How Grant Funding Helps Hope Network Neuro Rehabilitation Grow the Brain Injury Community

By Cindy Barrus, PT MM, CBIST

Like many neuro rehabilitation programs, in recent years the combination of the impact of the COVID -19 pandemic, funding changes, and staffing challenges presented many obstacles for Michigan-based Hope Network Neuro Rehabilitation. Despite those obstacles, providing excellent education and training to support staff recruitment and retention has remained a key focus for the organization.

While Hope had previously participated in the ACBIS “Brain Injury Fundamentals” training program, classes were put on hold in 2020 during the early days of the pandemic. Recognizing the importance of building and sustaining its workforce, in FY 23 a key area of strategic focus for Hope Network was to resume providing the Brain Injury Fundamentals curriculum to direct care staff. This included developing a plan to grow the number of Fundamentals trainers to support ongoing classes and determining a process to provide this important training to a large number of existing staff who did not have the opportunity to attend the training due to pandemic restrictions – all within budget constraints, of course. (This is likely a challenge for others in the ACBIS community as well!)

The program began exploring paths to securing additional funding support, and in the spring of 2024, Hope Network Neuro Rehabilitation applied for and received a grant from IMPART Alliance, an organization dedicated to helping Michigan develop an infrastructure to expand and support the direct care workforce. Hope was thrilled to receive grant funding designed to address competency-based training and support for internal career paths for direct caregivers, including funds to significantly increase the number of Brain Injury Fundamentals trainings that Hope Network could offer.

IMPART, based in the College of Osteopathic Medicine at Michigan State University, has awarded multiple grants to employers across Michigan as part of a project supported by the Michigan Department of Health and Human Services using American Rescue Plan Act/Home and Community Based Services Project funds. Executive Director Clare Luz, PhD, explains that this high degree of funding, focused specifically on addressing the direct care worker (DCW) shortage, is unprecedented and has given Michigan a remarkable opportunity to help DCW employers explore innovative ways in which to improve recruitment and retention rates. It recognizes the critical interrelatedness of factors that contribute to the shortage and the need to address all these factors simultaneously, as well as how imperative it is for providers, advocates, and all stakeholders to work together toward meaningful change at state, local, and organizational levels.

Thanks to the funding support received from the grant, in 2024, 135 staff at Hope Network Neuro Rehabilitation participated in the Brain Injury Fundamentals in-person training program. Feedback from those attending the course has been overwhelmingly positive, with those attending stating they appreciate the interactive and engaging format as well as the opportunity to connect and dialogue about caregiver issues with other colleagues. Staff member Luke Hawley called the training “The best I have attended at Hope Network … incredibly well done.”

“I have been thrilled to see so many of our Direct Service Provider staff grab this opportunity for specialized trainings through the grant,” shares Margaret Kroese, CBIS, executive vice president. “They come out of the trainings feeling inspired and empowered, and they have a new understanding of the needs of those we serve. The grant has been key to developing a specialized direct care workforce of today and the future.”

As other organizations in our ACBIS community continue to build the skills of their workforce, this is one example of how external funding from grants made a significant impact in supporting Hope Network’s Neuro Rehabilitation goal of rapidly increasing access to training and development through ACBIS programs.

“We are thrilled that we have been able to support the critical work of Hope Network Neuro Rehabilitation and their commitment to high-quality training for DCWs,” said IMPART Alliance’s Dr. Luz. “Hope Network Neuro Rehabilitation is a shining example of exactly what it is we are trying to achieve in Michigan. We believe the lessons learned from their experience will be relevant to other providers across the nation and are excited to take this journey with them. I have no doubt that it will have a long-term positive impact.”

Hope Network Neuro Rehabilitation is a CARF-accredited, not-for-profit brain injury rehabilitation program with locations in Grand Rapids, East Lansing, and Kalamazoo, Mich. Providing a continuum of care from post-acute transitional, home/community, outpatient, residential, and vocational programming, HNNR is a proud utilizer of many ACBIS education and training programs. Hope currently has three CBIS Trainers and five Brain Injury Fundamentals trainers on staff.