Ideas to help Family Caregivers


Mom is reading and writing in her journal this morning. She enjoys reading her own writing. The first step is encouraging her to write out the date on the next empty page.

Ideas to help Family Caregivers:

1. A system for automatic membership of Family Caregivers (ie. unfunded, not professional relationship) serving to support a loved one (aka. Care Recipient) so that membership benefits (necessary supports: financial, mental/emotional, physical, educational) flow to the Family Caregiver, they don't have to spend precious time looking for the support they need to do the work;

2. A national online portal for Family Caregivers (think "One Front Door") where they can log in and connect with community, practical supports, mentoring, and socially active educational opportunities;

3. Educational offerings the bring Family Caregivers together into active learning groups, so they can build relationships and build skills, knowledge and experience as a working group;

4. A national endowment fund that can receive donations from bequeathments that are not taxed - the funds flow into the endowment fund to create an account to provide a guaranteed basic income for Family Caregivers depending on their level of commitment to caregiving;

5. A tax-free savings account for funds to be accrued in Advanced Care Plans - so that we can set aside funds for our own caregiving - when our time comes that we need to support a Family Caregiver to take care of us, we can draw down these funds before our Family Caregivers have to tap into the Guaranteed Basic Income flowing from the endowment fund; if there is surplus after we are gone, those funds roll into the endowment fund;

6. Include Family Caregiving in basic high school curriculum. There are young people as young as 15 who are providing caregiving for a loved one. We need to intercept these young caregivers and make sure they have what they need to complete their education and start their careers with the added work of caregiving impacting their necessary developmental needs. We all need to understand and prepare for caregiving;

7. Communicate with the 3 out of 4 Canadians who are not providing Family Caregiving service with information to help them understand how they are benefitting from the unpaid work of Family Caregivers (and the looming crisis of care that is going to affect them in the future). Give them an opportunity to support the work of Family Caregivers by making a tax-free donation to the Family Caregiver Endowment Fund;

8. Plan a national day of Family Caregiver Parade. We may only be able to walk around the block, but wouldn't it be great to make all the amazing Family Caregivers visible to their families, communities, government and healthcare policy makers?

9. Launch a national survey to identify how many health care recipients are in beds in family homes instead of beds in institutions (long term care, assisted living, hospital, etc.). What is the impact of 'Aging in Place', 'Hospital to Home', and 'Early Discharge' policies on Family Caregivers, their homes, and their families? How do we measure the cost and who is going to pay for it?

10. Set up a network of facilities providing Family Caregiver Retreats. These retreats go far beyond attending a spa day. They provide a safe place for Family Caregivers to discharge, recharge and restore their energies. The retreats provide time in nature, spiritual guidance, support group, time for creative expression, nutritious delicious meals, and inspiring entertainments; provide a sponsorship program to subsidize or sponsor Family Caregiver registrations.

Let's get started. Let me know if you have ideas, too.


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