Alexis Bender, PhD and team win international award for a study on the impact of resident deaths on assisted-living care staff

A published study led by researcher Alexis Bender, PhD, (Geriatrics and Gerontology) has been selected by Mather Institute as a Silver Award recipient of the 2023 Innovative Research on Aging Awards. This Innovative Research on Aging Award honors Emory University and Dr. Bender for investigating how assisted-living caregivers individually cope with death and dying in the workplace.

Dr. Bender and her team identified the recent trend of more residents dying while in assisted living, where a lack of employee training about death contributes to fear and misunderstandings about how to support residents’ quality of life. The emotional work involved in caring for dying residents and ambiguity around appropriate ways to grieve places further stress on direct care workers, which may further exacerbate burnout and turnover

Researchers presented practical recommendations for improving caregiver job satisfaction and end-of-life care quality. By acknowledging the normalcy of death and dying, the senior living industry can better prepare its workforce to meet the needs of the residents and workers.

For more information about this NIH-funded study led by PI Molly Perkins, PhD, MA, about the end of life in assisted living, visit our past spotlight in the Emory Daily Pulse Blog, or you can read more about the project information on the NIH site

For more information on the Mather Institute or a full report on all the award recipients, visit matherinstitute.com.