About two weeks ago, Aged Care Employee Day, we celebrated and thanked the many men and women who serve the aged care sector. We appreciate how they care for our spouses, mothers, fathers, grandmothers, and grandfathers who are facing various medical conditions.
In many cases, they offer compassion, dignity, and support to those who once nurtured us.
These caregivers, who see their profession as a personal calling, are often the unsung heroes of healthcare. While doctors, nurses, and other medical professionals compose approximately 20% of healthcare workers, the other 80% of workers are relatively invisible to families, yet their services are essential to healthcare.
These are the cleaners, cooks, drivers, hospitality teams, laundry employees, and more who deal with the day-to-day details that help keep doctors’ offices, assisted living and nursing homes, and hospitals operating smoothly. Their efforts are mostly unseen and are underappreciated despite how their jobs may be physically demanding, emotionally draining, and at times, even heartbreaking.
With football season on the horizon, I compare these aged care employees to the offensive linemen who block for and protect the stars of the team – the doctors and nurses. They perform the mundane and less glamorous tasks that are essential in top-performing organizations.
Without those linemen – and those behind-the-scenes aged care employees, chaos could reign. But with them, we see a smooth-running machine that elevates the quality of life.
These aged care employees are protecting our loved ones, knowing the only recognition they receive is in their pride of workmanship and an occasional smile or gleam in the eye of a loved one.
We presume that the beds and rooms will be clean, the food will meet the nutritional needs, the hospital gowns will be clean and neat, and that we or our loved ones will receive the correct medications.
When I chaired LeadingAge Texas – the voice for mission-driven, not-for-profit aging service providers in our Lone Star State – during my two-year term that ended in May, I appreciated that one area of focus was to recognize these unsung heroes better. They are, after all, the glue that holds our nursing homes, assisted living homes, and medical centers together.
We don’t recognize their excellent service when they do their jobs well, but we do hear when they may occasionally fall short.
Aged Care Employee Day is an opportunity for all of us — families, communities, and policymakers — to say thank you. Thank you for the early mornings and late nights. Thank you for holding a trembling hand, sharing a laugh, fluffing a pillow, remembering a birthday, and advocating for those whose voices may be fading.
But appreciation must extend beyond a single day. It must be reflected in adequate staffing, training opportunities, and the emotional and psychological support workers need to thrive. If we genuinely value our elders, we must also value those who care for them.
So today, let’s raise our voices, our hearts, and our expectations. Let’s celebrate aged care employees not only with gratitude, but with action — ensuring they receive the recognition and resources they so deeply deserve.
Because when we honor the carers, we honor the cared for.
About the James L. West Center for Dementia Care
