Caregiver Program: Entering the Caregiving Zone

April 15, 2011 - PRLog -- Being a caregiver can be both rewarding and stressful. This program will give you the tools to make caregiving more meaningful and efficient, and give you ways to take care of yourself as well.

Hospice at Home, in partnership with and funded by Area Agency on Aging, provides this program to help caregivers learn how to obtain needed community resources, manage caregiver stress, organize important documents, monitor safety and risk, develop an increased sense of personal effectiveness as a caregiver, and decrease the sense of caregiver burden.  

Classes consist of three 2-hour sessions held once a week. Two experienced class leaders conduct the series. Interactive lessons, discussions and brainstorming will help you take the “tools” you choose and put them into action for your life. There is no charge to attend, though donations for materials are gratefully accepted.

Classes will be held at Orchard Grove Extended Care, 1385 Empire Avenue, Benton Harbor, from 6:00 – 8:00 pm on Thursdays for three weeks beginning on May 5.  

Respite care and transportation are available if necessary. For more information or to register, call 1-800-HOSPICE. Class size is limited and pre-registration is required.

Hospice at Home, celebrating 30 years serving the community, is the non-profit local hospice focusing on the patient and family regardless of the patients' diagnosis, treatment choices, or ability to pay.  It provides quality care to people adjusting to living with a serious illness, as well as to people facing death, anticipating the death of a loved one, or healing their grief after the death of a loved one.  Hospice at Home places an emphasis on the emotional, social, and spiritual needs of those who need care and those receiving support services in Berrien, Cass, Van Buren, and Allegan Counties. Extending this care, Lory’s Place, a bereavement and education center that builds hope and strength for every grieving family, is available to anyone in Southwest Michigan or Northern Indiana.

Area Agency on Aging is a private, not-for-profit agency serving Berrien, Cass and Van Buren counties.  It offers comprehensive and coordinated systems of services to assist older persons, those who care for them, and other vulnerable adults.  Their mission is to help this population maintain independence in their homes and communities for as long as possible.

For more information, contact Hospice at Home at 269-429-7100 or 1-800-HOSPICE, or go to www.hospiceathomecares.org.

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Hospice at Home is your non-profit hospice provider for SW Michigan. Offering comfort, dignity, and compassion to the terminally ill through a holistic, non-curative, approach to care, focused on enhancing the lives of patients for their remaining days.