Ask Denise: Can I Get a Stipend for Caregiving?

Dear Denise, I’ve been searching all day for answers and did not find any but I did find your web site. I wish I had found it sooner and had the time to go through it now. I have so many questions it may take a month of Sundays to ask them. Of course that always leads to more. What I am trying to find today is is there any info on a monthly stipend to help take care of elderly disabled parent(s)? My mom had...

POA and a Good Attorney: A Family Caregiver’s Best Friends

It didn’t take long to complete, although it may have taken awhile to convince your care recipient of its necessity. But, today, that simple piece of paper is worth a million bucks (or close to it). Robert Freedman can’t emphasize enough the importance of a durable power of attorney for finances and for health care. “It’s not expensive to get,” he says, “and it’s the first...

Commit to a Weekly Savings Plan

On last Friday’s edition of Your Caregiving Journey, we spoke with Ellen Rogin, our financial guru who joins us monthly. Our topic for our talk show was two-fold: “Keeping a Healthy Perspective in Today’s Economy” and “Saving for our Future.” You can listen to our show via our player at the end of this post. During our discussion on saving, I issued a challenge: Commit to saving...

How Do We Pay My Sister?

Dear Denise, Is there any information out there to give us an idea of how to compensate a sibling for caring for our father. My sister was laid off and not going back to work so she can stay home and care for our father who now lives with her and her family. He is 87 and has some early Alzheimer’s. He still showers, dresses, eats, etc. We want to help her with expenses, and her time as she and her...

You’re Getting Paid! Great… Now, Get It Right

Your reimbursement for the care you provide could come from any number of sources–a long-term care insurance policy, a community program, your care recipient, even other family members. The devil really is in the details with this situation, isn’t it? It’s wonderful you can be compensated for providing care; it’s a luxury, really, that many family caregivers can’t enjoy. But, the...