Recap: Transformative Transparency Exchange - caregivers
On April 20, we held the second session in NLA’s new Transformative Transparency Exchange series: Caregiving. Journalists who juggle balancing work with the extra challenge of caregiving joined this engaging, heartfelt discussion.
Panelists were Deanna Dewberry, anchor of WHEC-TV in Rochester, NY, and caregiver for her parents; Judith Graham, an experienced health reporter who writes about aging and moderates a popular Facebook page for caregivers of older adults; and Patricia Rencher, founder of Urban Aging News which provides caregivers with resources and information to enhance aging and caregiving experiences in Metro Detroit. The conversation was moderated by Karen Magnuson, NLA diversity committee member and project director for the New York & Michigan Solutions Journalism Collaborative, a new media collaboration dedicated to covering challenges and uncovering potential solutions for caregivers of older adults.
Here’s a broad recap of what we discussed, with some tips our speakers shared.
Journalists who are caring for their older loved ones essentially have a second work shift under the radar — and their colleagues and bosses may not even know it.
This is an issue we all must care about. Rosalynn Carter said it best when she noted that there are only four kinds of people in this world:
Those who have been caregivers.
Those who currently are caregivers.
Those who will be caregivers.
Those who will need caregivers.
Some people might not even identify as caregivers; they might just see it as helping a family member, as anyone would do. But caregivers aren't just paid professionals.
Everyone acknowledged how challenging it is to be a caregiver — not just in balancing those duties with a full-time job, but also managing the emotional and mental toll it takes.
Here are a few takeaways and tips.
There are many times when you might feel so stressed or overwhelmed, but don't forget to tell yourself that you are enough. Even though we must provide that acknowledgement to ourselves, it's also true that society does not do enough to help caregivers. We need more help than we get.
There are programs and resources that can help, but people have to know about them — which they often don't. That's why Patricia Rencher founded Urban Aging News.
Consumer-Directed Personal Assistance Program, or CDPAP, is a Medicaid program that provides support for home care services. It can help with hiring a caregiver (or providing you with funds if you're the caregiver), providing respite care and navigating the system.
Keep a Ziplock bag with documents and information taped to your refrigerator in case of an emergency. EMTs are trained to look for this. Include information like a healthcare proxy, power of attorney, medication list and synopsis of medical history.
Here's an example of a healthcare proxy, should you need to create one.
You don’t recover from trauma; instead you learn how to live through it. It's impossible to go through caregiving without appreciating what it means to love someone deeply. It can be difficult to communicate how transformative it is to anyone who hasn't gone through it.
Caregiving can place additional stress on families when relatives can't agree on care, and Eldercaring Coordination can help. It's intended to help keep families out of the legal system. A person skilled in conflict resolution will help a family work through their issues and develop a plan that puts the care, needs and safety of the older adult at the center.
Our children are watching how we conduct ourselves in relation to our aging parents. It's a learning experience for them in compassion and empathy, but they also absorb the pain — and we need to be aware of that.
Panelists shared how caregiving has changed them. One panelist said it's made her hyper-vigilant, acutely aware of her environment, quick to respond to a crisis and always in problem-solving mode. This has also been helpful in preparing her to be a daily news journalist — constantly on her beat, looking for what’s coming next.
Judith Graham wrote a piece for Kaiser Health News providing a playbook for managing problems in the last chapter of your life. In essence, people can manage stress before it hits by talking to their parents early on about how they envision their future.
Another good resource for journalists coping with stress in general is The DART Center for Journalism & Trauma at Columbia Journalism School.
Deanna Dewberry has talked about how helpful it is to take stock of the good things in life and breathe. The Solutions Journalism Collaborative reported on a study that found meditation is a helpful tool for stressed-out caregivers.
If you're looking for the support of a community, Judith Graham's Facebook page Navigating Aging is a good place to start. It’s open to anyone who’d like to join.
Here are some helpful comments and messages shared in the chat during our conversation.
"This is such a powerful and needed conversation. Thank you all for sharing about your experiences and challenges. Re: what employers can do - Hearken has this year implemented a much more expansive leave policy. Caregiving (no matter what the age), bereavement leave (including for miscarriages), and an employee care fund of $2,500 to support whatever they need (grocery delivery, subscriptions, etc.). It feels like still not enough, but it’s a start."
"I made the decision as a manager to put employees first (instead of audiences first). One small change I made was to stop praising employees in performance reviews for 'being flexible,' 'going the extra mile,' etc., and instead praising them for setting boundaries and modeling work/life balance."
"Please check out the National Volunteer Caregiving Network, www.nvcnetwork.org, where we feature a map of volunteer caregiving organizations across the nation."
"I wasn't a caregiver until I got notice about today's program. Who knew what I'm doing has a name other than a loving son. I'll be more diligent moving forward."
This new event series offers support and space for marginalized journalists through panel discussions and open dialogue. It’s tied to our larger effort — the Transformative Transparency Project — which will provide the numbers, narratives and knowledge to assist news media stakeholders in undertaking reforms that address the critical lack of newsroom diversity. We hope it helps to bring transparency to issues that take underrepresented people out of the industry.
Due to the nature of the discussions — and to keep these safe spaces — we won’t record sessions in this series. Sign up to receive updates on all events in this series.