Category filter: Caregiver Resources

Each year around this time, I write about Family Caregiver Week in B.C. – May 5-11. It’s something I feel strongly about – acknowledging and recognizing the fact that in our province alone we have over one million incredibly giving and devoted unpaid caregivers who provide care and support for loved ones. The Canadian statistics… Read more…

Guest writers,  Dr. Rick Houlgrave, Chiropractor and registered massage therapist, Sean Murphy, provide easy-to-use strategies and tips to manage the stresses of caregiving, both physically and emotionally. Being a successful caregiver doesn’t just require conscientious care for the one you are looking after, but also requires looking after your own health. Caregiving often involves physically… Read more…

I’m getting the Back to School Jitters. My little girl begins full day kindergarten next week and a week later, I go back to school for the first time in 10 years. I’m enrolled in a Case Management program through McMaster University. Despite the 35-year age gap, daughter and Mom are experiencing similar emotions. We’re… Read more…

  Being a caregiver and taking a vacation don’t always go hand in hand. In fact, it isn’t particularly easy for caregivers to book time off. When talking to our clients about taking a break or using respite, we are usually met with some resistance or legitimate concerns: “Who will look after my Dad overnight?”… Read more…

It’s 5:30 p.m. on a Monday and a colleague interrupts me from a board meeting to take an important phone call. It’s my brother from Toronto. The conversation is choppy. It’s Dad. He’s had a massive stroke. Don’t fly home. He was a candidate for surgery and is recovering in hospital. He should be fine.… Read more…

One of the biggest social phenomenon to hit our nation moves front and centre during Family Caregiver Week in British Columbia from May 7 to 13. Unpaid family caregivers are “unsung heroes” in B.C. communities and make up over 25 per cent of our population. Family Caregiver Week is an opportunity to increase public awareness… Read more…

“Are you part of the solution or just ALL of the problem?” My mother’s spin on an African proverb packed the same punch around our household and quickly shut down any whining and complaining. It’s easy to spot the problems. Solutions, on the other, require us to work (usually harder than we want to!). Busy… Read more…

Before I became a geriatric case manager and gerontologist, I can honestly say I didn’t understand the value of good personal organization and record keeping. I remember waiting impatiently as my Nana would meticulously keep her financial records in perfect balance. Looking over her bifocals she would sternly advise me to always have all my… Read more…

  Unpaid caregivers, which are typically family but also include friends and neighbours remain an invisible pillar in B.C. health care system and yet make up over 25 per cent of our population. Canadian statistics on caregiving paint a very clear picture — “It’s not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when you… Read more…

There are days where being in denial is better than coming face to face with reality. Like when your child is so misbehaved in the grocery store, you actually believe this small evil person is not your next of kin and you start looking for the mother with the rest of the passersby. Or when… Read more…