Caregiving Takes a Village

Begin the Process of Finding a Caregiver

Jul 2, 2009

Today's smaller and more fragmented families no longer have resources to care for elderly or ailing members without the help of professional caregiving resources.

Only a few generations ago, the womenfolk of a typical extended family would gather in times of crisis to care for their ailing elderly members, mothers giving birth, fathers injured in the fields, factories, shipyards and industries of our nation. It was expected that the mother, aunts, older sisters and female neighbors would be both willing and capable of handling most recuperative care that might be needed. If "it takes a village to raise a child", surely it took a similar effort to provide the care that was needed and taken for granted.

Today, families are fragmented, scattered across long distances, and are much smaller. Mothers work outside the home, grandparents might be on either side of the continent, there might be no older siblings or cousins available. And do most people know their neighbors well enough to ask for such help?

Rosalyn Carter said it best: “There are only four kinds of people in the world – those who have been caregivers, those who are currently caregivers, those who will be caregivers and those who will need caregivers”.

Filling the gaps where these services are neither available or affordable, are the family members most likely to suffer over the prospect from stress and overwork. Often the caregiver in this case is the "sandwich" generation - the wife/mother/daughter in the family, who assumes the largest proportion of the burden of caring for the elderly or infirm who remain at home. Increasingly, spouses and children must also bear some of the caregiving.

A significant portion of the patient population receiving in-home caregiving are spouses (who have returned with injuries from war, have been injured in accidents, or who have acquired a life-threatening or long-term disease or disability). With the spouse as the patient, the burden is doubled because there is also the loss of companionship and support from that partner.

Finding and hiring a professional caregiver can give much needed respite to the family member who has been providing full-time care. In some cases the family member is not able to provide the care at all, whether because of distance or the need to work full-time.

Resources for choosing a local facility or organization that is ethical, of good reputation, with the skills and staff to give the required care, include:

There are local government agencies at the city, county and state level which offer comprehensive resources for help with finances, finding long-term care facilities, lists of agencies and day programs for seniors, and rehabilitation services. Contact the Mayor's Office in your city, or the Office of Elder Affairs in your state, for more specific assistance.

The copyright of the article Caregiving Takes a Village in Seniors' Health/Medicare is owned by Barbara Bell. Permission to republish Caregiving Takes a Village in print or online must be granted by the author in writing.