Efforts Underway to Create a National Support Framework for Caregivers

Mount Sinai Health System Launches New Center to Support Family Caregivers

In a significant advancement for family caregiver support, the Mount Sinai Health System in New York City has inaugurated the Steven S. Elbaum Family Center for Caregiving. Officially opened in late May, this facility represents over a decade of concerted effort aimed at addressing the various unmet needs of family caregivers, who play a crucial role in the healthcare system but often receive limited support.

Allison Applebaum, a professor of geriatrics and palliative medicine at the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai, will lead the center. Her experience includes founding the Caregivers Clinic at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center—a program known for providing crucial psychosocial care to family caregivers throughout the cancer treatment process. Applebaum emphasized the historical lack of support structures for caregivers within healthcare systems, particularly in cancer treatment, stating, “Models of care have relied heavily on family caregivers to shoulder tremendous responsibilities that we as healthcare providers have a responsibility to support.”

The new center integrates Mount Sinai’s existing caregiver clinic and aims to offer personalized psychosocial care to a diverse group of caregivers—including parents, partners, children, siblings, and friends of patients suffering from chronic or terminal illnesses. Launched as part of Mount Sinai’s clinical services in January 2025, the facility is now fully operational, focusing on addressing the emotional and practical challenges faced by family members.

In partnership with the Center to Advance Palliative Care (CAPC), Mount Sinai is also developing a national caregiving program. This initiative aims to create replicable business models and care frameworks to enhance support for family caregivers across the nation. Applebaum aims to establish this national framework within the next six months, making it accessible to healthcare programs eager to implement similar support systems.

The center’s transformative approach to caregiver resources is centered on four primary initiatives:

1. Developing scalable support models for nationwide implementation.
2. Pursuing innovative caregiving research.
3. Training the next generation of caregiving scientists.
4. Advocating for policy reforms that recognize caregivers as essential healthcare partners.

Applebaum noted, “What we’ve built here is taking a model and expanding it to support family caregivers of patients with all chronic and life-limiting illnesses, disabilities and mental health challenges.” A notable aspect of the center’s operations includes the potential for caregivers to become patients themselves within the healthcare system, allowing for insurance billing and the establishment of a sustainable revenue model for caregiver support.

The center’s research efforts will contribute to the creation of national guidelines and policy recommendations aimed at fundamentally reshaping how healthcare systems provide assistance to caregivers. This initiative is underscored by Mount Sinai’s vast resources, which include over 600 research and clinical labs, as well as a comprehensive network comprising approximately 9,000 primary and specialty care clinicians across multiple locations.

Applebaum articulated the preventive nature of the caregivers clinic, asserting its profound benefits on patient outcomes. Research indicates that caregivers who receive adequate support experience lower stress levels, reducing their reliance on emergency services and enhancing their ability to manage medical challenges. “We have a very, very long way to go, and I hope our research and efforts bring identification of caregivers and offer those caregivers psychosocial support to become standards of our care,” she concluded.

Overall, the establishment of the Steven S. Elbaum Family Center for Caregiving stands as a vital step in recognizing and empowering family caregivers, an often-overlooked component of the healthcare continuum.