Online Aging and Caregiver Information Support Websites
- American Association of Retired Persons (AARP)
- AARP Webplace: Caregiving
- American Association of Retired Persons informs caregivers about various issues of caregiving like long-term care financing, home care, and housing options. Look for the AARP Meeting Place, a support group for caregivers.
- Administration on Aging
- Web site for the Administration on Aging.
- National
Family Caregiver Support Program
- Offered by the National Aging Information Center provides information for the caregivers of the elderly.
- Texas Department of Aging and Disability Services (DADS)
- Texas Department of State Health Services
Alzheimer’s Disease Program
- The Texas Department of State Health Services is responsible for developing supportive and educational programs to assist Alzheimer’s patients, their families, and long-term providers.
- National Institute on Aging
- Behavioral and Social Research
- Jointly sponsored by the National Institute on Aging and the National Institute of Nursing Research, this is one of six sites, REACH for TLC. REACH is an acronym for Resources for Enhancing Alzheimer’s Caregiver Health and TLC is an Acronym for Telephone-Linked Care.
- FIRSTGOV for Seniors
- Lists web sites and information for sources for seniors from government programs like Medicare and social security to health and housing information.
- Medicare
- Contains useful Medicare information.
- Life Advice Center
- This site from MetLife offers children of aging parents a list of helpful books and in-depth information on several caregiving issues. Services require registration and verification of address.
- MEDLINEplus: Caregivers
- Offers references for caregiving by the National Institute of Health.
- Alzheimer’s Association
- Web site for the Alzheimer’s Association is your source for information, support and assistance on issues related to Alzheimer’s diseases, services and programs in your area.
- Alzheimer’s Disease Education & Referral Center
- ADEAR Center is a service of the National Institute on Aging with information about Alzheimer’s disease and related disorders.
- Family Caregiver Alliance
- Family Caregiver Alliance has an online support group. Offers online consultations for caregivers and news features for families, caregivers, professionals, policy makers, and the media.
- Well Spouse Foundation
- Well Spouse Foundation, an association of spousal caregivers has the motto, “when one is sick, two need help.” At this web site, spousal caregivers are offered support in the form of local groups or e-mail “round robins.” This site also lists regional activities and publications for spousal caregivers.
- The Caregiver’s Handbook
- The entire text of this handbook is available at this site. It is written for the caregiver and focuses on how they maintain their health and sanity rather than on the problems of the patient.
- Alzheimer’s Patients Get Help
from Technology
- Researchers at the University of Washington are developing so-called assisted cognition systems to help Alzheimer’s patients care for themselves over the course of an average day. The program combines GPS and handheld technology with artificial intelligence to create a device that “learns” how to help people through their day. The Activity Compass part of the system learns where a patient typically goes and is able then to offer directions or even suggest intended destinations to those who have forgotten. The Adaptive Prompter assists patients in remembering how and when to do more home-oriented tasks, like taking medication or making and eating meals. Wired News, 24 June 2002
- Texas AgriLife Extension Service, Family and Consumer Sciences
- Changing families for the better. Useful, reliable, informative fact sheets and references for caregiving, family relationships, health, resource management, and safety issues.
- Texas Consortium of Geriatric Education Centers
- As one of 46 GECs in the country, the Texas Consortium of Geriatric Education Centers (TCGEC), established in October 1985, is comprised of nine leading academic institutions. They collaborate to advance the development of health professionals’ capabilities to improve the lives of older Texans through better programs, service delivery activities and resources in the field of aging.
