With 44 million people in 23 million households caring for an ill family member, The President's Commission on the Status of Women’s held a program for staff and students to learn ways to care for others and themselves, Wednesday, March 4.
Put together by the Health Committee, the program included ways to detect memory loss, dementia and risk factors for falls.
Amanda Snyder, Academic Services Officer II for the Eugene Applebaum College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences, said she was inspired to organize the program after learning three co-workers in her office take care of an elderly loved one.
“If there are three people just in our office alone, there’s got to be a need on campus,” Snyder said.
Care recipients are not the only ones affected by illness. According to a National Foundation for Celiac Awareness Survey, caregivers feel frustration, anxiety, sadness and 61 percent are depressed.
Some caregivers are students who put their education and social lives on the line.
Director of the Institute of Gerontology (IOG) at Wayne State, Peter Lichtenberg, said it’s tough for students to move forward due to a lot of invested grief.
First year Masters student in Occupational Therapy and Infant Mental Health, Sarah Culpepper has been taking care of her 80-year-old grandmother since October 2008, after a broken hip injury.
“At times I feel grateful I am able to support her, and at others, frustrated because I have little time to focus on my own work,” Culpepper said.
Caregivers need to pay attention to their own health, Lichtenberg said.
“People feel fatigue and strain due to nature of unpredictable and changing things that happen seemingly overnight,” he said.
More support and information, and resting by taking a break for several hours or taking a vacation to relieve stress, can help, he said.
Linda Fuggs, a University Counselor at the Wayne State’s Educational Opportunity Center Department of Access, partially cares for her 82-year-old father.
“It’s hard to see parents who are very independent self-sufficient people, age,” she said.
NFCA reported 36 percent caregivers form closer relationships with care recipients.
“A relationship colors the care-giving dramatically,” Lichtenberg said.
Culpepper grew into a closer relationship with her grandmother.
"While living together and seeing each other every day, we were able to share stories we’d never told anyone before,” Culpepper said.
Pre-Doc Fellow at IOG, Stacey Schepens, said there are affordable options to keep loved ones at home. Patients in nursing homes are more prone to falls due to wandering. Staff in nursing homes may be unaware of risk factors and need education to prevent falls.
Risk factors include muscle weakness, a history of falls, balance and vision problems, and cognitive impairment in people 60 years or more. Patients with neurological diseases, such as Huntington’s, may have balance problems and be at risk for falls.
Falls contribute to injuries, hospitalization, loss of dependence and death. Physical activity is just as important to prevent falls, said Allon Goldberg, Assistant Professor of Physical Therapy and Director of the Mobility Research Lab and a faculty member at IOG. Older adults should exercise daily, even in small amounts, he said.
For example, walking 150-feet to get mail, Goldberg said.
Assistive Technologies, equipment that helps increase, maintain, or improve function in people with disabilities, allow patients to conduct daily activities with adjustments to tools– and can prevent falls.
Out-of-the-pocket AT can include motion detecting lights, handrails, gripped mats, and modified furniture. Goldberg said he hopes their research will someday be used in clinical practices; such as balance assessments for physical and occupational therapists.
Research from his lab is shared through professional journals and conferences.
IOG is a 22-year-old program involved in the process of aging through research, education, outreach and partnerships.
Aging resources can be found on www.iog.wayne.edu.
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