Jewish Family Services Receives Caregiving Grant from Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan
Abbie Lawrence-Jacobson and Deborah Renner
Jewish Family Services has received a grant from the Community Foundation for Southeast Michigan for a project that will address two facets of the current troublesome economic climate: high unemployment and the increasing burden on caregivers of older adults. The grant will support JFS as a comprehensive resource for caregivers from which they will receive affordable, direct, non-medical care for their aging loved ones (and, thereby, respite from caregiving responsibilities). The direct care for older adults will be provided both as part of a training internship for unemployed individuals who are interested in gaining marketable skills in senior services and for individuals, particularly those facing early retirement, to engage in productive, meaningful activities. In addition to field experience, these trainees will receive job skills acquisition, employment support and education to enhance their ability to work professionally with older adults. This innovative pilot project turns the current problem of extensive unemployment in southeast Michigan into an opportunity to address another critical problem, caregiver burden among those caring for the rapidly growing population of older adults wishing to remain living independently.
The older adult population is growing quickly, and Washtenaw County is no exception. From 2000 to 2006, the population of people over the age of 60 in Washtenaw County grew from 35,478 to 43,868, a growth of 24%. At the same time, the 85+ year old population grew from 3,199 to 3,872, a growth of 21%. Compared to the rest of the state, Washtenaw County gains in the 60 and over population were at a rate double or faster than other counties. This trend will continue, as the Blueprint on Aging in Washtenaw County projects a 50% increase in the 65+ population between 2010 and 2020.
Because of the increased numbers of older adults living longer, the numbers of adult child and spousal caregivers are also growing quickly. It is currently estimated that 16 percent of American adults, or nearly 40 million adult caregivers, provide unpaid care to a recipient over the age of 50. Adult children are involved in many aspects of their parents’ care, which creates a large strain as they simultaneously care for their own children and hold jobs. In fact, it is estimated that adult children provide 70-80% of all services to non-institutionalized aging parents.
Last summer, JFS conducted its own survey of caregivers in the Jewish community. The survey addressed the scope of tasks adult children are currently performing in support of their aging parents, caregiver stress, formal services currently utilized, familiarity with existing services offered to caregivers through JFS, and areas in which services are needed but not available.
Over 76% of the caregivers who responded found caregiving to be at least moderately stressful, and many felt that it was “very stressful” or “extremely stressful.”
Indeed, the impact on caregivers of caregiving is financial, emotional, and physical. There is a strong correlation between caregiving and poor mental and physical health due to the stressors involved in providing care to an aging parent. Among caregivers, burnout is common, leading to a downward spiral of depression and ill health for caregivers (and reduced support for those for whom they care). The current economic crisis has intensified the stressors of caregiving. Many caregivers are reluctant to jeopardize their jobs by taking time off for caregiving, but they simultaneously have fewer hours available for caregiving because of longer workdays or holding multiple jobs to make ends meet.
At the same time that caregiving is becoming increasingly costly and difficult to provide, services for older adults are being cut back. At least 22 states and the District of Columbia are cutting or proposing cuts to home and community services for older adults or are significantly increasing what low-income people must pay for them.
Unfortunately, caregivers who need additional support to modify the effects of the economic crisis and reduce their caregiving burden are now finding themselves unemployed. The auto industry crisis has taken a heavy toll on both blue collar workers and professionals in Southeast Michigan. Local social service agencies have seen requests for financial and employment assistance more than double over the past six months as the local, state and national economic crisis deepens. Over half of all incoming calls to JFS from new clients are for employment services and related needs.
Coincidentally, one area of employment is growing quickly: senior services. The second and third projected fastest growing occupations from 2006 to 2016 are personal and home care aides; and home health aides respectively. In seeking a win-win situation for both caregivers (and their aging loved ones) and the many individuals who find themselves facing early retirement or needing to find work in a new industry, JFS will utilize volunteers to support caregivers’ needs by providing a range of both professional and unskilled services to older adults. In turn, these volunteers will receive training in working with older adults, exposure to the senior service sector, and employment support ranging from educational advocacy to networking assistance to resume building.
The mission of the caregiving grant is two-fold: (1) Support for those caring for older adults through direct care to older adults and support, groups, counseling, educational resources, and problem-solving for caregivers; and (2) Provide opportunities for unemployed individuals to gain job skills in working with older adults, as well as exposure to educational, employment and entrepreneurial opportunities in senior services.
The caregiving grant will support the following JFS services:
Case management: Case management as a method of intervention tackles the many interconnected issues that make accessing and utilizing services difficult for some older clients, particularly those with chronic mental or physical health problems, co-occurring diseases, or interpersonal, social, or economic difficulties. JFS geriatric social workers currently provide case management to more than 190 adults over the age of 65 residing in Washtenaw County.
Patient Partners medical accompaniment: Last year, JFS launched “Patient Partners,” a program in which trained volunteers accompany older adults to medical appointments and procedures to facilitate communication between medical professionals and older adults. The need for volunteers to accompany older adults is particularly important in today’s employment environment in which family caregivers may be reluctant or unable to take time off from work for fear of jeopardizing their job. Patient Partner volunteers ease this increasingly difficult strain on family caregiving and reduce the burden on the caregiver, at the same time ensuring that older adults are able to receive necessary medical care.
Transportation: Providing transportation is one of the many tasks that caregivers perform for their aging loved ones, and in caregivers’ absence, older adults often struggle with the need for easily accessible transportation to necessary appointments, grocery stores, and social engagements. Lack of transportation often contributes to isolation and depression.
Friendly visiting: Friendly visiting provides essential social interaction and companionship to older adults who might otherwise be completely isolated. The need for friendly visitors frequently exceeds JFS’ ability to provide volunteers for this important service. JFS could use many more volunteers to help with this program as isolation is a widespread and serious problem among older adults.
Caregiver support groups, workshops and presentations: JFS offers “Caregiver Conversations,” a monthly drop-in support and education group for adult children caring for aging parents. Each month, guest speakers present on a topic of relevance, followed by open discussion. JFS also offers approximately two large educational workshops and presentations each year to caregivers and older adults, on topics ranging from advocating for a loved one while s/he is hospitalized to planning for end-of-life care and late-life decisions. These workshops are part of the JFS Advocacy Connection program, funded by the Benard A. Maas Foundation.
Counseling, information, and referral: JFS provides short term counseling for caregivers experiencing stress and burnout, as well as information and referrals for caregivers whose parents live outside of Washtenaw County or for those who live locally.
Moving transition assistance: JFS frequently encounter families who are in the process of moving an older parent to Ann Arbor from elsewhere, or from independent living in Ann Arbor to an assisted living facility. The complexities of selecting an appropriate residence, downsizing a lifetime’s worth of belongings, choosing what to keep, donate, or sell, not to mention packing and unpacking prove overwhelming at best and paralyzing at worst.
JFS Director of Older Adult Services Abbie Lawrence-Jacobson and Volunteer Services and Community Outreach Director Deborah Renner are reaching out to community members in a number of ways. First, JFS is seeking individuals with experience and interest in job training, re-training, or employment services to serve on a committee to assist in the development of this project. Secondly, individuals interested in exploring new career options, or interested in volunteering in senior services, should contact either Abbie Lawrence-Jacobson ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) or Deborah Renner ( This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it ) via email or at (734) 769-0209.
