Things you may want to know are:
- WHO IS A CAREGIVER? In the United States today nearly 1 out of every 4 households has an unpaid family caregiver of someone over the age of 50. You are a caregiver if you:
- provide assistance with activities of daily living such as eating, bathing, toileting or mobility
- assist with transportation, accompany to medical appointments, help with shopping, paying bills, housekeeping and home repairs
- are the loved one of someone in a long term care facility
- are age 55 or older and are a relative of a child you are raising in place of the parents
- Grant definitions for a caregiver are:
- FAMILY CAREGIVER: Any adult family member, or other individual, who is unpaid and providing care to a person age sixty or older. [i.e. spouse, son, daughter, neighbor, friend, parish member]
- GRANDPARENT: Older adult [55 or older] who is related by blood or step relationship to a child under 19. Also must:
- live with the child
- be the primary caregiver of the child in place of the parents
- have physical or legal custody of the child or is raising the child informally
- The Family Caregiver Support Program helps those caregivers with the greatest social and economic need with particular attention to low income individuals and also to those providing care and support to persons, including children, with severe disabilities.
- The North Carolina Division of Aging and Adult Services has identified five service categories:
- Information about services: Call Senior Services to arrange for a social worker to speak to your group about our services.
- Access to services: Phone or stop by our department for information about our agency programs as well as other resources in our community to assist you as a caregiver.
- Caregiver Counseling /Support Groups/Training: Attend support groups, workshops and conferences. Borrow books and CDs that address the interests of caregivers.
- Respite: or caregiver relief: and the most sought after service of family caregivers. Our program contracts with home care agencies to provide sitters to stay with your loved one while you rest, shop or play. This occasional service provides much needed tempory relief to caregivers.
- Supplemental Services: Senior Services is flexible regarding support of the needs of caregivers. We provide limited assistance with:
- leasing of medical or mobility equipment and devices
- purchasing emergency alarm response system
- help with handyman, yard work, or household chores
- incontinence supplies
- purchase and installation of home safety equipment
- home safety modifications
- telephone safety checks
- To request CAREGIVER SUPPORT SERVICES, please call Senior Services Department at 704-216-7700.
Click on the following to go directly to the North Carolina Division of Aging and Adult Services web site for more information.
The North Carolina Family Caregiver Support Program.
Other Informative Websites on Family Caregiving:
ElderCare on Line: http://www.ec-online.net/
Healthy Caregiver Foundation: http://www.healthycaregiver.com/
Full Circle of Care: http-www.fullcirclecare.org-