Caregivers are the Unsung Heroes in Health Care. Here’s Why.
Chances are, you know someone caring for an elderly parent, spouse, child, friend, or relative. They may spend up to 25 hours a week providing compassionate, unpaid care, often around a full-time job. Your friend may also have kids of her own to ‘take’ care of or grandkids to babysit.
They may act like it’s no big deal, but caregivers provide crucial assistance to the aging and ill. Although specific duties vary, all caregivers help their loved ones live comfortably in their own homes with as much independence as possible.
A few common caregiver roles include:
- Managing medication. Ordering and making sure your loved one takes any medications.
- Assisting with basic needs. This can include bathing, grooming, going to the bathroom, and getting in and out of bed.
- Running errands. Taking your loved one to doctor’s appointments, the grocery store, and other activities.
- Managing finances. This includes paying the bills as well as managing health insurance and Medicare claims.
- Preparing meals.
- Housekeeping.
- Providing companionship. Your loved ones need company as much as they need care.
- Monitoring performance. Noticing how your loved one responds to medication and care. Discussing any significant changes with his or her primary-care doctor.
In addition to daily living activities, more and more caregivers—about 6 in 10—perform basic nursing tasks. They give injections and tube feedings and manage catheter and colostomy care, most of the time without prior preparation.
Caregivers and the services they provide to our seniors are invaluable; the work they do every day can’t be praised enough
Lois Cody cared for her mother, who suffered from congestive heart failure, kidney disease, and dementia for six years. While a live-in caregiver, Luba, took care of hygiene, cooking, and light housework, Lois drove her mother to appointments and managed her medications, finances, and other affairs. When Lois’ mother needed a catheter, a visiting nurse showed Lois how to maintain the device. Lois then showed Luba.
Without caregivers like Lois, our economy and the health of our seniors would surely suffer. AARP estimates the value provided by the more than 460,000 caregivers in Connecticut at $6 billion annually.
“Caregivers and the services they provide to our seniors are invaluable; the work they do every day can’t be praised enough,” says Connecticut State Senator Kevin Kelly. “Within the next 15 years, the number of seniors who live in Connecticut is projected to balloon, only increasing the need for these dedicated community, and often family-based, caregivers. Without community-based care, the economic cost of caring for our seniors would become unaffordable.”
About half of America’s caregivers say they had no choice in the matter. People in that situation feel more stress than others, yet all caregivers share the burden. They report high levels of emotional stress, as well as physical and financial strain.
As an only child who lived five minutes from her mother, Lois was solely responsible for her care. When Lois’ husband died unexpectedly, her care duties continued.
Because caregivers work day and night helping ill or aging loved ones, most feel alone in their grief and exhaustion. About 84 percent crave information on caregiving topics, especially tips for managing their own stress.
If you’ve recently taken on a caregiver role, know you are not alone. AARP offers online resources for family caregivers. The Family Caregiving Online Learning Series also provides family caregivers with valuable information on important topics like how to navigate Medicare and Social Security, manage medications or attend to a loved one’s daily needs.
Lois found support through the Visiting Nurses Association, which offers a caregivers support group in North Haven. There, she met a couple who encouraged her to join AARP Connecticut. She did and found a welcoming community of like-minded people. “I became part of this wonderful family,” she says.
Lois stays involved in AARP’s advocacy efforts, which include ensuring support for the Connecticut Home Care Program for Elders, designed to assist aging Connecticut residents at risk of nursing home placement. AARP works with the local and national government to support America’s 40 million caregivers. They advocate for policies to help caregivers navigate financial challenges, increase respite-care services, and increase the number of older adults who have access to state-funded home care, adult day care, and other services.
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At your convenience, watch Caregiving Q&A’s online that dive into important topics like how to navigate Medicare and Social Security, manage medications, or attend to a loved one’s daily needs.
State Specific Caregiver Resource Guides
A state-specific guide to serve as a starting point to find services and supports that may help throughout your caregiving journey.
The organization has some powerful supporters. “I will continue to fight for what makes sense in Hartford, and that is providing our seniors with the chance to age safely at home,” says Senator Kelly. “This all starts with making sure our caregivers get the support they need and the praise they deserve.”
In honor of National Family Caregivers Month, AARP Connecticut salutes caregivers in Connecticut and across the U.S. AARP continues to fight on caregivers’ behalf to make sure they get the emotional, financial, and social support they need.
“You feel like you’re alone, but you’re not,” says Lois. “There are so many people who have similar stories. You become lifelong friends. It’s very important to make the push to find a support group and get involved with resources such as AARP Connecticut. Nothing happens if you don’t reach outside the box.”