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This week, Rayna Neises, your host, talks with Deborah Bakti.  From her experience on both sides of senior care, working in the industry, and being a caregiver for three of her family members, Deborah is on a mission to shift senior care from transactional to a more relational experience.  She is the founder and president of the consulting firm THINK Breakthrough where she helps long-term care facilities with this change in approach. In addition, Deborah is a speaker and the author of two books with the latest titled, “Now What? Managing the Emotional Journey of Long Term Care for Families”. She shares the following insights on turning the caregiving journey into one that is meaningful and manageable for everyone:

• • Moving a loved one to a long-term care facility is a significant life-changing moment, so it needs to be relational and not just transactional.
  • ‘Admission Anxiety’ is felt on both sides. For the family, this relates to all the questions and uncertainty, but also the grief and guilt.  For the care team at the facility, this relates to not knowing what the family is like and how they will be to work with.
  • Learn the misconceptions regarding long-term care.
  • Understand that grieving happens even when your loved one is still alive.
  • Work to develop a ‘partners in care’ relationship with the facility.
  • When making the difficult decision to move a loved one, grief and guilt go hand in hand.
  • Research, learn and study while not in crisis. The more prepared you are, the easier it is going to be.
  • To learn more about Deborah’s book to help prepare for the long-term care decision and that process of the caregiving journey, visit her website at www.deborahbakti.com.