The Home Care Association of America (HCAOA, formerly NPDA) is the national trade association of the private-duty home care industry. They provide programs, resources, and services that can help make businesses successful in today's competitive home care industry. Their specialized government affairs staff in Washington, D.C., works on legislative and advocacy efforts to positively shape the home care environment for members and the clients they serve.

To improve its presence as an industry association, HCAOA has moved its executive offices from Indianapolis to Washington, D.C.; has appointed a new Executive Director; and has hired new lobbyists, public relations firm, and legal counsel. HCAOA is now looking to substantially increase the size of its membership to strengthen its lobbying power and help ensure that businesses within the private-duty home care industry are better protected.

CKFI believes that being part of the collective voice in the industry will help protect our franchisees and business model to enable us to continue to provide the best home care services possible. Some franchisees are already involved as members of their state HCAOA chapters. In response to a recent request by the president of HCAOA's board of directors, CKFI has upgraded its national membership to become a corporate member of HCAOA. As part of this new membership, franchisees have the new benefit of becoming members at the national level. CKFI will pay the $150 annual membership for each of its franchisees each year for the next three years, for a total investment of well over $50,000 per year. This grants each franchisee non-voting member status.

Franchisees who would like to become voting members will receive a 25% discount off of the regular voting member dues of $595. Those who are currently voting members will receive the same discount as well as an additional $150 savings upon membership renewal (the basic dues that CKFI has already paid). Becoming a voting member gives franchisees a strong voice in legislation that can affect their daily business activities. To become a voting member, please visit the HCAOA website at www.HomeCareAOA.org.

CKFI believes that a strong industry organization is important in today's environment fraught with challenges such as  threats of  unionization, legal action, and legislative activity that could impact our industry negatively. With this in mind, CKFI has also pledged an additional substantial investment to HCAOA to offset legal fees associated with future litigation.

If you would like to learn more about this important industry association and the benefits you receive with your membership, visit the HCAOA representatives at the upcoming Comfort Keepers^® Leadership Conference or visit their website at www.HomeCareAOA.org. 

If you have any questions about this relationship, please contact David Simic, Vice President of Business Development, at DavidSimic@ComfortKeepers.com.

Registration for the Leadership Conference closes today, Friday, April 18, and sessions are nearly full. This is your last opportunity to get in on the fun.

Remember that conference is not just about education; it is also an opportunity for you to network and to get to know the host city during your free time. There are still openings for the optional Thursday morning and Friday evening extracurricular activities. A round of golf is the perfect venue to talk shop with other franchisees, or if you prefer, meet new friends during the brewery tour, a visit to the aquarium, or on a tour of Boulder. Be sure to register for these activities when you register for the conference.  

To register for the conference and activities, click here or visit Members>Training> Leadership Conference. Make the most of your weekend and get involved!

You asked, and we answered. For the first time at conference, we are offering franchisee-only sessions presented by third-party subject matter experts. One team of experts will be Terry Hildebrandt and Associates who will show you how you can structure your organization to plan for future growth. 

You will get hands-on experience creating the right organizational chart for different stages of your business, learn to manage capacity issues, and understand how and when to work on your business so it can work for you. It will be an amazing session, and one you won't want to miss. Sign up today! 

Be armed with all the materials you need to get the most out of your breakout sessions! As in years past, we have made all of the breakout and roundtable session materials available for you to download and print. Please go to Members > Training > Leadership Conference > Breakouts & Roundtables to find the materials you will need for the sessions you plan to attend. 

Print or download them onto your digital device to bring to the conference with you and have them available for the sessions. Please keep in mind that the session rooms generally will not have Internet access, so be sure you save session materials in an offline format on your devices. See you in Denver!  

We are happy to report that the majority of critical issues have been resolved within a 48-hour window and franchisees' local websites are running smoothly. If you reported a critical issue, and you have not heard otherwise, the issue has been resolved. Take a moment to review your site again, and if you find any items that need to be addressed, please submit another critical update request.

To improve your site's ranking in searches we encourage you to update it regularly with fresh, unique content. Beginning April 21, the CKFI support team will begin taking basic content change requests. Basic changes include staff bios, office location, or copy updates. You can submit up to two change requests per month at CKWebSupport. This link will also be available on the home page of the Member's site next week.

Franchisees who attended training webinars should have also received log-in information from The Shipyard that will allow them to make changes to their sites themselves. If you attended a training webinar and did not receive this information, contact The Shipyard support at Support@TheShipyard.com or (888) 738-9750. Those who have not yet viewed the training webinar can access the recording on the home page of the Member's site. Once you have watched the webinar please contact The Shipyard support to obtain your log-in credentials.

Changes are live, so please use caution. The CKFI Digital Marketing team will review site updates daily and either approve the changes or provide feedback to you within two business days.

If you would prefer professional web support to make your site work harder for you, consider a support package from The Shipyard. You can view the package options here  or contact Jake Wilk at JWilk@TheShipyard.com or (888) 738-9750 with questions or to order services.

If you need to place a print order, remember that SMARTworks^®from Standard Register meets all your needs, replacing both ThinkPatented (formerly Prime) and Holmes Printing. Order all of your forms and marketing materials in one, convenient location. Until May 1, 2014 all orders receive free shipping.

First-time users of the SMARTworks portal can find log-in and account registration instructions on Members> CK Brand > Vendors > Standard Register. Before ordering for the first time, check out the tutorials and helpful hints on the SMARTworks main page.

When creating an order, review it carefully before submitting it. Print the item and check it for any errors. Once you place the order, it is final. Standard Register cannot guarantee that an order can be cancelled because the ordering and printing processes are automated and very fast. This is especially true with items such as business cards. 

Chronic or long-term diseases affect more than 133 million people, or 45% of the total population, in the U.S. and are the leading cause of illness, disability, and death. As part of the initiative to reduce hospital readmission rates, the medical community is seeking ways to help their patients effectively manage these conditions. One of the most common chronic diseases is chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, or COPD. This new e-learning module defines the disease, outlines its symptoms, and discusses how Comfort Keepers^® can help clients who suffer from COPD. At the end of this course, you will be able to do the following:

• Define COPD
• Identify common signs and symptoms of COPD
• Identify the causes of and treatments for COPD
• Discuss care of clients with COPD
• Identify energy-saving techniques for COPD clients

Transitions: COPD can be assigned by using the Transitions Electives catalog.