The Caregiver Community

In this episode of The Caregiver Community, Dr. Amy Lorek of The Center for Healthy Aging at Penn State University and Jill Curtis of the Greater PA Chapter of the Alzheimer's Association discuss how to approach difficult conversations that adult children are faced with having with their aging parents. The two discuss insights and resources on how to make these conversations easier and productive.   

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On this episode of Caregiver Community, our hosts are highlighting the experiences of African American caregivers who represent a range of cultural perspectives.  Our guests for this episode include, Rosalind Pugh Scott, Public Health Specialist at the Center for Outreach in Alzheimer’s, Aging and Community Health at A and T University in Greensboro, NC and Carolyn Thompson, RN, BSN, Faith Community Nurse with Catawba Valley Health System in Hickory North Carolina. Both of these professionals have worked extensively with caregivers, especially family members caring for their loved ones at home. 

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Host Mark Bumgarner (Executive Director of Adult Life Programs) talks with Mary Mitchell (Family Caregiver Support Specialist with the Area Agency on Aging in Hickory, NC) about helping family caregivers identify and access community resources.

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A  loved one's advanced years often trigger hospital visits, either at the emergency department or as an inpatient.  Any level of admission can be stressful for the patient as well as her/his family.  This ACAPcommunity podcast offers insights and information related to a variety of issues that often arise when an aging parent or loved one goes to the hospital.  Topics covered include communicating with the parent/loved one and hospital staff, documents that may be needed, various hospital admissions levels, and planning for the discharge.  Frances S. Hall, ACAPcommunity co-founder and executive director, and Susan H. Saylor, franchise owner of Home Instead Senior Care, talk with Jonell Fields, Transitions of Care Manager at Catawba Valley Medical Center in Hickory, NC, a registered nurse who is pursuing a master's in Care Coordination and who understands, through personal as well as professional experience, the challenging role of the adult-child caring for an aging parent or another family member caring for an aging loved one.

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In this ACAPcommunity podcast, Frances S. Hall, ACAPcommunity Co-founder and Executive Director, and Beth Brandes, Nonprofit/Human Services Organizational Consultant, retired Assistant Director of Catawba County Social Services and daughter of aging parents, talk with Bridget Donnelly, Founder & Owner of Donnelly's Estate Liquidation & Appraisal Services about how caregivers may best help a parent or other loved one prepare to move from the home in which they may have lived for many years. Leaving the corporate world in 2007 to found the estate liquidation and appraisal service, Bridget and her husband wanted to serve the needs of older adults in transition by helping them downsize, cope with the stresses of moving, and shed unwanted possessions. As the daughter of antique dealers, Bridget comes honestly by her passion of helping others deal with their "stuff," in that she tolerated an endless stream of treasures coursing through her home, downsized regularly to accommodate new finds.

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In this ACAPcommunity podcast, Frances S. Hall, co-founder and executive director of ACAPcommunity, and Mark Bumgarner, Executive Director of Adult Life Programs in Hickory, NC , talk with Dr. Philip D. Sloane, MD & MPH, the Elizabeth and Oscar Goodwin Distinguished Professor of Family Medicine at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, about common medical issues, Alzheimer's disease and other forms of cognitive disorders. The focus of this podcast is how caregivers may best help a loved one who has dementia when a health issue arises. Sometimes, it's hard to determine what the problem is and whether the issue is serious enough to need medical intervention or support. That can become a key issue. Dr. Sloane is a geriatrician with over 35 years of experience managing and researching issues related to older persons, with a focus on Alzheimer’s disease and related cognitive disorders and those who assist them with care and services. Among his many awards are the Academic Award from the National Institute on Aging and the Pioneer Award from the national office of the Alzheimer’s Association. He has authored over 300 publications, including 18 books, including, "The Alzheimer's Medical Advisor."

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In this Caregiver Community podcast, Frances S. Hall, Co-founder and Executive Director of ACAPcommunity, and Mark Bumgarner, Executive Director of Adult Life Programs in Hickory, NC, talk with Julie Packer, RN, MSN, Director of Professional Relations, Catawba Regional Hospice about how caregivers may best help loved ones with a variety of issues related to aging, particularly medical issues and decisions.     As an RN with a Master’s Degree in Oncology Nursing and more than 25 years as a nurse, Julie has spent most of her career focused on end of life care---at the bedside, in management positions, in program development, and most recently, in outreach education.  As a Hospice nurse and the daughter of aging parents, Julie understands -- professionally and personally -- the need for effective communication with parents and their healthcare providers.  This podcast provides strategies to help adult-children become strong caregivers, advocates and partners with their parents, healthcare professionals and others, ensuring loved ones receive the most respectful and effective care possible. 

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Medicare provides front-line health cost coverage for most Americans over the age of 65. However, Medicare can sometimes seem complicated and confusing. This podcast will help caregivers gain information about Medicare so they may assist loved ones in making good choices about coverage as well as helping caregivers prepare for their own enrollment in Medicare. ACAP co-founder Frances Hall joins with Tina Miller, Director, Area Agency on Aging in Hickory, NC, and Catherine Fannon, Western Regional Manager, NC Department of Insurance, to help listeners learn more about Medicare and important details related to enrollment, services, benefits, and coverage.

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There are an estimated 10 million Americans caring for one or more aging parents, in-laws and other family members.  These caregivers are beginning to look at technology as a way to keep their loved ones more independent, more safe and more engaged with family and friends.  Technology may hold a lot of promise for us as we age, but what is technology and how can we best use it with our aging family members and ourselves?  In this episode, Jane & Frances talk with Susan Adams, an engineer with a second career in gerontology, about these and other questions.  

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What is financial abuse? How and why does it impact seniors? What should adult-child caregivers know about financial abuse and the elderly? To help answer these questions, Jane Everson and Frances Hall talk with Lauren Benbow. Lauren is an attorney with the North Carolina Secretary of State’s office where she focuses on investor protection and the promotion of the advance health care directive registry. Lauren is a graduate of the university of Delaware and the William & Mary school of Law.

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