A North Carolina-founded caregiving platform added the Tampa Bay area to its network after the service went viral for regional students.
CareYaya, a Raleigh-based healthtech platform, was founded in 2022 and has grown to thousands of student caregivers nationwide. With its expansion to the Tampa Bay area in 2023, the CareYaya platform became a part-time employer of more than 200 University of South Florida and University of Tampa students who wanted to log patient care hours and get ahead on a medical career track.
The app allows students to apply and — after a screening process, a background check and a certification process — sign up for tasks, such as caregiving at homes or medical organizations.
The app's Florida expansion started with Orlando and Gainesville in December 2023 by participating in an Orlando startup accelerator program called Rally. CareYaya soon realized it needed to expand to Tampa Bay, Chief Communications Officer Roxy Garrity told Tampa Bay Inno.
"For Tampa, we had students requesting to get on the platform without us doing any real legwork in advertising there or reaching out to the school," Garrity said. "They came and found us via social media. [Students] were like, 'Why aren't you guys in Tampa? We would love it here. It's a great platform. We want to start our own chapter.' ... It's grassroots, how it grew in Tampa."
The platform is now looking for those needing care in Tampa Bay and to partner with regional health care organizations.
"It's easy to reach the students. It's harder to reach the families and to get them to trust the technology and to book online," Garrity said.
The company's app functions through academic partnerships; the students are the labor force. In return, they receive hours of patient care experience that can be used to bolster their resumes when applying to medical school or medical programs. Besides hours, student caregivers are paid between $15 and $25 per hour. Student ambassadors for the company receive points for each task they complete. The points convert to payment; every 100 points is worth $10.
The caregiver and the family of care rate each other through a system, and CareYaya responds to each negative rating, Garrity said. Several types of care operations are available for students, including technology skills programs for dementia patients and the elderly.
The company's annual revenue was not disclosed, but the company charges around $15 an hour for care, operating at more than 25 universities in 10 states.
Andrea Cifelli, a student at UT, was recently hired as an ambassador for CareYaya. She's now responsible for promoting and recruiting within the community.
She has learned from the role and her network of CareYaya peers, even in the few weeks of employment. In December, she earned $300, or around 3,000 points, but worked part-time hours. It's significant work, but she's grateful for the position, she said.
"It's financially rewarding for me; as a student, it's great to have that income, but it's also great to get experience along with that," Cifelli said.
