SeniorCare And Electric Insurance Company Recognize National Family Caregivers Month

Main Category: Caregivers / Homecare
Article Date: 24 Oct 2007 - 5:00 PDT

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November is National Caregivers Month and two local North Shore organizations will be honoring the 50 million Americans who care for chronically ill, disabled or aging loved ones. According to the National Family Caregivers Association (NFCA), family caregivers comprise 13% of the workforce, causing employers to lose $34 billion in employee productivity each year and leading to serious stress-related conditions for caregivers. Caring for elders is no longer considered a private family situation, but rather a societal concern with long-reaching implications as Americans live longer.

SeniorCare, Inc., a non-profit Gloucester-based elder services agency serving towns in Essex County, and Electric Insurance Company of Beverly, a national provider of auto, home and umbrella insurance, have joined forces to support and raise awareness for seniors and their caregivers. In 2006, Jayne Girodat of SeniorCare addressed the complexities of eldercare at a lunchtime seminar for Electric Insurance employees. Known as a progressive, issue-oriented company with strong ties to the community, Electric Insurance was receptive to SeniorCare's mission. "They were eager to help me get the word out about our services while educating their staff who might be facing eldercare concerns," said Girodat. The presentation drew 20 Electric Insurance employees and triggered an on-site monthly Caregivers Support Group.

The Community Involvement Team at Electric (CITE), a group of employees who coordinate volunteer and fundraising activities, stepped in and began championing elders and their caregivers. According to Bob Lessard, leader of CITE, "We developed a partnership with SeniorCare and the Beverly Council on Aging because we felt socially obligated to do so. There are over 7,000 seniors in Beverly alone and approximately 500 are homebound. When we heard those numbers, we just had to jump in and get involved. We've sponsored cook-outs, delivered holiday baskets, adopted a Meals on Wheels route, and had 25 volunteers at the Senior Day in the Park."

The Caregivers Support Group at Electric Insurance helps employees prepare for their caregiver role rather than reaching a crisis situation. "It's a safe place where people can vent and share experiences without judgment," said the moderator Girodat who, coincidentally, has been managing her elderly parents' care for several years. "My parents live 600 miles away in Ontario," said Girodat. "My father, 90, fell three years ago and went from hospital to assisted living to nursing home care. He is quite frail, wheelchair bound and has dementia, diabetes and heart problems," she said. Her 86-year-old mother lives in assisted living and while very bright is also failing medically, battling depression and unable to visit her husband as often as she used to. "I spend a lot of time coordinating their care, securing benefits and traveling to Canada to meet with doctors." As stressful as the experience has been, it also drew Girodat to her career at SeniorCare - "a job I was meant to be doing," she said.

"It's difficult striking the right balance between work and home and I encourage caregivers to, first of all, take care of themselves," said Girodat. "Enlist the help of others and try to get entire families on the same page. Watching a parent fail is hard and families go through many stages: denial, depression, anger, acceptance. Support groups help caregivers express their feelings and learn how to cope. When the goal is to keep a parent independent at home, groups like SeniorCare can help with homemaking, personal care, shopping, cleaning and transportation. We've even arranged for pet care. There are so many services and resources available."

Girodat applauds the involvement of Electric Insurance in supporting family caregivers and hopes that other corporations follow their lead. "It has been such a wonderful give and take relationship," she said. "When offering our services, we always tell clients and caregivers: 'You don't have to do it alone.' Electric Insurance has turned this around and said it back to us. We truly appreciate their commitment to North Shore elders."

SeniorCare, founded in 1972 and funded by the MA Executive Office of Elder Affairs, is a designated Area Agency on Aging (AAA) and a MA Aging Services Access Point. It offers one-stop elder services and information and is part of the MA Family Caregivers Support Program established under Title III-E of the Older Americans Act. Electric Insurance Company, a premier provider of personal lines insurance offered at competitive rates with outstanding customer service, manages $160 million in premium for 125,000 policyholders and is A rated by A.M. Best and Standard & Poor's. Originally incorporated in 1966 to serve the needs of General Electric's employees, Electric Insurance has since expanded its auto, home, condo, renters, and umbrella insurance products to consumers through their independent agent channel and direct-to-consumer website. Electric Insurance is a direct benefit provider of Personal Excess Liability umbrella insurance to the GE workforce and is an insurer, reinsurer, and third-party administrator for many of GE's commercial insurance programs.

http://www.electricinsurance.com
http://www.seniorcareinc.org
http://www.thefamilycaregiver.org