When Altrice Ward’s 82-year-old mother was hospitalized after falling for the third or fourth time, Ward knew she had to face an uncomfortable reality: Her mother could no longer live on her own. So, despite holding down a full-time nursing job, Ward d… Continue reading
Maria Jones doesn’t have to travel far from her assisted living center in the Pinellas County, Fla., area, when her cat, Roxy, needs veterinary care. She just settles the kitty into a quiet room there, where veterinarian Dr. Hillary Hart, joins them, v… Continue reading
(Lourdes Ballesteros uses a pen name to protect the confidentiality of her husband’s health information.) As the oldest daughter in a Cuban family with an extended-family tradition, I was raised with “unofficial” training as a caregiver. In other words… Continue reading
Liz Kozlowski and her staff at Brookdale Senior Living’s Westlake Village, outside of Cleveland, knew that resident Ed Petrigac and his wife Yvonne had started an auto parts business. But it wasn’t until they read his life story that they realized he a… Continue reading
Why would a 20-year-old want to hang out with an 80-something? It’s not as strange as you may think. Maybe the older man reminds a college sophomore of her grandfather. Or, there’s a connection between the elderly woman with dementia and a grad student… Continue reading
(Editor’s note: This story is part of a series for The John A. Hartford Foundation.) If you care for a parent or loved one, you almost certainly interact with doctors, nurses and other staff at hospitals, clinics or assisted living facilities. Dependin… Continue reading
More than 34 million family members and friends in the United States provide care to older adults, according to the National Alliance for Caregiving and AARP. Caregiving covers a wide gamut of responsibility, though. It can range from simply touching b… Continue reading
Caregivers, both professional and personal, often suffer from compassion fatigue — a syndrome also known as “secondary trauma stress.” But navigating any close, personal relationship also can lead to emotional stress and burnout. As a self-described fo… Continue reading
For people with dementia, having nothing to do can contribute to agitation, frustration and a feeling of loss of control and well-being. It is a situation family caregivers often encounter. Laura Gitlin, distinguished professor and dean of the College … Continue reading
As anyone who has lost a loved one knows, grieving is a heartbreaking journey. When you’re a caregiver and the person you’ve been caring for dies, experts on grieving agree the psychological outcome and healing process are somewhat different. That’s es… Continue reading