A trending story today on BBC.com today opens, “There’s a huge shortage of caregivers to look after America’s ageing population. In Minnesota they’ve come up with a creative solution.” Leading Age Minnesota President, Gayle Kvenvold, outlining the statistics of our aging population – the population over the age of 85 will have doubled by 2030 – adding, “The national conversation about immigration policy is of concern to us in the caregiving community. We think that immigrants are an essential part of our workforce solution.”
Marvin Plakut agrees, “The harsh reality is that if all of a sudden, one day all of our new immigrants were no longer working for us, we would close our doors because we would lose half our staff.”
Adding a further reflection on the vital importance of our immigrant workforce, both to staffing and providing the highest levels of care, Marvin adds, “Our immigrants come from cultures where the elderly are highly regarded. That comes through in the way they interact with our elderly at Episcopal Homes. The respect and warmth and caring that our immigrants display is a beautiful thing.”
Along with many wonderful caregivers and leaders from across Minnesota, Episcopal Homes’ CEO, Marvin Plakut and The Gardens’ caregivers were filmed for this story, by Hannah Long-Higgins of the BBC. Watch it here: