages for advocates and policymakers concerned with the direct-care workforce, the data underscore the problem of low and declining real wages for PHCA's, factors which contribute to workforce instability and near-poverty incomes for this high-demand workforce. (July 2008)

Building on Success: Lessons Learned from the Federal Background Check Pilot Program for Long-Term Care Workers 
The results of a seven-state pilot program to conduct background checks on long-term care workers created by U.S. Senator Herb Kohl (D-WI) and authorized under the 2003 Medicare Modernization Act. (July 30, 2008)

Stakeholder Recommendations to Improve Recruitment, Retention, and the Perceived Status of Paraprofessional Direct Service Workers in Texas  

This report is a product of the Texas Direct Service Workforce (DSW) Initiative. The report includes background information about the DSW, methods used to collect and analyze stakeholder input and 14 overarching recommendations stakeholders made to improve workforce turnover and the perceived status of the paraprofessional DSW in Texas. (June 2008)

Senate Bill 95: Evaluation of Personal Attendant Training Programs 
This legislative report discusses changes made to section 5 of Senate Bill 95 by the Texas Department of Human Services. The document analysis the current system as it relates to personal attendants and provides recommendations for improvement in the training, recruitment and retention of these direct care workers. (March 2001)