A Pledge To Support Texas Caregivers

By Bob Jackson

Not often enough is there public discussion of the topic of family caregiving and what can be done to support these everyday heroes. Now is a great time for the conversation: November is National Family Caregivers Month.

In Texas alone, there are more than 3.4 million family caregivers. Each day, they’re assisting older parents, spouses, partners, children with disabilities, other family members and friends, helping them remain in their own homes and communities – where they want to be.

Family caregivers give of themselves to help their loved ones in a variety of ways, such as bathing and dressing, making meals, providing transportation, assisting with finances, managing medications, and so much more. Some provide care a few hours a week, while others carry the responsibilities 24/7, sometimes without a break.

While it’s true that family caregiving is a deeply personal issue, and often a family issue, it’s also a legislative matter. Many legislators have taken notice and are showing support for family caregivers. In the next legislative session, AARP Texas will ask lawmakers to support common-sense, bipartisan ideas to recognize and support family caregivers.

Vital to the effort will be support for local programs that provide respite services for family caregivers. The services are needed since caregiving can take a toll on a person's physical and emotional health without occasional relief. Respite means having a trusted person look after a loved one while a caregiver is on break. It gives a caregiver time to go to a doctor’s appointment, the grocery store, attend a child's school program, or go on a date.

Also in 2017, Texas lawmakers should approve the Caregiver, Advice, Record, Enable Act (CARE) Act, which supports family caregivers when their loved ones go into the hospital and as they return home. The CARE Act ensures that a hospital or rehabilitation facility provide an explanation and live instruction of the medical tasks, such as medical management, injections, and wound care, that a family caregiver might need to perform once their loved one goes home.

Of course, sometimes a frail loved one may need care in a nursing home. But too often, Texas nursing homes have quality and safety problems, which must be rectified. The Texas Legislature has a role to play this year in improving Texas nursing home quality.

So, with millions of Texans undertaking the rewarding, difficult and personal challenge of caring for their loved one, let’s do what we can to lend them our support.

Bob Jackson is director of AARP Texas.