Adult/Elder and Self-Care

Woman with her arms around older adult

Senior planning

One of the most challenging – and potentially rewarding – aspects of caring for older adults who rely on you is planning for the next steps as they age. Harvard provides resources for you and your family to support the process of finding the right solutions.

  • Employee Assistance Program (EAP): KGA provides advice and recommendations on elder- or adult-care issues, referrals to resources nationwide, and referrals related support such as financial, legal, and mental health resources. Services can be accessed via phone (877-EAP-HARV), by visiting Employee Assistance Program (company code: harvard).
  • Adult Care Services: Through Harvard's partnership with Wellthy, a nationally-known care provider service, benefits-eligible faculty and staff have free access to assistance in navigating care situations (e.g., surgery, injury, new diagnosis, aging) for an adult loved one. You can get matched with a dedicated Wellthy care expert who will get to know your needs, guide you through priorities, and help you handle care tasks, such as vetting in-home aides, locating nursing home facilities and adult day care center facilities, and more. Current employees can learn more on HARVie's Care for Adults page (HarvardKey required).

    To use Wellthy services, current employees must pre-register and accept a waiver of liability. Current faculty and staff can find more details about all of the services available on the Wellthy page (HarvardKey required) on the employee website, HARVie.

Backup care and self-care

Through Harvard’s partnership with Wellthy, a nationally known care-provider, benefits-eligible faculty and staff can access a suite of services, including subsidized adult back-up care and self-care assistance:

  • Backup adult care: In-home care for elders or other adults at subsidized rates. Professional placement services of vetted caregivers provided through Wellthy.
  • Self-Care: Employees can also use Wellthy providers for their own care when recovering from illness or injury.

Employees are eligible for up to 20 days of subsidized back-up care per fiscal year (July 1–June 30). For more details, current faculty and staff may visit the Wellthy Backup Care page (HarvardKey required) on the employee website, HARVie.

Register in advance

To use Wellthy services, employees must pre-register and accept a waiver of liability.

Backup Care Financial Assistance

The Source Program provides benefits-eligible employees with a full-time equivalent annual salary of less than $85,000 with up to $350 per year to help pay for backup care. Current employees should visit the SOURCE Program page (HarvardKey required) for details on how to apply.