Elder and adult mediation offers families the opportunity to have the difficult conversations about elderly care with support from an independent and experienced mediator; their ultimate goal is to make the conversation easier and equip them to make decisions with which they are all comfortable. In episode two, Corporate Caregiver Camp podcast host, Tanya Krim, interviews Crystal Thorpe, an expert in elder mediation and the lead principal of company Elder Decisions and its parent company Agreement Resources, LLC. 

Crystal has 18 years of experience in elder mediation and states that the value and purpose of a mediator is to focus on the present and the future in order to help resolve family conflict and disagreements. She has co-authored the book, Mom Always Liked You Best: A Guide to Resolving Family Feuds, Inheritance Battles & Eldercare Crises (2011), 

a practical guide for resolving family feuds, inheritance battles and eldercare crises.

In this episode, you will hear:

• The definition and goal of elder mediation
• Why people opt to engage in elder mediation and identification of its key benefits 
• The diverse nature of the caregiving issues which siblings confront vis-à-vis aging parents which can lead them to consider mediation
• Why investing in elder mediation plays a valuable and effective role in the management of sibling relationships when caregiving for aging parents 
• How the Covid-19 pandemic has added additional stresses to families 
• The role of the elder family member in the conversation, and why it is important to include them in the decision-making process
• The availability of Zoom in elder mediation as a method to enable geographically dispersed siblings to engage in mediation 
• How companies can support employees by offering an elder mediation option

Crystal Thorpe Bio:

Crystal Thorpe is a mediator, trainer, co-founder and the principal of Elder Decisions® and its parent company Agreement Resources, LLC. She facilitates family meetings for families to have successful conversations, and she mediates disputes among adult family members about caregiving, living arrangements, family communication, Powers of Attorney, Health Care Proxies, estate planning, family real estate, and personal property distribution.

Crystal has trained hundreds of mediators from around the world in the growing field of Elder & Adult Family Mediation, and provides trainings in Conflict Resolution Skills for public audiences, eldercare professionals, work groups and others. She has presented seminars and workshops for the Academy of Professional Family Mediators, the Association for Conflict Resolution, Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education, the New York State Bar Association Elder Law and Special Needs Section, the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School, and the Northeast Human Resources Association.

Crystal is an author and contributor to publications such as The Washington Post and New York Times.  She holds an MSW and an MBA from Boston College and an undergraduate degree in Cognitive Science/Psycholinguistics, magna cum...

Welcome to the Second Season of the Caregiver Camp podcast! In the first Episode of the season, Caregiver Camp host Debbie Howard interviews brilliant gerontologist, Keren Etkin who is the founder of The Gerontechnologist, a media platform that covers the agetech ecosystem and provides online courses through AgeTech Academy. Keren is one of the most sought-after experts in agetech and has recently released her first book, The AgeTech Revolution - a book about the intersection of technology and ageing. 

Keren is a passionate pioneer for agetech and sees the future as brighter when technology solutions have the benefit not only to reduce the stress on adult caregivers but also to change the future of aged care. The time is ripe for innovation and opportunity, and the technology acceleration the world has experienced due to the global pandemic has presented a pivotal moment in time to shift what aged care currently looks like and make it new, improved, and better. 

In this Episode you will hear:

• The future of agetech, going beyond Zoom and stepping into the metaverse 
• Common misconceptions about older adults and what they want
• The necessity of having older adults connected online in a time when everything from your banking, to your groceries to your social relationships is online
• How employers can support their staff who are caregivers of older adults, with knowledge and resources to help ease the stress
• The value that older adults can bring to agetech development - they know what they want and can be part of the agetech development system
• How Amazon’s Alexa is pioneering joint caregiving with options to leave reminders for family members and even detect falls and provide emergency call services
• The future of caregiving and giving more attention to what U.S President Biden has called a critical crisis that policymakers and society need to address

About Keren:

Keren Etkin has been named one of the most influential people in aging and is a sought-after public speaker and advisor for agetech startups, investors in the longevity economy, care providers, and organizations who work on innovation in aging.

Currently, in addition to running The Gerontechnologist, Keren is the founder/director of AgeLabIL - an interdisciplinary R&D center which focuses on agetech at Shenkar college.

Previously, Keren was the first employee at Intuition Robotics, the startup behind ElliQ, the world’s first social robot designed with and for older adults, and co-founder & VP of Product at Sensi.Ai, a startup that developed the first and only AI solution for remote care monitoring.

She holds an M.A. in Gerontology B.Sc. in Life Sciences.

Connect with Keren Etkin:

Website: TheGerontechnologist.com

LinkedIn

YouTube

Twitter

Spotify

Links mentioned...

In Episode Ten of the Caregiver Camp Podcast, host Debbie Howard speaks with a very passionate guest who has a long history of working with aged care residents, starting his journey as a caregiver first visiting his elderly neighbors as a young child and listening to their stories. These days, our guest, Benjamin Surmi is the Director of Education and Culture at Koelsch Communities, who provide senior care for over 2000 residents in 41 care communities across the western United States.  

In the past two years, the pandemic has accelerated technology in all facets of our lives and age care residents have not been immune to the rapid pace. Benjamin shares what age technology Koelsch Communities have trialled with their residents and their learnings, including that the best tech innovations are the ones that make our physical and in-person relationships better, rather than replace them.   

In this episode you will hear:

• How Benjamin began his caregiver career in aged care at the tender age of seven and why it has become a lifelong passion
• How age technology under-delivered before the pandemic and how it is now enhancing senior living 
• What a window visit is and how digital technology is helping residents to stay connected to their families in new ways
• Technology innovations that have been tried and failed with aged care residents 
• Predictions for technology that will stick around post-pandemic 
• How age technology can support and enhance life for a resident with memory loss
• How virtual reality can become a shared experience for age care residents and their families 
• The value and importance of Spotify music playlists for residents 
• Finding a balance between humanity and technology in caregiving
• How companies can support employee caregivers with employee assistance programs and partnerships with senior care homes

About Benjamin:

Benjamin Surmi works with 2000 residents in about 41 care communities across the western United States in his role as Director of Education and Culture at Koelsch Communities. He holds a Master's degree in Gerontology from California State University at Fullerton. Benjamin is a passionate innovator in the area of memory care, in addition to designing the content and delivery of the orientation program for over 2000 employees. He also delivers educational and inspirational presentations to aging residents, their family members, and professionals, with a focus on improving how we support people living with dementia so they can thrive. Benjamin also manages partnerships with universities for cutting edge research, applying academic knowledge to everyday use situations

 About Koelsch Communities

Family-owned and operated for 60 years, Koelsch Communities is committed to caring for senior citizens. Since 1958, they bring a legacy of excellence in Independent, Assisted Living, and Memory care throughout eight states across the United States. Aaron Koelsch, the President, was nurtured as a child in the skilled living environment, and with the same passion for excellence as his parents, has been a leader in the company for over 25 years.

Connect with Benjamin:

Website: https://koelschseniorcommunities.com/ 

Facebook:  @KoelschCom

IG: https://www.instagram.com/koelschcommunities/?hl=en

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/benjaminsurmi/ 

Links to items mentioned in this episode: 

Koelsch Innovation Labs

YouTube:

Authentic inclusion - what does this mean for organizations and individuals? On Episode Nine of the Caregiver Camp Podcast, Debbie Howard chats with Frances West of FrancesWestCo, a global advisory company working with public, private, and non-profit organizations including start-ups, to operationalize inclusion as a core business imperative to drive disruptive innovation.

With digital technology accelerating at a faster pace due to the pandemic, it is even more imperative that organizations think about digital inclusion in all aspects for employees to be able to feel authentically included. Frances explains the importance of approaching digital inclusion with “human first” thinking, and designing for the human experience first and foremost as the key to being authentically inclusive. 

In this episode you will hear:

• How authentic inclusion needs to be approached holistically
• Designing digital technology for workplaces for the human experience 
• Challenges of digital inclusion in the workplace and how they can be overcome 
• How we can all be more digitally inclusive 
• Designing products to be inclusive for hearing and visually impaired
• Digital inclusion for elders and digital tech adoption
• How organizations need to be thinking of their employees to include their caregiving responsibilities (as part of being inclusive)

About Frances:

Frances West is a former IBM executive and was the organization’s first Chief Accessibility Officer where she was recognized for establishing IT accessibility standards, shaping government policies, and developing human-centric enterprise technology and solutions.  She founded FrancesWestCo, a global advisory firm in 2016, providing strategy and advice for C-suite, government, startups and venture capitalists on digital inclusion and innovations. She is the author of Authentic Inclusion™ Drives Disruptive Innovation, a timely and actionable book featured at CES and SXSW.

Sought by Fortune 500 companies, government organizations, non-profits and start-ups, Frances West delivers virtual or on-site keynotes that influence, inspire, and impact audiences to prepare organizations for future growth. Whether keynote, townhall, or fireside chat, Frances’s presentations influence leaders, impact business and inspire transformation, and are customized for live and virtual events.

Connect with Frances:

Website: https://franceswest.co/ 

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/frances.west.104 

IG: https://www.instagram.com/franceswest34/ 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/frances-west-0b81924/ 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/fwest34 

Links to items mentioned in this episode: 

International Labor Organization and Global Business and Disability Network

Leave no one offline: A primer on engaging your company on digital accessibility 

Ask the C-Suite: Episode 2 (July 8, 2021)

A Chief Accessibility Officer’s Keys to Success

TEDxMountainViewCollege

If they are lucky enough, everyone ages. In Episode Eight of the Caregiver Camp Podcast, host Jon Brody speaks with Linda Mac Dougall, a holistic health practitioner, massage therapist, disability consultant and author of the importance of The SPIRIT Method of Massage for Seniors. 

Massages are often seen as a luxury but as Linda explains, massage therapy can have a multitude of health benefits especially for seniors and those with a disability. From preventing blood clots to increasing mobility and being utilized for pain management, massage as a practice can be instrumental to improving life quality. Linda is on a mission to share her insights and experience. Linda shares her top items a caregiver should be looking out for when caring for a senior and or a client with a disability. 

In this episode you will hear:

• The importance of ergonomics when it comes to choosing furniture and disability equipment 
• Why caregivers need to take a holistic approach to caring when it comes to seniors which includes: 
• What are the everyday check-in items caregivers should be looking out for
• Nutrition and why organic fruit and vegetables are better for you
• The importance of good posture for your internal organs
• Learning to avoid “Blind Eye Care”
• The benefits of massage therapy for caregivers as well as care receivers 
• The difference in skin texture as we age and how massage can be tailored for different conditions
• Why foot care is important for overall health when you have a disability and how some simple treatments can improve your health

About Linda

Linda got her M.A. in Counseling Psychology because she was seeking answers to family dysfunction.  She already had a background of working with the developmentally disabled population since high school.  She went on to be an administrator of two group homes for United Cerebral Palsy for over a decade.  Following her ex-husband's career, she then moved to Hawaii and became a Federal advocate for the state of Hawaii's families dealing with their population of developmentally disabled.  Her work there brought change to the system in the way of studies and a medical review board as well as the state guardians beginning to imitate her way of questioning and challenging the way things had always been done.

Today her focus has changed to the older adult population.  She is a senior health advocate and massage therapist, a holistic health practitioner, and a management consultant for caregiving situations.  As a senior herself, Linda is also an advocate for change in the senior living space.  Her background and focus on awareness led to the writing of her book "The SPIRIT Method of Massage for Seniors: Raising the Bar...A Primer for Massage Therapists and Caregivers".

Connect with Linda:

Website: https://www.loveyourlongevity.com/

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/loveyourlongevity/

IG: N/A

LinkedIn: linkedin.com/in/linda-mac-dougall-984820

Twitter: holisticdoc1

Book - The S.P.I.R.I.T. Method of Massage for Seniors https://www.loveyourlongevity.com/the-spirit-method-of 

Connect with Host:

Jon Brody: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jon-brody-1281106/ 

Website:

Everyone is affected by employment law, either as an employee or as an employer. In Episode Seven of Caregiver Camp Podcast, Jamie Dokovna, an employment law specialist, discusses employment law issues in the current reality of the Covid-19 pandemic. For many of us, it has reinforced that people do not have the same situations, and that lives can be very complicated. Whether you are an employee or employer, there are many gems for you in this episode about how we can create workplaces that better support the over 53 million working caregivers in the U.S, including the nearly 42 million who are responsible for their elderly family members.  

In this episode you will hear:

• How Jamie came to be working in employment law
• The evolution of employment law throughout the pandemic
• Why negotiating or renegotiating a tailor-made agreement rather than a generic, standard ‘at will’ contract rather than resigning may be the answer to better work situations for both employers and employees who have to integrate their work-life-caregiving situation
• Several examples of a tailor-made agreements for working caregivers and corporations
• How training can improve understanding between managers and working caregivers
• The importance of working caregivers to learn to advocate for themselves

About Jamie: 

Jamie Dokovna focuses her practice on business litigation, with an emphasis on employment law and commercial matters as well as condominium and homeowner association law. Jamie has extensive experience representing employers in various aspects of employment law and litigation, including litigating claims for wrongful termination, harassment, discrimination, retaliation, claims brought under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the Family Medical Leave Act (FMLA), the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA), claims brought under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) for overtime and other wage violations, and claims based on housing discrimination. 

In addition to Ms. Dokovna’s litigation experience, she counsels clients on a wide range of employment and compliance issues. She also advises clients on day-to-day issues, including ADA compliance, litigation prevention measures, wage compliance, severance agreements, company-wide policy creation and implementation, employee investigations, discipline and termination, hiring, background checks, unemployment compensation issues, worker’s compensation issues, workforce reductions, and employment contracts. 

Connect with Jamie:

Website: https://beckerlawyers.com/ 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jamie-dokovna-4aba195/ 

Connect with Tanya:

Tanya Krim: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tanyakrim/

Website: https://caregivercamps.com/

We are very privileged to have a story love and Master Storyteller, Richard Stone, as our guest to discuss the importance of storytelling in general as well as for working caregivers and their corporations. It is even more important than ever as the “Great Resignation” looms, that organizations take this opportunity to be proactive about the needs of their team members who have caregiving responsibilities at home and may be struggling to transition back to working – in-person, remotely or in a hybrid format. Crafting the corporation’s Master Story can also be very inspiring for all employees.

In this episode you will hear:

• Why humans tell stories 
• How we can incorporate storytelling into our lives in an informal way 
• Why it’s so important to make this a priority in today’s world 
• The benefits of storytelling for overall health and for working caregivers
• The importance of choosing a storyline that is empowering
• Why organizations need a master story that is not about the bottom line

About Richard:

Richard Stone is a nationally recognized speaker on the power of story and its applications in business, healthcare, and education. He got his start almost 30 years ago developing story-based training programs for team building and leadership development and has been a leader in work on narrative reminiscence. He has worked with diverse organizations such as Walt Disney Imagineering, Walter Reed Army Medical Center, Hewlett Packard, Eastman Chemical Company, Kraft Foods, and Novant Health. His current work at StoryWork International is focused on using the power of story to assist leaders to transform their organizations and their approach to leading, infusing their work with deeper purpose and meaning.  

Richard has authored The Healing Art of Storytelling, Stories: The Family Legacy, The Kingdom of Nowt, and co-wrote The Patient Survival Handbook. His new book, co-authored with Scott Livengood, entitled Story Intelligence was released March, 2021. Previously he was the Chief Innovation Officer for Synensys, and prior to that the StoryAnalytics Master for the IDEAS Innovation Team (a former division of the Walt Disney Company) where he was on the team that created StoryCare, an innovative program for driving behavioral change among healthcare staff to improve patient safety and satisfaction. Finally, Richard is a member of the board of PCI Media, an international organization located in New York City committed to improving health, environmental, and social justice outcomes around the world using the power of story. 

Connect with Richard:

Website: 

http://storywork.com/ 

https://storyintelligence.com/ 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/richard-stone-1121566/ 

Connect with Tanya:

Tanya Krim: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tanyakrim/

Website: https://caregivercamps.com/

We are seeing a mass exodus of women from the workforce despite the advances that have been made in pay equality, and the way that we work. This exodus is largely due to the “duty of care” that disproportionately falls upon women of all ages. In Episode Five of Caregiver Camp Podcast, we speak with Stela Lupushor and probe the situation as to the challenges organizations face as they grapple to reengineer their workplaces amidst the prolonged pandemic. 

In this episode you will hear:

• The importance of viewing employees holistically and in terms of life stage needs, as well as how they experience their workplace 
• Why it’s a fascinating time in history for observing changes in the workplace
• How supporting working caregivers connects to improved employee well-being
• Why demographics show that long-term unemployment affects women from 55 - 65 years old more than most
• Solutions for women experiencing long-term unemployment

About Stela:

Stela Lupushor is a thought leader, speaker, educator and futurist on a mission to humanize the workplace. She works with the Conference Board’s Fortune 500 corporations-members on building global workforce strategies; founded Reframe.Work Inc. to consult leaders on workplace experience through the use of human centered design, technology, people analytics and future-thinking; founded amazing.community, a non-profit focused on extending the work horizon for women; teaching the next generation of HR leaders at NYU. Previously, Stela transformed the workplace at the intersection of technology, analytics and HR at Fidelity Investments, TIAA, IBM, Price Waterhouse and PwC Consulting and its clients.

Connect with Stela:

Website: https://amazingcommunity.voice-global.org/

Website: www.reframe.work 

Twitter: https://mobile.twitter.com/slupusho

LinkedIn: http://linkedin.com/in/slupushor

If you’d like to participate in Reframe.Work’s annual survey on “Workplace Experience,” please click on the survey link below before September 30, 2021: 

https://www.workplacexperience.com/

Connect with Debbie:

Debbie Howard: https://www.linkedin.com/in/debbiehoward/

Website: https://caregivercamps.com/ 

Have you noticed a usually productive employee starting to slip in the quality of their work? Perhaps they are not as punctual as they were or their appearance may seem a bit disheveled. Chances are your employee is struggling with the burden of caregiving at home as well as holding down their job. This has serious implications for organizations through lost productivity and employee attrition. Our guest Laura van Riper speaks about how we can notice these signs and some of the ways to open up lines of communication with employees to find out what’s happening at home that might be impacting their work performance.  

In this episode you will hear:

• The stresses of being a caregiver that can impact an employee’s performance at work
• Some of the signs for employers to look for in employees who may be struggling with caregiving at home
• Why it’s key for managers to understand the corporate culture around supporting caregivers
• When someone should seek help from a professional therapist
• The costs to organizations that lose workers who have caregiving responsibilities
• Strategies that can be put in place now to alleviate stress and anxiety

About Laura:

Laura works as a talk and somatic therapist in private practice in Westport, CT. 

Laura uses an integrative approach in her work, combining insight-oriented psychotherapy with mind-body strategies to help clients find more ease in their lives.  Her practice focus is on supporting survivors of interpersonal violence, women’s health and the treatment of anxiety and depression.  Because the roots of psychological symptoms are often due to trauma, Laura has extensive training in trauma treatment for children and adults, including Somatic Experiencing®, a treatment for resolving trauma symptoms and relieving chronic stress.  The SE approach can help transform PTSD and the wounds of emotional and early developmental attachment trauma.

Laura also studied with the Center for Mind-Body Medicine, where she learned the science and skills of meditation, guided imagery, biofeedback, and self-expression in words, drawings, and movement. She is "fluent" in CBT, DBT, 12 step work and play therapy and incorporates these techniques into her work.

Laura earned her Masters Degree from Columbia University in Clinical Social Work, and received her B.A. in Psychology from Boston College. Her post-graduate clinical training was completed at a busy outpatient center where she gained experience working with a wide variety of client and family challenges.

In her first professional life, Laura managed, recruited, counseled, coached and trained executives in a variety of Corporate Human Resources positions, including serving as VP of Human Resources for Bread and Circus in Boston. Later, as the founding director of Parent Awareness of the YWCA of Darien-Norwalk, Laura designed their risk prevention program and worked with school administrators, parents and volunteers to help families raise resilient children.

A member of the National Association of Social Workers, and a volunteer with the Connecticut Institute for Refugees and Immigrants, Laura is a proud activist for multiple social justice causes. 

Connect with Laura:

Website: https://www.lauravanripertherapy.com/ 

LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/laura-van-riper-lcsw-sep-7a463016/ 

Links mentioned in this episode:

Alcoholic Anonymous: https://www.aa.org/pages/en_US 

Al-Anon:

When Dor Skuler’s grandfather needed in-home care, aside from the nursing skills of the live-in caregiver, success hinged on one thing: the ability of the care provider to have empathy and to build a relationship with his grandfather. This experience helped Dor to notice and start to tackle a mammoth problem that could change the lives of older adults struggling with isolation and loneliness: Is it possible to provide a compassionate and empathic companion through AI?

In this episode you will hear:

• What ElliQ is and how Dor’s experience with his grandfather became a catalyst for creating it
• Why ElliQ is so different from other common AI such as Alexa and Google Home
• How Dor and his team are building empathy into ElliQ 
• What a day with ElliQ looks like for a senior struggling with loneliness
• How ElliQ can be a valuable part of the healthcare system
• How your organization can be part of this project

About Dor:

Dor Skuler is the CEO and co-founder of Intuition Robotics - building digital companions that create a relationship between humans and machines. He and his team are currently creating ElliQ - the sidekick for happier aging which improves the lives of older adults. A board member and advisory board member for startups, he also holds an MBA, M.Sc in Marketing. 

Connect with Dor:

Website: https://elliq.com/

https://www.intuitionrobotics.com/ 

Twitter: https://twitter.com/dorskuler 

Connect with Jon:

Jon Brody: https://www.linkedin.com/in/jon-brody-1281106/