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Program offers family care givers a break By DIANE TURBYFILL, LTN Staff Writer Nov. 28 - They are unofficial unpaid doctors, nurses and psychiatrists. Family care givers take on the task of aiding their loved ones who are elderly and often suffering from debilitating diseases. And one Lincoln organization is offering these people a helping hand. The program “is for the caregiver rather than the patient,” says Shay Sigmon, family caregiver specialist with Lincoln County Senior Services. While Senior Services has been in Lincoln for years, the Family Caregiver Support Program is a new federally-funded program. The program, supported through the Administration of Aging, has received $2,916,628 in North Carolina. Lincoln’s share of the money will be used depending on the needs of the community, says Sigmon. “We’re getting input from lots of different areas,” she says. For the first year of the program, Sigmon is trying to build a foundation by consulting with the N.C. Extension Service, Hospice of Lincoln County, Lincoln Count Department of Social Services and Lincoln County Home Health. But Sigmon is also working directly with the care givers. For instance, she recently helped a woman by purchasing special cloth padding for her elderly mother, who was allergic to plastic. Sigmon plans for the assistance program to offer aid when purchasing special needs items as well as to provide information, counseling, transportation, respite care and emergency services. She also hopes to get a training program started for prospective care givers — people who can be hired when the family member cannot be in the home. Once training is complete, a list can be compiled of trained individuals. “We will be able to tell the families that we’ve trained these people and done criminal background checks,” she says. Carrying the burden of caring for elderly and disabled family members is certainly worthy of assistance, Sigmon says. “It’s a lot of frustration and unanswered questions.” She says that sometimes the best thing she can do for her clients is to listen. Sigmon’s office is located in the Senior Center on the second floor of the Lincoln Campus of Gaston College. She hopes to help people in the area by offering services and spreading the word. There are a lot of services available to the elderly and their care givers, if only the awareness were increased, she says. Care givers eligible for services are any adult family member or individual who is an unpaid caregiver of an individual 60 or older; or a grandparent or relative caregiver over the age of 60 caring for children who are not more than 18. For more information about Senior Services and the Family Caregiver Support Program, call 704-735-8410. ————— On the net: Department of Health and Human Services, www.dhhs.state.nc.us/ Division of Aging, www.dhhs.state.nc.us/aging/
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