Thread: Any suggestions for helping caregivers?

I've never dealt the dementia, but I have dealt with Alzheimers. (My grandmother had it).

There's only so much the wife can do before she will have to get some type of professional help. (In home care, or put him in a home.). It's never easy to make that kind of decision, but eventually it will have to be done.

My grandfather insisted that he could take care of my grandmother, and refused to listen to anything anyone said about putting her in a home. At first, things were ok, but then she'd just get up and go out when he would go in the bathroom, or go outside to do some work. She'd just walk away. (He hid the car keys). She'd be gone for hours. She'd always come back on her own, but most of the time we'd have no idea where she went.

One day my after my grandfather had cut the grass in the backyard, he went back into the house to check on her. She had walked off again. This time she left after turning on the gas stove!! (The kind where you had to light it with a match!). Thank GOD the house didn't explode or she didn't drop the match! THAT was the final straw. He knew he had to get help.

Talk to your friend about getting help. Don't let it get that far. He should NOT be driving at all. (Especially if the Dr says so). One accident is all it takes for her to be sued and lose everything.....including him.

If her daughter is nearby, she's going to have to help. She can sign up for the "family medical leave act" at work, so she can take time off without losing her job. (I think that's what it's called).

The only thing I can think of that you can do (other than to talk to her about getting help) is maybe send her some groceries or household items, so she doesn't have to worry about running to the store and leaving him alone. Maybe send some takeout food for lunch or dinner, too?

I'm not even sure how in-home care works anymore. If it's possible to have a careworker go in for one day, perhaps you could help pay for that while she does errands and other things away from the house?

Have someone go in and clean her house. (Merry Maids, Angi's List).

I hope everything works out for them. I hate diseases like this.

Originally Posted by kjwent

Her daughter is a school teacher, not sure she could get family leave -- especially since they just went back to school.

I'm pretty sure (98% sure) that if she gets the proper paperwork filled out and signed by his Dr, that she can't be denied for this program.

Coverage

(Q) What types of businesses/employers does the FMLA apply to?
The FMLA applies to all:

• public agencies, including local, State, and Federal employers, and local education agencies (schools); and
• private sector employers who employ 50 or more employees for at least 20 workweeks in the current or preceding calendar year – including joint employers and successors of covered employers.

Have them check out this website.

https://www.dol.gov/agencies/whd/fmla

I found this website: https://portal.ct.gov/AgingandDisabi...ncies-on-Aging

Connecticut State
Department of Aging and Disability Services

And from that site:
Connecticut Statewide Respite Care Program - This program offers information, support, and other services for caregivers of people with Alzheimer’s Disease or related dementias. To apply, contact the Area Agency on Aging in your area by calling 1-800-994-9422 (in CT).

Page that has info on how to apply for services: https://portal.ct.gov/AgingandDisabi...y-for-Services

Also on that page:
National Family Caregiver Support Program - This program is designed to give caregivers a variety of services to lean on so they can have support when caring for their loved ones at home. The program was created for family and other unpaid caregivers supporting older individuals, as well as grandparents, older relatives and parents 55 and over of adult children with disabilities. To apply, contact the Area Agency on Aging in your area by calling 1-800-994-9422.

Hope that helps a little.