Family caregiving affects millions of Americans every day, in all walks of life. At least 17.7 million individuals in the United States are caregivers of an older adult with a health or functional limitation. The nation's family caregivers provide the lion's share of long-term care for our older adult population. They are also central to older adults' access to and receipt of health care and community-based social services. Yet the need to recognize and support caregivers is among the least appreciated challenges facing the aging U.S. population. Families Caring for an Aging America examines the prevalence and nature of family caregiving of older adults and the available evidence on the effectiveness of programs, supports, and other interventions designed to support family caregivers. This report also assesses and recommends policies to address the needs of family caregivers and to minimize the barriers that they encounter in trying to meet the needs of older adults.

"Nurses play a vital role in improving the safety and quality of patient car -- not only in the hospital or ambulatory treatment facility, but also of community-based care and the care performed by family members. Nurses need know what proven techniques and interventions they can use to enhance patient outcomes. To address this need, the Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality (AHRQ), with additional funding from the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, has prepared this comprehensive, 1,400-page, handbook for nurses on patient safety and quality -- Patient Safety and Quality: An Evidence-Based Handbook for Nurses. (AHRQ Publication No. 08-0043)." - online AHRQ blurb, http://www.ahrq.gov/qual/nurseshdbk/

The rapid growth of home health care has raised many unsolved issues and will have consequences that are far too broad for any one group to analyze in their entirety. Yet a major influence on the safety, quality, and effectiveness of home health care will be the set of issues encompassed by the field of human factors research-the discipline of applying what is known about human capabilities and limitations to the design of products, processes, systems, and work environments. To address these challenges, the National Research Council began a multidisciplinary study to examine a diverse range of behavioral and human factors issues resulting from the increasing migration of medical devices, technologies, and care practices into the home. Its goal is to lay the groundwork for a thorough integration of human factors research with the design and implementation of home health care devices, technologies, and practices. On October 1 and 2, 2009, a group of human factors and other experts met to consider a diverse range of behavioral and human factors issues associated with the increasing migration of medical devices, technologies, and care practices into the home. This book is a summary of that workshop, representing the culmination of the first phase of the study.

This book is based on the author's own experiences as a social worker and caregiver and is intended to help other caregivers obtain a fuller life for themselves and their care recipients.

Today more than 40 million people in the U.S. find themselves responsible for caring for a parent, relative, or friend. Building Better Caregivers, developed by the author team of the bestselling Living a Healthy Life with Chronic Conditions, shares the best in caregiving research and the most important lessons learned from thousands of caregivers. With a focus on reducing stress through the use of practical skills and tools, this book will help you manage your caregiving tasks so you can maintain a happy, fulfilling life while also meeting your caregiving obligations.

Caregivers have a front-row seat to suffering. Helping someone (most likely a close loved one) through disease, pain, frailty, and death exacts a tremendous toll. In the midst of caregiving, we often feel inadequate, fatigued, and overwhelmed with despair. The thought of reaching out for help does not occur to many caregivers, but we cannot go it alone-we need to find ways to connect with others. Self-care is also critical to our mental and physical health. Nell Noonan offers 150 honest and authentic devotions from her own experience. Think of these readings as God's embrace. They will encourage you and give you the strength to make it through another day. Understanding caregiving as a spiritual pilgrimage is important in caring for ourselves. "God is with us in the tears and the laughter, the brokenness and the holiness, the exhaustion and the whispers of resurrection," Noonan writes. When you pause daily to listen to your life, you will discover that God is there, and you are not alone.

As professional caregivers working with people who are dying we face challenges other health care professionals do not. We must keep ourselves balanced and healthy amid constant sadness. We must create a fulfilling work environment. And we must maintain a happy, engaged, personal life.Health care workers are traditionally trained to make people better, not participate in their patient's dying and eventual death. End of life work goes against all we as professionals have been taught.This booklet is short and easy to read. It is filled with ideas and guidance for the nurse, social worker, nurse's aide, chaplain, physician, end of life doula, or Eleventh Hour volunteer. Anyone who is immersed in the responsibilities of supporting, educating, and guiding a person and their family through the dying experience can find insight into making their work healthier.