Home Caregiving 101

One of the most difficult experiences of my life was trying to help my parents at the ends of their lives. They were always the ones who took care of me, and suddenly I had to be an adult. 

Navigating the medical system felt like being dropped into a place where I didn’t speak the language, I didn’t know the rules and I didn’t know my way around. And to top it all off, my parents were sick and I didn’t know how to help them. Luckily, I have a close circle of five siblings and together we stumbled through the maze of terminology, tasks and decisions.

But I wished there was someone to teach us what to do.  

The is hosting a program at 2 p.m. on Feb. 22 called “The Nuts and Bolts of Caring for Someone in the Home." Steve Pelton from University Hospitals will offer tips for making caregiving easier and more safe. He will discuss practical topics, like how to work with wheelchairs and how to assist someone with sitting, standing and more. Registration is required, so visit the library website or call the Brecksville branch to register.

And the library has a nice collection of books dealing with issues of caregiving. Annette Jones is the adult services librarian at the Brecksville branch, and she highly recommends a book called Older Adults...the Resource Guide. This book is a publication by the Western Reserve Area Agency on Aging, and it is full of resources for older adults.

There is also a class being offered at numerous schools and colleges in the area, including the . This class is taught by Brecksville resident Peggy Muraco and is called “How to Get Paid for Caring for Your Loved One at Home Through Ohio’s Medicaid Program.”  

According to Muraco’s website, Peg'sLearningCenter.com, the class is about her experience being paid as a caregiver for her mother and includes information on making wise choices regarding medical equipment, medication, and nursing facilities.

I met with Muraco a few days ago. She stressed that what she teaches is not legal advice, but is based on her personal experience. According to Muraco, she “made every mistake in the book,” including becoming financially devastated while taking care of her own mother. So she wrote to then president Bill Clinton.  To her surprise, she was contacted by someone from the White House, and arrangements were made for her to be trained in various programs that could help her get paid for taking care of her mom.

Peggy said that she packs her six-and-a-half hour class with information. Some of the things she talks about in the class are the steps to begin getting paid and the various programs that are available. She says that the class is for everyone, and that it helps people to be prepared because anyone might become a caregiver.

Peggy's next class at the is being held from 1 p.m. until 7:30 p.m. on March 17. People can register online for the class, which is part of the Adult Education Program at CVCC. 

Caring for a critically ill loved one is never easy, but knowing where to go for answers can help make it more manageable. Teaching yourself how to care for someone might also mean being able to spend more time with them and being able to help them when they need you most.