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Good morning, Tomorrow is National Caregiver Day. It's a day to honor, thank and celebrate the millions of American caregivers — from the professionals throughout the health care system and other organizations to the family and friend caregivers in every state, community and neighborhood — who provide daily care and support to so many.   Like our peers in the field, we know well the incredible and wide-reaching contributions they make every day.   We created Best Practice Caregiving (BPC) as a way to help the 16 million family members in the U.S. who serve as informal, unpaid caregivers to those living with dementia. Our hope is that BPC will continue spurring broad adoption of evidence-based programs by health systems and community-based organizations so these caregivers can access the support and services they need.   Help us celebrate National Caregiver Day by checking out the database, sharing it with peers and colleagues, and most importantly – thanking a caregiver! Thank you for all you do!  Sincerely, The Best Practice Caregiving Team    Best Practice Caregiving is a product of collaboration among: Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging, Family Caregiver Alliance, and The Gerontological Society of America. Project funders are The John A. Hartford Foundation, the Archstone Foundation, and RRF Foundation for Aging.

One Year of Best Practice Caregiving "One year ago, Best Practice Caregiving was launched to address a significant problem in the caregiving field: Successful, evidence-based dementia caregiving programs were not reaching the caregivers who needed them..." As Best Practice Caregiving turns 1, we look back on how BPC came to be and what it's meant for the field of dementia caregiving and the organizations that support those caregivers and families across the US (and world!). Read the full article here.

At-a-Glance: REACH VA REACH VA is a dementia caregiving program that helps organizations better support caregivers of veterans living with dementia and other chronic conditions. Download this 1-page infographic for a quick, top-level overview of the program components and benefits. Learn all about the program in its profile section in Best Practice Caregiving — you'll see research findings, implementation history and other detailed information. REACH VA can be delivered remotely and is ready for adoption at no cost. If your organization serves caregivers of non-veterans, you can still implement a REACH program. The great success of REACH VA prompted its developers to create REACH Community — which they adapted from REACH VA in order to serve a more general caregiver population. Read our Q&A with the developers to learn more about it.

Best Practice Caregiving in the News This dementia caregiving resource has gotten some fresh ink! Check out this feature article in the January/February 2021 issue of Today's Geriatric Medicine magazine. Written by own Katie Maslow, the article covers the benefits of BPC programs for organizations and highlights several that can be delivered remotely (see all 12 remote-friendly programs here). In addition, AARP published "20 Questions to Ask When Dementia is Diagnosed" — a piece sharing guidance from the experts at the UCLA Alzheimer's and Dementia Care program, one of the 44 evidence-based programs in Best Practice Caregiving. Learn more about the UCLA ADC program here, here and here.

Quick Links & Tips Did you catch the BPC presentation that the Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging shared as part of their Annual Caregiving Conference? The session provides a video tour and overview of the database — click the video link on the conference webpage to watch (the presentation starts at min. 56:00). Have 2 minutes? Help us improve Best Practice Caregiving by taking this 5-question survey! Have more questions about BPC? Read the FAQs. Or email us at BestPracticeCaregiving@caregiver.org.

ABOUT BEST PRACTICE CAREGIVING Best Practice Caregiving (bpc.caregiver.org), is a free online database of more than 40 vetted, proven dementia caregiving programs that allows organizations to identify, compare and adopt best-fit programs for their clientele and community. It is a product of the collaboration among three leading organizations in the field of aging and caregiving: Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging, Center for Research & Education; Family Caregiver Alliance: National Center on Caregiving; and The Gerontological Society of America. Project funders are The John A. Hartford Foundation, Archstone Foundation and RRF Foundation for Aging.

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