THRIVE Program Targets Home Care Retention Investments

Catholic Health System in Western New York is pairing up with two partner health systems on a unique workforce retention investment program for home care workers and other staff.

With support from the Wilson Foundation, the systems have announced a $20 million endeavor, named THRIVE, which will provide home care and other staff with practical supports like ride-hailing trips or vouchers for child care.

“Coaches will be assigned to small groups of workers, and will stay with those employees over the course of a year, offering advice for handling the stresses of the job,” reports the Buffalo News. The program will also have an independent evaluator to assess return on investment. 

Joyce Markiewicz, president and CEO of Catholic Health’s home and community-based care program, said the program will train about 400 workers at her system per year.

This is the kind of unique workforce innovation structure envisioned by HCA legislation that is sponsored on a bipartisan basis in both houses of the Legislature this year (S.1420 Serino/A.6768 Bronson and S.1359 Serino/A.6901 Bronson). Not only would these bills help fund wage supports – especially in shortage areas, or for shortage disciplines where providers face competition from other industries – but they would pilot non-wage supports for transportation, child care, training/education, career development, peer support and other purposes.