The Family Caregiver Platform Project

It's Time To Take A Stand For Caregivers

My Caregiving Journey 

The Invisible Caregiver

I have had many careers in my life, from working in the corporate world to raising an amazing daughter, and today I find myself as the sole caregiver for my elderly mom. Macular degeneration has taken her eyesight and she has a neurocognitive disorder otherwise known as dementia. She will never "get better" if anything she is deteriorating right before my eyes. To the dismay of many of my friends and family they all tell me she needs to be in a nursing home. She definitely meets the criteria but in my heart I can not do it. She is quite the kicker and I fear that her challenging behavior will not make her one of the popular kids in a nursing institution. Therefore the care and safety of my mother is a high priority. A few years ago she was in and out of the geri go round. I have memories of finding soaked urine sheets in her in drawers. Their website brand promise states "Bringing new life to senior living" they are known to highly regarded skilled nursing facility in Del Mar, California and after the care my mom got there they were doing everything for her except bringing a new life to her "senior" living. So I need not reiterate but we are talking about my mother, the person that gave me life and the one that nurtured, fed and kept me safe. For me to 'put her away' is just not an option, or am I kidding myself and sooner or later before I crash and burn will I need to put her in some institution.

Caregivers Need Help 

And One Day I Became A Caregiver

As I started this journey little did I know that our country does not make it easier for families to care for a loved one at home, in fact caregivers that are family and live in the same household are more or less an invisible group. And what is most baffling is that more and more people are aging and will need to be cared for at some point. Fact is that if a person is placed in an institution the cost is much higher to society. And I say that in more ways than one. We need to work together to imagine systems and services that will provide and help the family caregivers who need both financial and practical support in order to provide the care the older adults in their lives need to age in dignity. We must bring light to the invisible caregiver.

Addressing our aging population and their caregivers is not a
Republican issue, or a Democrat issue – 

It’s a people issue

By working together, we can make the care system better for all of us, starting now.

Think about the Beauty in Aging

Think About Aging

As millions of Americans grow older, 7 out of 10 of us will need assistance from another person. We will need help with simple activities such as eating, bathing, and moving from place to place. Some of us will only need care for a short time, but others will need help for years. Some elders will have loved ones close by who can help when needed. But many will lack a reliable support network. That’s why we need a community that cares.

Consider these facts About Aging in America: 

• Caregiving in the US in 2015, 43.5 million Americans provide unpaid care to someone who was/is ill, disabled or aged.
• AARP -Valuing the Invaluable- Caregiver services were valued at $470 billion per year in 2013.
• Women Work and Caregiving- One national study on women and caregiving highlighted the conflicting demands of work and eldercare.
   The study found that:
  • 33% of working women decreased work hours
  • 29% passed up a job promotion, training or assignment
  • 22% took a leave of absence
  • 20% switched from full-time to part-time employment
  • 16% quit their jobs
  • 13% retired early
• Family Caregiver Alliance- Loss Term Statistics
• Individuals 85 years and older, the oldest old, are one of the fastest growing segments of the population.
• This figure is expected to increase to 19.4 million by 2050.
• In 2012, there were an estimated 5.9 million people 85+ in the United States.
• This means that there could be an increase from 1.6 million to 6.2 million people age 85 or over with severe or moderate memory impairment in 20
• AARP Virginia- AARP Virginia Asking Lawmakers to Help Caregivers
  • AARP volunteers will urge lawmakers to increase funding for the Department for Aging and Rehabilitative Services’ Lifespan Respite Care Voucher Program.
  • There are approximately 1.3 million family caregivers in Virginia
  • Volunteers also will urge lawmakers to take advantage of enhanced federal funding to provide Medicaid coverage for up to 400,000 additional individuals, including 62,000 people age 50 to 64
  • AARP Virginia State Advocacy Director David DeBiasi sats that “It is vital to helping caregivers maintain their health and makes it easier for families to care for their loved ones in their own homes, as opposed to expensive long-term care facilities”

The Family Caregiver Platform Project! 

Get family caregiving into your state party platform

The Time is Now that the Family Caregiver needs to be recognized. This is a nonpartisan project, reaching out to all political parties. We are at a moment where the American people must lead a cultural shift to demand better care for our most vulnerable citizens, our families. And caregivers issues need to be heard at the local, state, and national level. From grassroots efforts to educate and motivate policymakers we must help to improve state and federal support for family caregivers and the frail elderly Americans for whom we selflessly provide support.

Conversations are taking place at the state level through the FCPP by the Caregiver Corps.The goal is to tell policymakers about the importance of supporting family caregivers, both from a humanitarian and a fiscal perspective. We are encouraging family caregiver support to be included in all state party policy platforms. A new website, CaregiverCorps.org, is organizing these efforts.

What Can WE Do? 

Visit CaregiverCorps.org to learn how to encourage public policy in your community. This is such a vital movement especially for us who are the invisible caregivers WE can and need to be heard. Lets all join together and create Volunteer “Caregiver Corps” in our communities, and lets not miss out on using the power of a hashtag on social sites online. Maybe I belong to the #CaregiverCorps!
State party platform are working round the clock right now and committees are convening and discussing what language will be included in their party statements about key issues. Aging in America with Dignity should be on everyones agenda. Just remember we all get old, so your party doesn't matter, but what does is that we are heard.

This quote I read from Kevin Prindiville really sums it up for me perfectly. Kevin is  the Executive Director Justice in Aging, and if you are a caregiver like me you will want to bookmark this website.

“When older people are able to receive the long-term services and supports they need to age at home and in their communities, they not only have better health outcomes, but richer lives. By ensuring older adults remain an integral part of our families and communities, our lives are richer. Family caregivers need both financial and practical support in order to provide the care the older adults in their lives need to age in dignity. This is an issue that touches us all and highlights our interdependence. If we all work together, we can find and enact policy solutions at both the state and federal level.”