Howard Fillit, M.D., Executive Director of the Institute for the Study of Aging

Another concern is the emotional aspect of caregiving. Recently I was caring for a wealthy client in Manhattan, a person who could afford private doctors and all the geriatric social workers and care managers and whatever you could want, and she broke down in my office and she said to me, you just don't know what it's like. And while I do know what's like because I've cared for literally thousands of people with Alzheimer's disease in the last 25 years, I think I lost her really at an emotional level. And the series needs to capture the emotion of what's happening in caregiving.

"Even with billionaires, caregiving is still incredibly stressful and emotionally devastating"

I think the emotional aspect of what caregivers go through on a day-to-day basis with their spouses is something we need to really make sure we get across. You can speak to the many economic challenges of caregiving, but, even with billionaires, caregiving is still incredibly stressful and emotionally devastating. All the money in the world can't lessen such burdens.

From the physician's, or the healthcare system's, point of view there are the issues of training and incentive to assist the caregiver. Caregivers may expect their physicians to be more involved than they are, but counseling caregivers on the many aspects of long-term care is something that physicians are neither accustomed to nor paid for. It can be as simple as having a doctor participate in a family conference call and making a home visit. So, the issue is one of expectations, of both the physician and the caregiver.

Issues that Matter | Caregiving Professionals Forum