The winner of the 2021 Award for Excellence in Program Innovation is the Alameda County Care Alliance Advanced Illness Care Program (ACCA AICP). ACCA AICP is a faith-based, person-centered, lay care navigation intervention serving predominantly African American adults with advanced illness and their caregivers, bridging the gap between health delivery systems, community organizations, and faith-based communities. The program serves individuals with serious illnesses and their caregivers in Alameda County, Contra Costa County and most recently, San Francisco. The ACCA AICP services are available to all community members, regardless of race, ethnicity, or religious affiliation.
The ACCA AICP is a novel, culturally embedded program providing lay care navigation intervention to support persons needing care and their families/caregivers in the community setting. Participants receive support for their needs in the five program cornerstone areas of need: spiritual; health (physical and emotional); social; advance care planning; and caregiving. Program participants also receive tools and training to promote empowerment and resiliency. The ACCA AICP builds on community-based resources and health system partnerships to provide a new paradigm of “whole person” care.
The Archstone Foundation Award for Excellence in Program Innovation is an annual award, established in 1997 through an endowment, to recognize best practice models in the field of aging and public health. By providing national recognition to these programs, Archstone Foundation hopes that it will enable these model programs to be replicated, and to continue to be evaluated in an effort to enhance innovative services for older adults throughout the U.S.
