Central Oahu Caregivers Support Group

Written by Sunrise on KGMB9 - sunrise@kgmb9.com

March 17, 2008 09:41 AM

March is Caregivers month in Hawaii, and to continue on this topic for the the Genius of Aging segment, Dr. Bill Thomas has some special guests. Family caregivers are often isolated, so it's important to get as much support as possible. One way to help is the camaraderie of caregiver support groups. Today's guests come from Central Oahu Caregivers Support Group.

DR THOMAS: This morning I get to sit down with a couple of revolutionaries from Central Oahu, Representative Marilyn Lee and Lani Nedbalek. You guys I think back in the late 90s started the Central Oahu Caregivers Support Group, and it's still going today. Tell me a little bit about the story of how it got started.

LANI: Well, it started in 1997, when Representative Lee was actually still a nurse at the hospital, Wahiawa Hospital. And perhaps in part her suggestion to start the group was the struggles she saw that I was going through in my very early years. And through that time it's just been continuing in a vital fashion. And I think in part because so many people crave the information, you know…

DR. THOMAS: Well, why a support group? I mean we think about support groups for people with cancer or people with AIDS. I mean, why a support group for caregivers?

LANI: Well for me, my caregiving started when the doctor said, "Ok, you can take your Dad home now." And throughout, I've been a caregiver for 12 years for multiple family members. And when doctors said, "Ok, you can go home now," I thought, "But what am I gonna do? Who do I ask? Who do I contact?" And the fear then just starts to fill your whole being. And, with the suggestion of a support group, allowed those of us who were caring for family members to come together, and know that we all understood what we were going through.

DR. THOMAS: Great, so this opened a door, and you realized you weren't alone. Representative, you find that there's a lot of isolation among caregivers.

REP. Lee: Yes, I think that isolation is one of the major problems that caregivers face, and coming to the support group provides the social interaction and a secure place where you know that others who are there understand what you're experiencing.

DR. THOMAS: Yeah. And so, Central Oahu, you have plenty of people who really need and want this kind of interaction, so it's continuing to live and thrive, the support group.

REP. LEE: Like many communities, the Central Oahu community is kind of aging in place, and the population of older adults is growing. And the population of caregivers I think is growing at the same time.

DR. THOMAS: Yes, growing at the same time. You know, we pick up the paper often or we see on television stories about how Hawaii leads the nation in longevity and so forth. But oftentimes we don't realize that that means, in a sense, going to lead the nation in caregiving at the same time.

LANI: And I think we realize that, and what we try to explain to people is that there's no one that's exempt from being either a caregiver, or needing care. And so what Representative Lee and others are doing is hoping that we get some of the tough questions answered before the young children have to step up.

DR. THOMAS: Right. So, it's about transmitting kind of insights and wisdom and knowledge across the generations, and I love it because you're really making life better for people, and kind of coming together to do it, and I think a lot of people have benefited from what you've done and I'm grateful. I'm glad that you're willing to come and sit down and talk to us about it.

REP. LEE: Well there are in Hawaii, 15% of the people who are, there are 15% of the population that cares for people at home, whereas the Mainland of the United States, it's only 5%. So it's, on that…

DR. THOMAS: You're leading the nation.

REP. LEE: Leading the nation…

DR. THOMAS: Thanks so much.

Hawaii leads the nation in longevity. Fifteen percent of the population cares for someone at home. To contact the Central Oahu Caregivers Support Group, call 586-9460.

Last Updated ( March 17, 2008 09:41 AM )

County Agencies on Aging Senior Helplines
(For all information and resources related to aging and caregiving)

Elderly Affairs Division, Oahu
Phone: 768-7700
www.elderlyaffairs.com
Hawaii County Office on Aging
Phone: 961-8626
http://www.hcoahawaii.org/
Kauai Agency on Elderly Affairs
Phone: (808) 241-4470
http://www.kauai.gov/elderly
Maui County Office on Aging
Phone: (808) 270-7774
http://www.co.maui.hi.us/departments/Housing/aging.htm