On the occasion of the International Day of Care and Support, the Edad&Vida Foundation wants to emphasize the importance of recognizing and supporting the work of millions of caregivers —professionals and family members— who sustain the care system for the elderly and dependents, often in precarious conditions. This message will be very present at the 10th International Congress on Dependency and Quality of Life, which will be held on November 11 and 12 in Barcelona under the slogan “Caring together, we will care better”, a meeting with more than 500 registered attendees that will bring together more than 40 professionals and 60 national and international experts to advance towards a more human, integrated, and sustainable socio-health model.

Among the contents of the Congress is the presentation of a national study on the current training and competency needs of professional caregivers, which will be presented at one of the scheduled parallel sessions: “Between the classroom and practice: challenges in the training of those who care”. The research, prepared by the Edad&Vida Foundation with the support of IMSERSO, has been carried out with the collaboration of professionals from nursing homes, home help, and private care; as well as people in training processes, offering a precise radiograph of an essential but precarious sector.

To make this possible, more than 500 surveys were carried out with care professionals; and the results reflect that 42.2% acknowledged facing situations of wage insecurity and lack of incentives or bonuses. More than 35% claimed not to know the training and legal requirements of the profession, and 27.3% stated that they cannot train due to a lack of work-life balance involving work, family, and studies. In addition, another 16.2% pointed out the lack of flexibility in study schedules, while 11% reported high costs and 10.9% a shortage of training places.

The training gaps detected were also significant:

• 42% claimed to suffer from a deficit in the management of dementia and cognitive deterioration.
• Another 30.9% in legal aspects and labor rights.
• 30.7% see deficiencies related to basic health and clinical care.
• And 24.5% in administrative procedures for dependency or referrals.

Regarding the most reiterated demands, 44.2% of respondents demanded salary improvements and incentives, 31.8% asked for physical risk prevention measures, and 29.5% stressed the need for emotional support and training in grief management and overload.

The study concludes that the training deficit and job insecurity directly impact the quality of care and the health of the caregivers themselves. In addition, the lack of professional and social recognition generates demotivation, emotional exhaustion, and abandonment of the sector, aggravating a structural problem that is already straining the Spanish care model. “We must dignify those who care. We cannot continue to assume that there is a ‘caregiver DNA’ that already knows how to care. Caring requires skills, accompaniment, and fair remuneration,” point out the study coordinators.

However, solutions will not arrive until administrations begin to review labor agreements, adapt training modules to the real needs of the sector, and guarantee continuous training within working hours, with paid and accessible programs. In addition, the authors insist on the need to reinforce soft skills —assertive communication, emotional management, stress prevention— and to incorporate technological tools that facilitate training and professional practice. “Investing in training is not an expense, it is an investment that improves the quality of life of the people cared for and reduces health and social costs,” they conclude.

Socio-health integration, the key to system sustainability

The Congress will also focus on the integration of health and social systems, a challenge that appears as structural in this edition and which will be addressed in detail through the session: “Reviewing some socio-health integration models. Lights and shadows”, with the participation of Marco Inzitari, general director of the Parc Sanitari Pere Virgili and associate professor of Aging at the Open University of Catalonia (UOC).

The specialist highlights that programs are already being developed that share comprehensive assessments between social and health services, with joint work plans that incorporate the preferences of the person cared for and rely on technological platforms for intercommunication. “It is time to bet on the territorial implementation of these models, accompanying professionals and evaluating their impact. Health and social integration is essential to guarantee the sustainability of the Welfare State and to offer more efficient, human, and person-centered care,” he explains. In fact, the slogan “Caring together, we will care better” includes this essential element of collaboration between different actors —health, social, professionals, and users—.

Likewise, Inzitari stresses that intermediate care acts as a real bridge between the hospital, the home, and social services, facilitating safe care transitions adapted to each person. “The key is to design contextualized models, with the participation of professionals, caregivers, and users, and with sufficient flexibility to adapt to the changing realities of each territory,” he concludes.

A forum to build solutions

The 10th International Congress on Dependency and Quality of Life, organized by the Edad&Vida Foundation, will be held on November 11 and 12 at the L’Illa Auditorium in Barcelona, and can also be followed in virtual format.

The meeting will bring together national and international reference experts, institutional representatives, companies in the sector, researchers, and social entities to debate the great challenges of care for the elderly and dependents, the need to integrate health and social systems, the professionalization and dignification of care, the attraction and retention of talent in the socio-health sector; architecture, accessibility, and urban planning as allies of well-being and system sustainability, and technological innovation.

The Edad&Vida Foundation reiterates that “caring well requires caring together”: recognizing the value of caregivers, investing in their training, and guaranteeing decent working conditions for those who sustain the well-being of an aging society. “The future of care depends on collaboration between health, social services, administrations, and citizens. Only then will we build a fairer, more human, and sustainable model,” concludes the organization.

More information: www.edad-vida.org

About Edad&Vida

It is a private foundation focused on improving the quality of life of older people and those who are about to become so. Its mission is to promote, from companies in various sectors, in collaboration with research and training institutions and older people's organizations, the search for solutions to improve the quality of life of older people. Its reason for being is to facilitate co-responsibility and balance between the public sector and private initiative, in order to respond to the economic and social challenges of demographic change, acting from a perspective of efficiency and sustainability, generating an independent state of opinion that facilitates the improvement of the behaviors of all actors in the environment of people for when they are older.