We have all heard
old African saying "It takes a whole village to raise a child." It expresses some things that we can all easily accept: family values, shared responsibility, community spirit. But where is that same spirit when it comes to caring for our elderly? Typically, all responsibility falls on one adult child, normally daughter.
The adult daughter cares for children, spouse and an older adult relative while maintaining a career. What about caring for needs of caregiver?
Her needs are often ignored and trivialized by community, physicians, employers, other family and society in general.
Family caregivers faced with a landscape much different from one commonly accepted and assumed by society suffer guilt and exhaustion while attempting to ‘do it all’.
“Families have never done this with such complicated medical treatment and kind of economic pressures this brings today,” says Carol Leving, director of United Hospital Fund’s Families and Health Care project in New York City. “In old days, people got better or they died.”
Caregivers often times have higher health risks than those they care for. Severe depression, anxiety, substance abuse, severe anger and stress-related diseases including cardiovascular disease, cancer and infectious diseases are highly common.
Quality Care Options Community of Resources is village that you and your loved ones can turn to. Services, resources and support for both older adult and family caregiver are available. Quality Care Options strives to assist entire family by making our service a one-call solution, saving you time, money and stress.
These excerpts from letters sent to QCO tell story much better than I can …
“We had less than a day to locate a rehabilitation facility for my father-in-law. We were familiar with nursing homes in Alliance, but not in our Cleveland area, which is where he wanted to be. I came across your yellow page ad, liked name, ‘Quality Care Options’, and then went to your web site. I felt relieved after speaking with Barbara.
