Image of male nurse pushing senior woman in a wheelchair in nursing facility

The Department of Health and Human Services awarded $35.7 million to the Geriatrics Workforce Enhancement Program to support quality care for older adults, Secretary Sylvia M. Burwell announced Monday.  

The money will be distributed among 44 organizations in 29 U.S. states, and will be used to help the GWEP reach their training and education goals in order to properly prepare the healthcare workforce. The awards will help schools design curriculum to respond to the needs of older adults and their care, Burwell said.

Specifically, the GWEP aims to improve the quality of care by training providers who can assess the needs of older adults and by changing the training environments into integrated geriatrics, the announcement said. They also plan to deliver programs that will inform patients, families and caregivers of ways to improve health outcomes.

“Today’s grants reaffirm our commitment to invest in a workforce that will ensure high quality care for older adults,” said Burwell.

The complete list of grant awards can be found here.