The need for the elderly to be cared for has given birth to so many programs, one of them is “the family Caregiver Program.” All this while, this program has successfully given care to millions of children and elderly people across the globe. But as beneficial as this might be, it doesn’t come without challenges. According to a report by the National Alliance for Caregiving., out of 65.7 million caregivers in the United States, 3.9 million are focused only on child care, 48.9 million care for the elderly, while 12.9 million care for both child and elderly.
As tedious as some people think family caregiving is, it might interest you to know that some caregivers end up finding comfort and home in their places of duty, hence, spends more years than required. A statistic by Opinion Research Corporation in 2005 stated that 37% of people in the job of caregiving have extended their stay by one to four years, while another 26% have claimed they have exceeded four years.
The Operations of Caregiver Program
The operations of Family caregivers are complex, they operate as an extension of any society’s healthcare system. They even go as far as performing some complicated therapeutic and medical tasks, making sure that the recipients adhere to therapeutic regimens. Most of the time, these people operate as personal advocates or as home-based care coordinators. As the need for healthcare givers continue to rise, even as the cost of healthcare and utilization continues to be on the increase, people who suffer from medical challenges like behavioral or mental issues are reported to depend heavily on this program (the Family Caregiver Program), or must of the times require the service of other informal caregivers.
One of the problems with getting informal caregivers is that they work completely on an informal basis, thus, professionalism is not a thing for them. Most of these informal caregivers are not trained, so they lack the adequate support needed in the health care systems.
Long-Distance Caregiving
Long-distance caregiving has become a common phenomenon in the United States, it may be difficult for some, but to others, it’s worth the trouble. The common challenge among those that engage in long-distance caregivers or employ people who engage in it is that they often feel guilty that they are not doing enough. They usually feel that since they are not closer than they ought to be, they don’t know what is happening to their person, hence worry a lot.
Well, this kind of people according to the Family Caregiver Alliance report comprises 66%, while 21% stay not closer than 26 miles away from their loved one. This set of people also spend more compared to normal caregivers, they spend around $8,728 in expenses more than the ones that live close by whose expenses are measured at $5,885.
Finally, it is important to note that either way you choose to engage in the Family Caregiver Program, you should first understand which is more convenient for you to handle. If you are too busy to do this yourself, it will only be convenient to hire a professional caregiver specially trained for such a task. And try your best to get one or two life tips on mylifecoordinated.com for a better quality of life for you and your family. We will also like to advise that you stay away from informal caregivers unless they family. Goodluck.
