UW–Madison’s Fields champions care partners’ needs at national, invitation-only summit


By Laurel White

School of Education faculty member Beth Fields offered her expertise on the needs of Wisconsin care partners and those they care for at a recent national summit and political advocacy day in Washington, DC. 

The Caregiver Nation Summit offered experts an opportunity to connect with other leading voices on caregiving and to advocate on Capitol Hill for continued funding of the Older Americans Act, which is currently pending before Congress. 

Fields

Fields, an associate professor in the Department of Kinesiology, was invited as one of four advocates from Wisconsin to participate in the event. Fields said it was an honor to represent the state of Wisconsin, which is a national leader in the field. Wisconsin was recently selected as one of four states to lead the implementation of a new national caregiving strategy backed by more than a dozen federal agencies. 

“Wisconsin state government and community resource centers are doing so much great work in the caregiving space,” Fields says. “It was a pleasure to highlight the innovation happening in our state, and to advocate for funds that will allow that innovation and life-changing support to continue.”

Fields (left) and her fellow Wisconsin advocates in Washington, DC. Image courtesy Beth Fields

Fields and her colleagues met with every member of Wisconsin’s Congressional delegation during the summit’s advocacy day. 

“Continued funding for the Older Americans Act will show our country values and supports care partners, and will ensure they have what they need to care for their loved ones while supporting their own health and well-being,” she says. 

Broadly, Fields’ research focuses on developing, testing, and implementing assessments and interventions that improve quality of care and life for aging adults and their care partners. In 2023, Fields and a team of colleagues launched a five-year, nationwide project that will examine ways to improve how research about care partners is developed, conducted, shared, and implemented across the United States.

“My primary goal is making sure current caregiving research gets into the right hands — people who can utilize it to improve lives,” Fields says. “I want to bridge the gap between the academic world and care partners.”

Fields’ research also includes leading an adaptive horseback riding program for people living with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias and their care partners in Dane County. The program, called Riding in the Moment™, launched at Three Gaits Therapeutic Horsemanship Center in Stoughton last year with funding support from the Wisconsin Partnership Program. 

The three-year initiative is currently recruiting participants for upcoming sessions this summer and fall. It aims to provide services to 42 Alzheimer’s and dementia patients and their families in Dane County. Fields’ research team is also conducting a concurrent evaluation of the program’s implementation and its impact on participants. 

“This truly is an innovative, evidence-informed program that is growing fast,” Fields says.

Fields says programs like Riding in the Moment™ can be made available to many individuals thanks to funding support provided by the Older Americans Act. She’s optimistic her and her fellow Wisconsin experts’ advocacy was well received by Wisconsin’s Congressional delegation. 

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