New Digital Resource Tackles Care for Elderly Family Members

By: Adventist Community Services & North-American Division News

Adventist Community Services (ACS) has released an online wellness hub to help bridge the long-distance gap between family caregivers and their parents and grandparents. Offering “The Right Care Resources, Right When You Need Them,” CareOptions gives caretakers tools for prevention, early detection, and care planning that address aging-related health issues before they become unmanageable.

CareOptions is a free resource provided by the Family Healthcare Advisory Program of ACS in the North American Division.

Wynelle Stevens, assistant director of ACS and coordinator of ACS’ Older Adult Ministries, emphasized the need to focus on older adults. Stevens said, “While the CareOptions resources are important to the entire family, regardless of age, we believe it is critically important to raise awareness among families to care for their own parents.”

Stevens continued, “A study from the Administration on Aging found that, ‘Of those caring for someone 65-years or older, the average age of the caregiver is 63-years and 33 percent of them are in fair or poor health.’ That is a very troubling statistic. 1 Timothy tells us to care for our parents and grandparents as a way to repay them and because it is pleasing to God. It is an important part of our mission.”

The app-based, aggregate platform allows users to access assessment tools, cost-of-care calculators, evaluation criteria for hospitals, homecare and nursing homes, the ability to create advance directives, evaluate medication compatibility, and more.

Membership for CareOptions is free. When signing up, enter “WWW011” to receive a permanent passcode. You can also visit the ACS website, or watch a short introductory video to learn more.