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Posts Tagged ‘caregiving’
Tuesday, October 20th, 2009
Alzheimer’s..What are the signs?
About 500,000 Canadians across the country currently suffer from Alzheimer’s disease, a degenerative neurological condition which gradually robs a person of memory, cognitive function, and eventually of life. Anyone who has ever cared for someone with Alzheimer’s knows how devastating this disease can be, and how important it is to catch the disease early in order to slow its progression as much as possible. Here are eight common signs of Alzheimer’s disease everyone with an aging loved one should know: (more…)
Tags: aging trends, Alzheimers's care, caregiving, Elder Care, long term care
Posted in Alzheimer's Care, Care Giving Strategies, Elder Care | No Comments »
Tuesday, October 6th, 2009
Alzheimer’s Care — Alberta
Alzheimer’s disease is a devastating, degenerative neurological condition which attacks the brain and central nervous system and eventually leads to a crippling dementia. Affecting mood, memory, emotions, and behaviour, Alzheimer’s gradually robs a person of their ability to function normally and support themselves. Alzheimer’s patients must eventually have around-the-clock care in an institutional setting such as a nursing home, or by a caring relative, spouse, or friend. Alzheimer’s has the ability to cause death, but not everyone with Alzheimer’s dies directly as a result of the disease.
The Stages of Alzheimer’s Disease (more…)
Tags: aging trends, Alzheimer's Care Alberta, Alzheimers, Alzheimers's care, caregiving, Elder Care
Posted in Alzheimer's Care, Care Giving Strategies, Elder Care, Long Term Care, Long Term Care Insurance | No Comments »
Tuesday, October 6th, 2009
Caregiver Issues: Elder Care and the Workplace
As Canadians age, more and more work-aged adults are finding themselves juggling their work obligations with family obligations related to caring for elderly relatives and loved ones. Eighty percent of the elder care in Canada is provided by family members, and about 60% of caregivers are women – women who often have children of their own still living at home, and are balancing motherhood with careers and caring for an older parent, parent-in-law, or other elderly relative. How are businesses responding to the new family obligations affecting their workforce? Here’s a look at how the balance between elder care and work is unfolding in Canada.
Canadian Aging Research Network (CARNET) (more…)
Tags: aging trends, Alberta, Caregiver Support Calgary, caregiving, caregiving strategies, Elder Care, long term care, long term care Calgary, planning for long term care
Posted in Alzheimer's Care, Care Costs, Care Giving Strategies, Elder Care, Long Term Care, Long Term Care Insurance | 3 Comments »
Tuesday, October 6th, 2009
Caregiver Support in Toronto
Those who are caring for an elderly relative know the kind of emotional and physical toll it can take. That’s why support groups for caregivers have sprouted up all over the Toronto area.
Support groups in Toronto fall into two basic categories. The first are moderated support groups, which feature various experts who come in to share information with members of the group. The second group are self-moderated groups, which are more traditional support groups that focus on caregivers supporting one another by sharing problems they have and solutions they have found.
Alzheimer Society of Toronto Support Groups
Here’s a list of a few of the support groups for caregivers in Toronto, offered by the Alzheimer Society of Toronto:
Early Onset Alzheimer’s – Family Support Group: Contact Xochil Amaya, Counsellor, at 416-322-6560. Pre-registration is required for this group.
Frontotemporal Dementia Family Support Group: Contact Nora McKellin, Counsellor, at 416-322-6560. Pre-registration is required for this group.
Lewy Body Family Support Group: Contact Desiree Jones, Counsellor, at 416-322-6560.
Vascular Dementia Family Support Group: Contact Caitlin Agla, Counsellor, at 416-322-6560.
Workshops for Caregivers at Family Service Toronto
In addition to support groups, such as those listed above, Family Service Toronto offers ongoing workshops to help caregivers learn how to help their elderly relatives or friends. These workshops are all free, but pre-registration is required. You can register by calling 416-595-9618. Here is a list of their upcoming workshops:
“Long Distance Caregiving”: Monday, October 19, 6pm – 8pm.
“Advocating for Your Relative”: Wednesday, November 18, 12pm – 2pm.
“Finding the Joy in Caregiving”: Thursday, December 3, 12pm – 2pm.
In addition to these workshops, Family Services also offers a Caregiver Discussion Group. The group meets on Monday per month from 6pm – 8pm. Again, the Discussion Group is free, but pre-registration is required.
Caregiver stress can interfere with your ability to offer care to your elderly loved one. Support groups and workshops like those listed above are great ways to reduce that stress, learn new coping strategies, and make connections with others in the same situation as yourself.
Tags: aging trends, Alzheimer's Care Toronto, Alzheimers's care, Caregiver Support Toronto, caregiving, caregiving strategies, Elder Care, elder care Toronto, long term care Toronto
Posted in Care Costs, Care Giving Strategies, Elder Care, Long Term Care | No Comments »
Monday, September 28th, 2009
Because of the baby boom generation, Canada’s median age is about to increase by quite a bit. In fact, by the year 2020, a full 20% of people living in most provinces in Canada will be over the age of 65. While these aging baby boomers will be healthier, more active, and live longer than their parents’ generation, nonetheless they will face the same problems that the elderly have always faced: they will gradually become physically weaker, cognitively weaker, and require long term care from their families or from a long term care facility.
Who are Canada’s Caregivers?
Most long term care for our elders still happens within the family. A recent survey discovered that nearly 2.5 million Canadians older than 45 are primary caregiver for an elderly family member or close friend. Of these caregivers, the majority are women (about 60%), and those most often cared for are parents or parents-in-law.
Caregiving Takes a Toll
Caring for elderly loved ones is not easy. About 53% of Canadians over the age of 65 have a severe to moderate disability. Caring for someone with these sorts of needs, while simultaneously caring for oneself and one’s own family, can lead to a great deal of stress for the caregivers. More than two-thirds of the women who care for an elderly loved one also hold down a job, while nearly 80% of men who are caregivers hold down a job.
Valinda Woods of Oakville, ON, knows what this is like. A teaching assistant in Oakville, Woods has a 90 year old father with Alzheimer’s disease who lives in his own home because he refuses to leave his house of 55 years for a long term care facility. Woods frequently leaves her job for an extended lunch in order to run errands for her father and check on him. While Woods has a very understanding employer, she wonders what would happen if her employing was less sympathetic to her plight, or if she had the sort of job that required her to be in the classroom all day.
Recognizing the Signs of Caregiver Stress
Here are a few of the signs of caregiver stress, as listed by the Alzheimer Society of Canada:
- Withdrawing socially from interacting with friends or participating in hobbies.
- Anxiety and depression.
- Exhaustion coupled with sleeplessness.
- Lack of concentration.
- Weight gain, weight loss, or increased susceptibility to sickness.
If you notice these sorts of symptoms of stress in your own life, reach out to a support group or advocacy group to help you find creative ways to cope.
Tags: aging trends, Alzheimers's care, caregiver cost Oakville Ontario, caregiving, caregiving strategies, Elder Care, long term care, long term care Toronto Ontario
Posted in Alzheimer's Care, Care Costs, Care Giving Strategies, Elder Care, Long Term Care | No Comments »
Monday, September 28th, 2009
Right now, 4 million Canadians are over the age of 65. By 2026, that number will double to 8 million Canadians. The aging population will doubtless take a costly economic toll on individuals, families, and the nation as a whole. Exactly what costs are associated with getting older in Canada, and what should aging baby boomers do to slow that cost?
Plan Ahead
The retirement years are another phase of life, just like entering university or taking that first step into one’s career. And just like entering the job market for the first time required preparation and planning well in advance, our senior years also require good advanced planning. Planning out the costs of your retirement should start five or even ten years in advance.
As a rule of thumb, expect to need about 70% of your pre-retirement income in your retirement years. In New Brunswick, one senior offers the advice to try to live on that 70% of your income now, before you are retired, just to get a feeling for what it will be like to live without that extra 30%.
Going into retirement debt-free is also a very good idea. This may require some creative living in the years before retirement, as those in their forties and fifties may need to downsize in order to achieve the goal of being debt-free by 65.
Canada Pension and Old Age Security
At the age of 65, Canadians can receive a maximum of $844.58 per month from the Canada Pension (CPP). You can access your CPP before the age of 65, but you should be aware that it is taxable.
Old Age Security (OAS) also activates at 65. The standard Old Age pension is $484.63, but low-income pensioners can also apply to receive additional help.
Economic Help for Seniors in British Columbia
Each province also has its own programs to help seniors afford to enjoy a high standard of living even as their yearly income decreases. In British Columbia, these include:
- Shelter Aid for Elderly Renters (SAFER) helps low to moderate income seniors continue to afford their rent.
Sales Tax Credit, which seniors can apply for to save money each year on their taxes.
The CareCard for Seniors entitles seniors to save on prescriptions and other medical expenses.
Anyone who receives Income Assistance in BC, including seniors who receive the Guaranteed Income Supplement (GIS), are eligible to receive a bus pass that costs only $45 for the entire year.
Thanks to programs like this in British Columbia and throughout Canada, seniors can retire with a measure of confidence that they will be able to afford those “golden years”.
Tags: aging trends, care costs British Columbia, care costs New brunswick, caregiving, caregiving strategies, Elder Care, long term care
Posted in Care Costs, Care Giving Strategies, Elder Care, Long Term Care | No Comments »
Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009
Seniors are living longer than ever before in Canada, and as the baby boomers start to hit age 65 in the next few years, the “baby boom” generation will become the “elder boom” generation. Right now, seniors represent about 12.5% of the Canadian population; by 2021, they will represent closer to 20%, or one out of every five Canadians.
Already, health expenditures for seniors are disproportionately large to the senior population. Although seniors are only 12.5% of the population, they account for 42.8% of the total health care expenditures. Alzheimer’s alone costs Canada nearly $4 billion per year, and by 2031 the number of Canadians with dementia is expected to double. Furthermore, while the cost of caring for elders is relatively reasonable for those elders younger than 85, once seniors pass the 85 year mark, the cost of care more than doubles. This is a point of concern, as more and more seniors are living longer. In fact, by the year 2056, the number of seniors above the age of 80 is expected to triple – from one in thirty seniors to one in ten.
If you are a government minister, looking at these cost figures will make you swallow hard.
The Canadian government has not paid particularly much for long term care for its most elderly citizens. Access to government-funded nursing homes is challenging; wait lists can be up to two years long, but the care itself does not have a particularly good reputation. Meanwhile, most private long term care facilities are unaffordable for most families, costing anywhere from $40,000 to $70,000 per year. Public and non-profit nursing homes are certainly more affordable, but recent government spending cuts have made even these long term care facilities unaffordable or close to unaffordable.
It is fair to say that the Canadian health care system is in a state of crisis. It is easy to see that the aging population will put even greater stress on the health care system, and funding long term care for seniors in Canada will grow harder by the year.
What does the future hold for government funding for long term care in Canada? Will the government have no choice but to create a more privatized system of health care delivery – which has proven to be both costly and inefficient in the United States? Or will the government and its people find a creative solution for the ever-increasing cost of caring for seniors? Time will tell. In the meantime, caregivers of seniors in Canada (and soon-to-be-seniors) should live by one golden rule: use preventive methods to keep your elders in as good shape as possible, because by the time they develop chronic diseases, funding for them might no longer be available.
Tags: aging trends, Alzheimers's care, caregiving, Elder Care, long term care
Posted in Care Giving Strategies, Elder Care, Long Term Care | No Comments »
Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009
As we know, the Canadian population is aging quite rapidly. By 2020, one out of every five people in most provinces will be above the age of 65. Compare that figure to today’s, in which close to one out of ten people are seniors. Furthermore, not only will their be more senior citizens in Canada, they will be older than ever before. Because life expectancy is increasing, the proportion of older seniors (80 years and older) will more than triple by 2056 from one in thirty to one in ten.
Who will take care of all these aging baby boomers? In some cases, seniors will move to long term care facilities. In other cases, they will stay in their homes for quite some time, getting help from a home health provider or similar service. But for most Canadians, the tradition of children looking after their aging parents remains the most likely option for these seniors.
Who are Canada’s Caregivers?
Over 2.5 million Canadians who are 45 years or older are the primary caregiver for an elder or senior. About 75% of all caregivers are between the ages of 45 and 64. The remaining 25% of caregivers are seniors themselves – 16% are younger seniors between 65 and 74, while 8% of caregivers are 75 and older. Perhaps unsurprisingly, the majority of these caregivers are women – about 60%. While most Canadians are caring for close family members (see below), a third of caregivers are caring for a friend, an extended family member, or a neighbor.
Who is Cared for in Canada?
Most Canadian caregivers are caring for an aging family member; 70% of all caregivers care for family. Of these family members, 60% of them are elderly parents or parent-in-laws. A minority of caregivers (less than 10%) provide care for their spouse, but some researchers suspect this number may actually be higher, because caregivers tend to under report caring for spouses. In particular, aging wives tend to care for aging husbands but do not report it as caregiving.
Because men tend to die at a younger age than women, the majority of elders receiving long term care from a caregiver are women. In particular, the most common situation for a caregiver in Canada is to care for an elderly mother or mother-in-law.
As Canadians age, long term caregiving will be more and more common. As caregivers pay their own toll of exhaustion and emotional hardship in caring for their elderly loved ones, Canadians should start planning now for how they plan to provide care for their aging relatives and friends.
Tags: aging trends, caregiving, Elder Care, long term care
Posted in Care Giving Strategies, Elder Care | 1 Comment »
Wednesday, September 23rd, 2009
Robbing elders of their personality, their memory, and their independence, Alzheimer’s disease is one of the cruelest diseases of old age. As if the cruelty of the disease itself weren’t enough, caring for a senior citizen suffering from Alzheimer’s is difficult and expensive. In 1994, the net cost of caring for Alzheimer’s patients in Canada was nearly $4 billion. Today, the Alzheimer Society of Canada estimates that this figure has risen to $5.5 billion. As the population ages, this number will only increase.
What about the individual cost of care of seniors with Alzheimer’s in Canada? A study in 2006 in the International Journal of Geriatric Psychiatry found that the average cost to caregivers of elders with Alzheimer’s was almost $1,300 per month. And as Alzheimer’s patients gradually suffered more from the disease, this cost went up by $30 per month for every one point increase in the patient’s MMSE score.
Slowing the Progression of the Disease is Also Cost-Effective
Because the cost of caring for an elder with Alzheimer’s disease increases as his or her mental state deteriorates, slowing the progress of the disease is not just good health policy but also good economic policy.
The drug Rivastigmine (also known as Exelon) is one fairly common pharmaceutical treatment of Alzheimer’s disease. A 1997 study that appeared in the journal Clinical Therapeutics found that Rivastigmine saved $0.45 per day after six months, and as much as $6.44 per day after two years.
Future Factors in the Costs of Alzheimer’s Disease
In 2007, 88 year-old Sydney Salter, who suffered from dementia, wandered away from his retirement home and died in a parking lot from hypothermia. When Alberta judge Ronald Jacobson studied the case, one suggestion he offered was to study the possibility of putting GPS tracking ankle bracelets onto elders suffering from Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia.
Some think the judge’s suggestion is a sound one. Others balk, including Mary Anne Jablonski, who is Alberta’s minister of seniors and community. In an interview with the CBC News, she compared the idea to George Orwell’s book 1984, in which Big Brother was always watching. The Alzheimer Society of Canada fears that ankle bracelets will only further escalate the costs associated with Alzheimer’s.
Studies suggest that a careful look at the cost-effectiveness of different Alzheimer’s treatments have not yet been explored. As the Canadian baby boom generation enters their twilight years, such an exploration is certainly necessary.
Tags: Alzheimers's care, caregiving, Elder Care, long term care
Posted in Long Term Care | No Comments »
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