Preparing for the Effect of an Aging Kentucky

 

AARP of Kentucky
AARP of Kentucky
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Just sixteen years away, the year 2030 and the commonwealth of Kentucky will have well over a 100,000 people 85 and older.

In the recent legislature the state's lawmakers unanimously passed a resolution for the Legislative Research Commission to study the situation and recommend what to do about it.

Some elderly people remain healthy and active but most fall into frail health and require attention from family and caregivers.

An example is Normaline Skees, of Senora in Hardin County. She was the primary caregiver for her late husband, mom, dad and uncle.

"The biggest challenge is getting everything done," she said. "You know, your other duties in life do not quit."

Skees describes herself as a caregiver much of the time from the 1980s until her husband died of leukemia in 2012. Both her parents had cancer, and an uncle suffered from dementia.

According to AARP of Kentucky, 735,000 Kentuckians are caregivers for loved ones, providing an estimated 704 million hours of unpaid care worth more than $7 billion a year.

Kentucky AARP President Jim Kimbrough calls caregiving a "really fragmented system," and said he hopes the study will uncover ways that can help caregivers.

"More money may be needed, but it also may be that we need to find out if the system needs to be tightened in some ways, not necessarily with money, but to be tightened to work smoother."

Kimbrough says that in addition to taking inventory of public and private services, the study will examine the effect of caregiving responsibilities on those who undertake them.

Normaline Skees says the researchers will surely note that primary caregivers get "burned out," and most don't have money to hire sitters.

"I mean just plain help, whether it's coming in and doing a little bit of respite or giving them an opportunity to get away from the situation a little bit," is what's needed, she said.

Skees says caregivers have misgivings about putting loved ones in nursing homes, but often feel they don't have options.

The Legislative Research Commission will deliver its recommendations in December.

Thanks to Greg Stotelmyer at  Kentucky News Connection for providing part of this story.

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