|
Caregiver Expo Aims to Help Family Caregivers Provide
Self-Care and Find Providers for their Loved One
With about 60 exhibitors, nationally known speaker and
author, Kathryn M. Kilpatrick, M.A., CCC/SLP, and a
complimentary lunch, the free Caregiver Expo will be an
event where family caregivers are celebrated and
strengthened in their role.
The Caregiver Expo was held on Saturday, November 10, at
Parkway Place, 2592 Parkway Plaza in Maumee. Daughters,
sons, spouses, church members, and others that care for an
aging loved one were welcomed to this event.
While they may not think of themselves as caregivers, those
who help an aging loved one with any of the following
activities are the focus of this event: helping with grocery
shopping, picking up prescriptions, going to doctor
appointments, helping with meals and/or paying bills. The
event connected caregivers with resources to support them in
their caregiving role.
The unpaid care provided by these individuals is how 87
percent of the long-term care in this country is provided,
with paid care by nursing homes, home health agencies, and
others making up the remaining 13 percent.
This selfless work caring for a loved one can be extremely
stressful and can eventually take a toll on the health of
the family caregivers if they don’t make a conscious effort
to take care of themselves. Caregivers often make sure the
individual they care for makes their doctors’ appointments,
eats well and gets enough rest while at the same time
neglecting to do the same for themselves. Some studies show
that about 50 percent of caregivers die before the people
they care for.
The
stress that often takes a toll on caregivers who try to go
it alone in caring
for their aging loved one is usually twofold: time
constraints and financial constraints. At the event, free
resources were available to help address all these different
types of strains.
By utilizing some of the resources available in the
community to supplement the care they provide and getting a
temporary break when they need it, family caregivers can
care better and longer for their loved one.
Sometimes all a caregiver
needs is a temporary break from their caregiving duties so
they do not prematurely have to stop giving the care they
provide. There are a variety of ways a temporary break can
be provided. For more information, contact 419-382-0624 or
www.AreaOfficeOnAging.com.
The Area Office on Aging
of Northwestern Ohio (AOoA) helps older adults live long,
quality, independent lives in its 10 county service area.
The AOoA provides programs and services that help younger
and more active older adults remain healthy, engaged, and
vibrant for as long as possible. Programs and services also
help frail older adults remain as independent as possible as
well as services and programs for everyone in between.
|
