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Caregiver Help
Caregiving
Today,
one in four American families care for an older relative,
friend, or neighbor. An estimated 25 to 40 percent of women
care for both their older relatives and their children. Half
of all caregivers also work outside the home. It is no wonder
then that caregivers often need help. Depending on your work,
living, and family arrangements, there are a number of things
you can do to make caregiving easier.
National
Family Caregiver Support Program - Sponsored
by: Northeast Kansas Area Agency on Aging
This
program is designed to give caregivers support in their efforts
of caring for loved ones.
Target
Group:
- Caregivers to an individual who is 60 years
or older.
- Grandparents
age 60 and over who are primary caregivers for a grandchild
who is less than 18 years old and lives with the grandparent.
Services Available:
- Information
- Education
- Training to assist caregivers in learning skills needed to
care for their loved one.
- Respite care ... You would set up the date and amount of time
ahead of time and someone would come to your home and stay
with your loved one while you are away. (For example: an appointment,
a wedding, or just an afternoon to yourself to run errands
- Adult day care ...This is similar to respite care, except
the care is not done in the person's home. It is usually done
in a nursing facility.
- Supplemental services are those services that cannot be obtained
in other programs. For example: chores, repair, maintenance,
bathroom items, or nutrition counseling.
To
obtain more information call either:
Sherry
Kupp, Caregiver Program Coordinator at 785-486-2805 or
Northeast
Kansas Area Agency on Aging 800-883-2549
Ways to Make
Caregiving Easier:
- Work Options and On-the-Job Training Programs. If
you are a working caregiver, it is important to discuss your
needs with your employer. Telecommuting, flextime, job sharing
or rearranging your schedule can help to minimize stress.
Increasingly, companies are offering resource materials, counseling,
and training programs to help caregivers.
- Involving Older Children. If you have older children
living at home, they may be willing to assist your older family
member. Such responsibility, provided it is not overly burdensome,
can help young people become more empathic, responsible, and
self-confident. It can also give you needed support.
- Asking Other Family Members to Help. You can and
should ask family members to share in caregiving. A family
conference can help sort out everyone's tasks and schedules.
Friends and neighbors may be willing to provide transportation,
respite care, and help with shopping, household chores or
repairs.
Sources of Information
If you need additional information and assistance in caring
for your older relative or friend, you can contact the Area Agency on Aging serving your older relative or friend's
community. They can provide information about in-home and
community services.
Information
also is available about benefit and assistance programs for
older persons with limited incomes. These include:
Determining the
Type of Care You Need
If you decide to hire a home care employee, you need to determine
how much and what type of help your older relative needs.
The following are descriptions of some of the types of home
care personnel:
- Chore workers perform basic household tasks. Chore workers often do heavier
types of cleaning such as washing windows and other heavy
cleaning.
- A homemaker may be supervised by an agency or you, and
they provide meal preparation, household management, personal
care, and medication reminders.
- A home health care worker may provide personal care, help with bathing, transfers,
walking, and exercise; household services that are essential
to health care; and assistance with medications.
General Eligibility
Requirements for Home Care Benefits
Medicare may pay
for home health care services through a certified home health
care agency, if a physician orders these services.
Home health care agencies focus on the medical aspects
of care and provide trained health care personnel. For a patient
to be eligible for services paid for under Medicare, they
must need skilled nursing assistance, or physical, speech,
and/or occupational therapy. Home Health Care workers are
a supplement to this care. If your older family member or
friend needs additional hours of care or requires custodial
care, they may be eligible for services under Medicaid.
Home care agencies, which can be nonprofit or for-profit,
recruit, train, and pay the worker. You pay the agency unless
eligible for Medicare/Medicaid. Social Service agencies, in
addition to home care services, may provide an assessment
of the client's needs by a nurse or social worker, and help
with the coordination of the care plan. If services are being
covered under Medicare, your doctor, care manager, or arrangements
with a home health care agency.
Selecting an
Agency
Ask the following questions to evaluate an agency:
- What type
of employee screening is done?
- Who supervises the employee?
- What type of general and specialized training have the
employees received?
- Who do you call if the employee does not come?
- What are the fees and what do they cover?
- Is there a sliding fee scale?
- What are the minimum and maximum hours of service?
- Are there limitations in terms of tasks performed or
times of the day when services are provided?
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