Through our partnership with The University of Pennsylvania School of Nursing, NewCourtland Center for Transition and Health, the Caregiving NOW initiative is identifying ways to improve the lives of family caregivers nationally and testing promising interventions locally. In Year 1, we hosted 11 webinars with national experts, each designed to explain an important aspect of caregiving and to explore promising strategies to support caregivers in their vital role. We identified key themes that emerged across these seminars, including:

1. Increasing the visibility and awareness of caregivers
2. Supporting caregivers in the workplace
3. Supporting caregivers financially
4. Using technology to improve caregiving and care

In Year 2, our efforts centered around improving caregivers’ lives through research, policy, and practice.

Effective Solutions for Caregivers: What the Evidence Shows

• In January 2025 in the Journal of Applied Gerontology, we published an umbrella review of the evidence on interventions targeting caregivers of older adults. Most interventions focused on improving outcomes for caregivers of older adults with dementia. These interventions improved caregiver depression, with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) and mindfulness-based interventions (MBI) being the most effective. Increasingly, information and communication technologies are being used to deliver caregiver interventions. Authors Molly McHugh, Ellen Munsterman, Lauren Fisher, and Mary Naylor identified existing gaps in caregiving intervention research and recommended larger-scale implementation and evaluation of effective interventions.

Financial Support for Caregiving Through Better Planning and Public Policies

• In November 2023, Surya Kolluri, Mary Naylor and Janet Weiner produced a report, “Playing the long game: How longevity affects financial planning and family caregiving,” in collaboration with the TIAA Institute. The report highlights the need to consider caregiving costs and responsibilities in financial planning over the life course. The report was featured in articles by many leading national outlets, including Marketwatch, US News & World Report, The Street, HealthDay, and Advisor Magazine.
• In January 2024, Mary Naylor and Surya Kolluri, head of TIAA Institute, wrote an op-ed in The Hill featuring the financial caregiving report and advocating for Congressional support of bipartisan bills that would lessen the financial burden on unpaid caregivers.
• At the Wall Street Journal’s “Future of Everything” conference in May 2024, Mary Naylor and Surya Kolluri participated in a panel entitled, “The Retirement Equation: From Longevity Literacy to Longevity Fitness.” They highlighted the importance of planning for financial security in the face of increased longevity and caregiving responsibilities.

Harnessing Technology to Enhance Caregiving and Care

• In 2024, we implemented an “Any Care Counts” campaign in partnership with ARCHANGELS and NewCourtland to raise awareness of caregiving in the workplace, and to connect working caregivers to existing local and state resources. The campaign involved administering a two-minute, online “Caregiving Intensity Index” to NewCourtland employees and assisting them in locating resources for their identified needs.

• Currently, we are evaluating the reach and effectiveness of Any Care Counts from both the employee and employer perspectives in a project led by Karen Hirschman, Mary Naylor, and Charlotte Weiss. ARCHANGELS has since expanded the Any Care Counts campaign to include the city of Philadelphia.

• In November 2024, NewCourtland co-hosted the EmpathyTech Philadelphia conference with Pletly, which brought together more than 100 innovators, caregivers, and advocates to explore empathy-driven technological solutions in senior care, neurodiversity, and caregiving. It featured talks from Penn Nursing faculty George Demiris and Penn Nursing graduate and current PA House Representative Tarik Khan.  
  • Thanks to our amazing speakers, attendees, staff, and supporters, we have taken a significant step toward promoting empathy-driven innovation and creating meaningful change in caregiving, healthcare, and community support.
  • We are excited to share photos and memorable moments from the event on Google Drive. 
  • The recorded sessions are now available on YouTube and we have summarized the speakers and panels in several blogs below.

Pletly

A new collaborative partnership is bringing cutting-edge communication tools into the heart of long-term care. NewCourtland Germantown Home, in partnership with the Penn Nursing NewCourtland Center for Transitions and Health, and communication platform, Pletly, has launched a year-long initiative to improve real-time connection and engagement between nursing home staff and residents’ families.

The platform bridges communication gaps between caregivers and care recipients, offering features like private social feeds, messaging, and tools for securely sharing critical information. This initiative will take place under a three-year agreement. NewCourtland and Pletly will work with the Center to assess the application’s effectiveness in improving communication between staff and residents’ families.

We invite you to check out our Germantown Home partnership programs to learn more about the Pletly Care program for residents and their families.