FutureCare NC Awarded CMS Grant for Building Culture Leaders Program

FutureCare NC, a not-for-profit organization established by North Carolina Health Care Facilities Association (NCHCFA), was recently awarded a $380,000 grant for three years from the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) to establish the Building Culture Leaders Program.

The Building Culture Leaders Program will focus on improving the health and well-being of skilled nursing facility residents by equipping long-term care (LTC) leaders with the knowledge and skills they need to carry out their incredibly complex jobs. The program aims to develop leadership and organizational culture building amongst LTC leaders to drive quality improvement and person-centered care for residents.  

“This grant will help us continue building strong leaders and enhancing the culture inside our facilities. Programs like this are critical to the sustainability of long-term care in North Carolina,” said Adam Sholar, President and CEO of NCHCFA.

The Building Culture Leaders Program is funded by civil money penalties (CMPs) and builds on NCHCFA’s Institute for LTC Leaders. The focus of the Institute has been on providing leadership training and networking opportunities that can develop effective leaders in North Carolina’s LTC profession. 

The Program will offer in-depth training sessions for 40 participating skilled nursing facilities. Through in-person training, individualized coaching, onsite workshops and team building, the Building Culture Leaders Program will empower long-term care leaders to develop and sustain organizational cultures centered around resident-focused care. Over 1,000 leaders/staff will be directly impacted through the education and support provided.

Corporate offices nominated facilities, and the participating facilities were contacted this week. Program objectives at the end of the three-year grant period include: 

• Increase resident and family satisfaction in quality of care and quality of life by 15% in participants’ facilities, and 
• Increase participants’ organizational culture building and leadership skills, with at least 75% of participants reporting an improvement.

The program is led by Eric Kivisto, Executive Director of FutureCare NC and Director of Quality Improvement Projects at NCHCFA, and coordinated by Mark Gogal, Vice President of Workforce Development at NCHCFA. For more information, contact them at erick@nchcfa.org or markg@nchcfa.org.