The Covid-19 pandemic has exposed a national caregiving crisis that existed long before 2020. More than ever, the estimated 50 million Americans who serve as unpaid family caregivers are an essential extension of the health care team.
As Ms. Washington so clearly illustrated, their responsibilities are vast. Indeed, over the past decade there has been a dramatic shift in the United States to a model of out-of-hospital care that depends on the existence and competence of a caregiver and yet does very little to formally acknowledge, train or support such caregivers.
My colleagues and I are hopeful about the potential support of caregivers through President Bidenâs coronavirus emergency relief package, and through strategic plans he presented to create a 21st-century caregiving work force.