Press Coverage

Over three million Canadians are now caring for an elderly, chronically ill or dying relative at home. With the 65-and-over demographic expected to double in the next two decades, caregiver support is quickly becoming one of the most urgent issues of our time.

Caring for elderly parents is something many see as a privilege, says Maureen Osis, co-founder of Elderwise Inc. and a former gerontological nurse. “It’s something they want to do. But they’re often unaware of how much the demands of care can increase over time, and for how long,” she says.

According to You are Not Alone, a free guide available at MaureenOsis.com, Canadian caregivers provide more than 80 per cent of care needed by individuals with long-term conditions; it is estimated they contribute more than $5 billion of unpaid labour to the health-care system each year.

Ubiquitous among caregivers is a sense of time pressure, she says. “You don’t run Mom out to a medical appointment; you spend the afternoon doing it. It is an emotional journey watching the people who raised us become more and more frail. It’s a joyful experience for many, as they grow closer to their parents during the process, but it’s a pressure cooker.”

A too-common result is ‘caregiver burnout,’ says Ms. Osis, who is co-author of a recently released guide of the same name and a new edition of the book Your Aging Parents. “The average recovery time for caregiver burnout is about a year; many caregivers who burn out experience their own health crisis.”

Becoming educated about the condition, prognosis and treatment of loved ones, seeking out support groups and committing to self-care are essential strategies for continued wellbeing, she says. “Many of the clients I see are already applying at least some of the strategies we recommend in the guide, but very few make time for self-care. Caregivers tend to have huge hearts: It is essential they learn to recognize their limits. You can’t be there all the time – you have other parts of your life to attend to.”

One way to create time for self-care is by utilizing the broad range of home care services available, from help with meal preparation, light housekeeping and yard work to 24-hour in-home registered nursing care. Bayshore Home Health, for example, provides more than 5.2 million hours of home care in Canada each year, to more than 57,000 clients, privately and through government care programs, personal and group insurance plans and workplace safety insurance.

“A lot of children of seniors have their own children as well as demanding jobs,” says Julie Adams, area director for Bayshore Home Health’s Markham, Ont., office. “Having someone come in to provide services can alleviate a lot of stress, whether it be through our myNurse service (which provides peace of mind to families through monthly or quarterly home visits by a nurse to monitor health), assistance with bathing or meal preparation, or nursing care. One of our clients, who is a nurse herself, was extremely taxed caring for her father and three daughters while working and trying to keep the household together.

“We were able to provide care, and it alleviated so much of her emotional burden. You often don’t realize how much help you need until help arrives.”