Family Caregivers Are Getting a Break — and Extra Coaching

Community groups, hospitals, government agencies, and nonprofits throughout the U.S. are bolstering their support for some of the primary caregivers of adults dealing with Alzheimer's and other chronic diseases, reports Kaiser Health News . "We know that involvement with art improves well-being," says Carolyn Halpin-Healy with the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. "In our own research for persons with dementia, we see a reduction in apathy. For caregivers, we see less isolation and a reduction in stress." Halpin-Healy is co-founder of the museum's Arts & Minds program, which exposes older adults and their caregivers to art. Concurrently, 42 states have passed laws requiring hospitals and other nursing communities to train caregivers who perform medical tasks, and to register them as the "caregiver" when care recipients go into or out of hospitals or nursing communities. The national Care Transitions Intervention model at the University of Colorado trains coaches to help caregivers switch their recipients to home care. These coaches typically are social workers, nurses, or others hired by hospitals and other communities to work directly with caregivers. Meanwhile, California-based Dignity Health Systems has teamed with the Santa Barbara Foundation to supply caregiver coaches. Dignity's Kathleen Sullivan says 1,000 caregivers are being coached at any given time.