Proactive outreach for caregivers Proactive outreach for caregivers (May 03, 2002)

By Margy Olmstead

Few people expect themselves - or their loved ones - to develop Alzheimer's Disease. But this disease of the brain is the most common cause of dementia with an estimated four million Americans suffering from it - and an estimated 19 million family members caring for them.

Seven out of 10 people with Alzheimer's live at home; the aging of the baby boom generation will further inflate these statistics. Those afflicted can live twenty or more years after diagnosis, but Medicare does not provide for long-term care.

With caregivers' challenges getting increased attention, a Mountain View program is aiming to find caregivers and give them the support they need before they come looking for help.

The Living with Memory Loss program is run through the Alzheimer's Association, headquartered at 2065 El Camino Real in Mountain View.

It differs from other support networks in that it does not wait for caregivers to make the first call.

With the average caregiver waiting nearly three years to seek outside help, the program acts proactively to make initial outreach calls with information, support and counsel for caregivers.

Staffers at the Alzheimer's Association say reasons for caregivers' hesitancy to find help vary, but the fact remains that family physicians are often the only outside health resource with whom caregivers have contact.

It is with the help of these physicians that Angela Lau, the senior project manager for the Living with Memory Loss program, is working to build a medical community outreach network. Local physicians are being contacted, informed and asked to alert program staff when a caregiver is open to being contacted about Alzheimer's-related community resources.

The physician will ask the caregiver and patient for permission to share their name and phone number with the program. A staff member will then call the caregiver and work establish a relationship upon which the caregiver can depend.

More than 100 local physicians are participating in the program. Many are affiliated with El Camino Hospital, Camino Medical Group and Kaiser Permanente offices in Mountain View.

"This sort of resource sharing between providers is both exciting and encouraging for our program. It supports our belief that healthcare professionals are indeed just looking for opportunities to provide better care for their patients, and we are glad to help them do this," said Lau.

The Living with Memory Loss program is the collaborative effort of the Alzheimer's Association, the Health Resource Center of El Camino Hospital and is funded by the Health Trust of Santa Clara Valley.

Information about the program and other services and resources from the Alzheimer's Association are available by calling the 24/7 Contact Center/HELPLINE at 800.660-1993. The local website http://www.alznorcal.org/, also provides timely, instructive information.