
The Heroes of the Pandemic Deserve Our Support
Certified nursing assistants (CNAs) provide an estimated 90 percent of the hands-on care in nursing homes. Even before the pandemic, most CNAs struggled financially due to low pay and few benefits.
A Dire Situation for Many
Thousands of CNAs have been deeply affected by their experiences in the trenches of COVID-19. Beginning with widespread PPE shortages and then shutdowns that catapulted them to becoming the bridge between dying residents and their families during their final moments, the war on COVID has left this sector of the long-term care workforce grieving, sick, and fraught with trauma.
Transportation and childcare are daily struggles in the life of a CNA. Exacerbating this is the fact that many were forced to take unpaid leave if they had COVID or were exposed to it while on the job. A number of CNAs now have PTSD and/or depression as a result of their work during the pandemic. Some of those who contracted the coronavirus are still struggling with long-COVID symptoms, such as fatigue, brain fog, and heart and lung problems.
It's Time for Us to Help Them
CNAs for Quality Care, or C4QC, is a not-for-profit organization affiliated with the National Association of Health Care Assistants (NAHCA). C4QC and the National Association for Health Care Assistants (NAHCA) have partnered to launch the CNA Resource Center to formalize the services they have provided throughout the pandemic, including a wide array of supports that ranges from connecting them to mental health resources to finding aid for medical bills or utility bills.
Your donations to the resource center are vital to support C4QC and NAHCA as they work together to support, educate, and assist CNAs both personally and professionally.
This assistance does more than ease worries and anxiety. It may help keep people on the job, prevent them from losing their homes, and prevent their families from going hungry.
