Caregivers Numbers Increase. Where Do They Go For Help?

by Central Texas Caregivers
Aug 2, 2013

A staggering amount of caregivers are now taking care of family and loved ones. According to US World News Report, “19 million Americans are caring for someone over age 75, typically a parent or a grandparent”. This equates to nearly four out of ten adults in the US are taking care of an aging parent or disabled child to “provide 75 to 80 percent of all long-term care”. With the baby boom population now in retirement age, this is no shock.

In years past, the trend was to contact a retirement home or assisted living home for the needs of an aging parent. The trends have shifted to more and more adult children caring for their parents in their homes, primarily for economic reasons – it’s more cost effective to share one household than to pay for two. “Fifty-one percent (51%) of adult children expressed willingness to have their aging parent move in with them”, according to a Gallup & Robinson poll. Further, between the years of 2000 and 2007, the number of parents living with adult children rose from 2.2 million to 3.6 million – an increase of sixty-four percent! – National Association of Professional Geriatric Care Managers.

 

The question remains, where do these new caregivers go for help?

 

 

Adult child caregivers usually have decreased earnings because of job loss or missed hours, therefore, they are always looking for money-saving tips. Caregivers have learned that when you tackle the responsibility of taking care of loved ones, it also involves taking care of finances, medical needs, and physical and emotional wellness. Most people know the value of the Internet with its vast knowledge. According to a study, which surveyed more than 3,000 U.S. adults nationwide, "over 70 percent of caregivers used the Internet as a diagnostic and advice tool to find health information. Eight in 10 caregivers have access to the internet, and of those, 88 percent look online for health information such as treatments, hospital ratings, and end-of-life decisions". They are training themselves using a self-help mentality by doing research on the Internet, through forums, blogs, white papers, research papers and magazines.

 

To help fund long-term care, check out the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance

Medicade.gov offers 1915(c) Home & Community-Based Waivers to help with home care for medical and non-medical services

National Institute on Aging will give you insight into current research on the elderly

AARP has a wealth of information on caregiving

Senior health starts at home

 

When Central Texas Caregivers gives you a treatment plan, we take all the knowledge we've learned within the past 30+ years and apply it to your specific circumstance. The above is only a sampling of our research.

 

Every client is different, with different needs. We help take all the stress out of researching all over the web for care for your loved one. We always value everyone's input and will work with the entire family. We are here when you need us, even to get free advise.