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10217. Lessons Learned from CTLB. Community/Partnership Organizations Volunteers Caregivers. Community/Partnership Lessons. Grassroots effort creates a sense of ownership, commitment to sustainability
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Lessons Learned from CTLB • Community/Partnership • Organizations • Volunteers • Caregivers
Community/Partnership Lessons • Grassroots effort creates a sense of ownership, commitment to sustainability • Success defined in a new way: creation of a stable network to support informal service providers • Decentralized structure made it difficult to implement Legacy Corps, secure match funding
Organizational Level Lessons • Organizational history, culture, structure, capacity, etc., impact program size, shape, potential for success • Education needed so all understand caregiving and value of the program • Important to balance accountability with flexibility to keep organizations engaged
Volunteer Lessons • Volunteer succession difficult, despite requiring two leaders • Health, family, economic difficulties pose challenges but highlight passion and perseverance • Stipends a necessity in low-income area • Creativity needed to engage volunteers in extensive outreach and evaluation
Caregiver Lessons • Even volunteers from the same church needed to be creative and persistent for caregivers to accept their help • Caregivers in this area traditionally ask for “practical” help—respite, transportation, meals, etc. • But CTLB caregivers now describe education and support groups as most valuable
Over the past 37 years, AgeOptions has established a national reputation for meeting the needs, wants and expectations of older adults in suburban Cook County. We are recognized as a leader in developing and helping to deliver innovative community- based resources and options to the evolving, diverse communities we serve. A caregiver and her dad Legacy Corps volunteers 1048 Lake Street, Suite 300 phone (800)699-9043 Fax (708)524-0870 Oak Park, Illinois 60301-1102 (708)383-0258 TTY (708)524-1653 ageoptions.org
10260 CaregiverCentral.orgA program of Share the Care, Inc.Orlando, FL Presentation to the Harry & Jeanette Weinberg Foundation American Society on Aging Conference Washington, D.C. March 28, 2012 Presenters: Susan Dorries, Project Director Annette Kelly, PhD, Research Director Funded by the Harry & Jeannette Weinberg Foundation
In the Beginning… We wanted to know if we could contribute to the lives of caregivers through an online caregiver assessment tool. • Will family caregivers even use an online self-assessment? • Who are the caregivers in our community who are not currently accessing services? • Will an online self-assessment reach a diverse group of caregivers? • Will the menu of services generated by the online self-assessment have value to the community? To service providers?
Our Fundamental Question:Will Family Caregivers use an Online Tool? THE ANSWER? YES! Family Caregivers will use an online assessment tool. • More than 7,500 visits to CaregiverCentral.org to date • 506 caregivers completed online caregiver assessments
Who are the Caregivers using CaregiverCentral.org? Of the 503 caregivers who completed the online assessment… • Average caregiver age = 54.2 • 82.4% female • Caregiver age ranged between 18 to 88 years • 67% White, 14.7% Black, 13.2% Hispanic • 47% are daughters, 19% are spouses • 64.9% of caregivers are married • 35.9% earn under $30K, 31.5% ($30K-60K), and 32% ($60K+) • 70.4% of caregivers provide daily care, and 69.8% of caregivers use no paid help * Majority experience high to very high levels of Burden, Risk and Depression.
Have Caregivers Already Accessed Services? CaregiverCentral.orgreaches caregivers that are outside of the traditional community service network… • 77 %were unfamiliar with existing resources • 81 %were not currently receiving any help These statistics support the hypothesis that caregivers are self-identifying themselves as caregivers earlier in the continuum as a result of accessing CaregiverCentral.org.
Contribution to Caregivers & Community? Caregiver Quality of Life Direct Resource Assistance for Caregivers • In post intervention follow-up, caregivers demonstrated improved overall quality of life as indicated by statistically significant reduction of: • Caregiver stress • Caregiver risk • Caregiver burden CaregiverCentral.orgprovided direct community resource information to individual caregivers on their self-identified: • Top care needs: • Respite Care • Home Care • Top task needs: • Shopping and Meal Provision • Transportation • Most frequent care concerns: • Memory loss • Falling or almost falling • Feeling down or blue
Contributions, cont’d Central Florida Switzerland
CaregiverCentral.org: A Replicable Model for Serving Family Caregivers Future Replication & Sustainability: Currently working with another national foundation to build upon the work the Weinberg Foundation had made possible; Currently developing a beta site in Sarasota, FL A Local Model with Potential for Broad Impact: In the past 45 days alone, CaregiverCentral.org has been visited by users from: 48 Cities in Florida 24 States across the Nation, and; 3 countries outside the U.S.
Caregiver Initiative Gathering 2012 Wednesday, March 28, 2012 LeadingAge, Washington, DC