Many families with disabled or ill children provide extensive caregiving while managing full- or part-time employment. Many have been forced to quit or cut their hours because they can’t access essential services. Home health provider and training platform Abby Care’s home health care model enables family members to get paid to care for their loved ones – building a new pipeline of home health workers in the process.
“There are millions of children with disabilities on Medicaid who need nursing care in the home,” Abby Care CEO and Founder Havi Nguyen told Home Health Care News. “There’s a huge shortage of qualified caregivers, and parents are often left in a tough situation where they’re forced to juggle between providing sufficient nursing care and trying to keep their family afloat.”
San Francisco-based Abby Care trains family members to become certified nursing assistants or home health aides under registered nurse supervision to provide skilled care to their child and assist with activities of daily living. Abby Care’s platform also includes an app for care documentation and weekly payments, as well as a digital community for workers to connect with each other.
By becoming certified, these caregivers can receive compensation for the essential care they already provide under the supervision of a clinical professional.
Nguyen sees Abby Care as a ‘differentiated’ home health provider because of the company’s technology-first platform.
A helping hand through red tape
When a family first contacts Abby Care, a representative guides them through the intake process and collaborates with their Medicaid plan to determine if their loved one qualifies for the family caregiving program, according to Nguyen. After receiving approval, the next step is training and certification.
“We guide families through every step of becoming a certified nursing assistant or a home health aide,” Nguyen said. “Our team checks in weekly to support the family’s progress in training and to build their confidence with the skills they’re learning. After they’re certified, we work with the family to begin the care journey and onboard them.”
A nurse is assigned to oversee each family. The nurse helps the family caregiver develop the best care plan and set goals that can assist the loved one in reaching optimal health outcomes. The team working behind the scenes handles Medicaid renewals, applies for new waivers to unlock additional services or coordinates care between various specialists.
“It’s about educating the family on the program,” Nguyen said. “It’s about training the family, and it’s also about navigating the care journey and understanding how we can coordinate care with others, too.”
Every family that completes the Abby Care program becomes a W2 employee of the company. Nguyen said many families who finish the program go on to join the caregiver workforce.
“We see that this program is much more than a paycheck to families,” Nguyen said. “It’s an opportunity to learn the skills to make them feel confident about what is next in their own journey and career. What has been heartwarming is to see many of our families who have gone through our training program pick up shifts at hospital systems or long-term care facilities and care for others outside of their families. Some have gone on to become registered nurses.”
The Abby Care model, therefore, bolsters the overall caregiver pipeline when the U.S. faces a significant shortage, according to Nguyen.
An eye toward expansion
In 2021, when Abby Care began, Colorado was the first state to permit paid family caregiving for pediatrics before the pandemic. Currently, seven states have active programs, and eight more are in the process of establishing them.
In August, the organization announced it had raised $35 million to expand into new states and invest in technology investments and community support. The organization also plans to branch out to care for older adults, as well as children.
Abby Care also plans to collaborate with health plans to enhance outcomes and enable the clinical team to deliver more data-driven care plans and mentorship to families.
“We started with the pediatric population and aimed to focus on those with the greatest needs, which are our youth and children,” Nguyen said. “We trained parents and essentially family members and caregivers for children first, and now we’re also expanding to adults and seniors, supporting the training of caregivers to care for their loved ones – whether it’s a disabled spouse or aging parent – in multiple states too.”
Since its start, Abby Care caregivers have provided 1.9 million hours of family care and experienced a 38% drop in hospitalizations after 120 days of care. Also, 91% of families said they felt more valued after becoming paid caregivers, according to the company.
“Home and community-based caregiving allows states to significantly cut institutional care expenses while reducing pressure on the health care system,” Nguyen said. “By paying family caregivers, states can provide more affordable, compassionate and sustainable care options. It’s a model that not only saves resources but also ensures children get care from those who know them best.”
