What Role Can Family Members Play in Long-Distance Caregiving?

Join Shelly Beach as she identifies some tangible ways that long-distance family members can offer support to the main caregivers. Video and transcript

Home Alone: Is Your Loved One OK?

As a caregiver, you may have to decide if it is still possible to leave an elderly person in your care alone for an hour, an afternoon or an entire day. Making this decision can be a complicated and emotionally wrenching experience for you and the senior. For caregivers, it can be heartbreaking to recognize that the strong, self-sufficient adult they have known for years is no longer capable of taking care of themselves. It also means a real loss of freedom and flexibility and may require you to develop creative strategies to accomplish daily errands and tasks. For the senior, it can be equally difficult to acknowledge and accept that physical, emotional or mental changes have reduced their independence. Home Alone

Long Distance Caregiving

Dorothy is a 56-year-old woman living alone in a small house with Bitsy, her German Shepard. She works in a mid-sized office as a paralegal clerk and enjoys going to concerts and art galleries with her friends. Dorothy is an only child, and responsibility for her mother’s care has fallen to her by default. Her father died 10 years ago, and there are no aunts or uncles close by to help. She had just come home from a long day at work, and checked her voice mail messages. Her mother’s neighbor had left a message saying that mother had not picked up her newspaper or her mail for three days. When the neighbor knocked on the door, Dorothy’s mother opened it, appearing confused. The neighbor took Dorothy’s mother home to spend the night at her house. Dorothy’s heart sank, but she quickly called the neighbor and said “Thanks. I’ll make arrangements to come right away.” Long Distance Caregiving

10 Strategies for Long-Distance Caregiving

If your mother lives in Phoenix and you're in New York, how do you help take care of her? Angela Heath, director of the Eldercare Locator Hotline of the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging, has compiled 10 strategies to help you cope. This article is adapted from Heath's book, "Long-Distance Caregiving: A Survival Guide for Far Away Caregivers." Long-Distance Caregiving Strategies