The first ever ‘Tele-Savvy’ webinar is held – Alzheimer’s – Optimum Senior Care – Chicago In Home Caregivers – www.OptimumSeniorCare.com
Currently, there are 590,000 caregivers in Illinois alone, many of whom are providing unpaid care. The day-to-day care, changes in family roles, and the overall experience can take a very harmful toll on a caregiver’s physical and emotional health. In response to these issues, the Alzheimer’s Association Illinois Chapter launched the first ever Tele-Savvy Caregiver Program, which helps caregivers better understand the changes their loved ones are experiencing.
Every 66 seconds someone in the United States is diagnosed with Alzheimer’s disease. At the center of this relentless disease are people whose lives are completely overturned by an Alzheimer’s diagnosis and are faced with the reality of watching their loved one slip away. Currently, there are 590,000 caregivers in Illinois alone, many of whom are providing unpaid care. The day-to-day care, changes in family roles, and the overall experience can take a very harmful toll on a caregiver’s physical and emotional health.
In response to these issues, the Alzheimer’s Association Illinois Chapter initially offered the Savvy Caregiver Program, which is a six-week psycho-educational program focused on helping caregivers better understand the changes their loved ones are experiencing, and how to best provide individualized care throughout the progression of Alzheimer’s or dementia. The Illinois Chapter first became engaged with Savvy Caregiver in 2015 – through its engagement in a dementia-capable grant to the state known as the Alzheimer’s Disease Special Services Project (ADSSP) that was administered through the Illinois Department on Aging. As a subcontractor, the Alzheimer’s Association trained staff to deliver the Savvy Caregiver program and worked with an outside evaluator to determine the effectiveness of the program.
While this program provided a wealth of information on Alzheimer’s care, these classes were intended to be offered in-person, which required a caregiver to take time out of their already busy schedule.
Ken Hepburn, a professor at the Nell Hodgson Woodruff School of Nursing at Emory University, spearheaded an idea to provide the same Savvy courses virtually. His idea transformed into the Tele-Savvy program, which is a full online program that provides a virtual experience of the in-person ‘Savvy Caregiver’. The entire course is set to span around seven weeks with 75-90 minute group video conferences, held weekly in real time. Emory, Northwestern and Rush Universities are now partnering on an NIH (National Institutes of Health) grant to develop and evaluate the effectiveness of this web-based version of Savvy. Dr. Hepburn reached out to the Alzheimer’s Association Illinois Chapter to see if anyone would be interested in facilitating online classes, as he knew the chapter been engaged heavily in the Savvy Caregiver program through the ADSSP grant.
Last month, Helpline & Support Services Director of Alzheimer’s Association Illinois Chapter, Melissa Tucker, began facilitating the first ever Tele-Savvy webinar in the United States.
“I got involved with the Tele-Savvy program back in November 2016, when we began offering the in-person Savvy classes,” Tucker said. “The Tele-Savvy program grew out the in-person classes and is a unique program for caregivers who may not be able to attend an in-person program.”
The Tele-Savvy program is the first online adaption of the Savvy Caregiver program and is designed to provide caregivers with a virtual experience of in-person psychoeducation program. It is geared towards caregivers of individuals with dementia who still live at home. Similar to the ‘Savvy’ program, the Tele-Savvy program assists caregivers with better understanding the disease and how it impacts the person’s ability to communicate, think, and function. It teaches caregivers how to adapt to changes and also encourages caregiver self-care. The pilot program is set to last six to eight weeks, two hours of live video classes – with a variety of videos sent out every day, including videos stressing the importance of self-care.
“Normally caregivers live such busy lives, trying to balance their needs and well-being along with taking care of a loved one,” Tucker said. “That is why ‘self-care’ is so important. I always ask ‘what did you do for yourself this week?’ This is so important because of the chronic stress of caregiving, which can take a toll on the caregiver. This means a lower quality of life for the caregiver and the person with dementia.”
Caregivers occupy a critical place in the healthcare system for a person living with this relentless disease. However, caregivers are often invisible in the larger system and are not given the proper information on what is happening or how they can provide care among those trying to balance a busy schedule. The Tele-Savvy allows caregivers to access the proper information from the comfort of their own home, without having to take the time to drive to a set location.
“The great thing about this online program is that it can be reached from anywhere in the United States – whether you are in the city or live in a more rural area,” Tucker said. “All you need is a laptop with internet connection and you can access the class.”
Melissa has six caregivers in her class from all over the U.S., which was brought to her by Emory University. Having caregivers from across the nation gives the program a unique opportunity to bridge the gap of isolation and provide support for a diverse group of people.
“Caregivers often feel alone when they are going through an Alzheimer’s diagnosis,” Tucker said. “Although this program is done virtually, I have noticed they formed a sense of community between each other. I think it’s encouraging for them to know they are not alone. Alzheimer’s is a universal disease and it has the same effects no matter where you are.”
“I have definitely seen caregivers become more confident, knowledgeable and more accepting of the disease progression,” she said. “The Savvy Caregiver classes have been shown to improve the quality of life for caregivers and I expect that the Tele-Savvy course will eventually have the same data behind it. Since this is the first Tele-Savvy program to collect data comparing it to the live classroom experience, we will not know how the Tele-Savvy version compares until all the data is in from this and the other Tele-Savvy classes being scheduled now.”
At the end of the Tele-Savvy program, Emory University will interview participants and collect data on how effective the course is from there.
“I hope the data shows this can be an effective method of providing caregivers with the proper information they need and I think Tele-savvy is doing that so far.”
