Westat Researchers Present New Findings on Aging, Caregiving, and Long-Term Care Workforce Challenges at GSA 2026
November 4, 2026
Westat researchers will present new findings on aging services, caregiving, workforce stability, and employee well-being at the 2026 Gerontological Society of America (GSA) Annual Scientific Meeting, being held November 4-7, 2026, in National Harbor, Maryland.
They will participate in a symposium highlighting results from the National Survey of Older Americans Act Participants (NSOAAP). The session will explore how Older Americans Act programs serve older adults with the greatest economic and social needs, including findings on caregiving burden among participants in the National Family Caregiver Support Program, nutrition services, and program participants’ health, well-being, and independence. The symposium will demonstrate how NSOAAP data can inform policies and services that support older Americans and their caregivers.
Several additional presentations focus on the nursing home workforce, such as examining challenges and support strategies for maintaining staffing, investigating how life course factors affect recruitment and retention among nursing assistants, and exploring how caregiver-friendly workplace policies affect work-life balance for nursing assistants.
Westat presentations include (Westat staff in bold):
Symposium: Serving Older Adults with Greatest Economic and Social Need: The National Survey of Older Americans Act Participants
- Overview of results and insights from the 2024 National Survey of Older Americans Act Participants (NSOAAP). (Paper.) Susan Hassell, Naomi Yount, Jessica Kirchner, Rose Tyler, and Nina Kreiger.
- Characteristics of OAA Title III nutrition services participants and perceived benefits of participation. (Paper.) Cindy Gruman, Brandon Hesgrove, Stanford Chihuri, Susan Hassell, and Naomi Yount.
- Assessment of caregiving burden among National Family Caregiver Support Program Participants. (Paper.) Naomi Yount, Daniel Chacreton, Donald Warden, and Susan Hassell.
Symposium: The Reality of Direct Care Work in Nursing Homes: Workers’ Perspectives on What Matters
- Life course matters to job retention and recruitment: Perspectives of nursing assistants in VA nursing homes. (Paper.) Maryssa Pallis, Whitney Mills, Nathalie McIntosh, Sylvia Haigh, and Katherine Kennedy
General Session Presentations:
- Staffing challenges, responses, and support strategies: Staff perspectives in VA nursing homes. (Poster.) Selma Yavuz, Hyeyoung Park, Sylvia Haigh, Nathalie McIntosh, Ciaran Phibbs, David Mohr, and Katherine Kennedy.
- Preliminary effectiveness of the Behavioral Activities Intervention in VA nursing homes (BE-ACTIV[VA]). (Paper.) Whitney Mills, Sylvia Haigh, Katherine Kennedy, and Nathalie McIntosh.
- Caregiver-friendly workplace policies and work-life balance among nursing assistants in VA nursing homes. (Poster.) Maryssa Pallis, Whitney Mills, Nathalie McIntosh, Sylvia Haigh, and Katherine Kennedy.