At IHG® Army Hotels, we understand how important families and spouses are to veterans and those who have become disabled while serving our country. November is National Family Caregivers Month, which was created as a time to recognize and honor family caregivers across the country. This is an opportunity not only to raise awareness of caregiving issues, educate communities, and increase support for caregivers, but also to provide information on valuable resources for caregivers across the country.
According to the U.S. Department of Labor, 27% of all veterans have a service-connected disability and the families and spouses of those veterans end up needing to support their veteran through any medical or employment issues they may have.
That being said, the Veterans Affairs administration recognizes how difficult caregiving can be, and has a comprehensive network of resources that you may not be aware of to assist in your journey.
Building Better Caregivers
This six-week free online program was created to help caregivers of Veterans with dementia, memory problems, post-traumatic stress disorder, a serious brain injury or any other serious injury or illness. You can fit the program into your schedule whenever you’re able, and after the program is completed you’ll have access to their alumni community for continued support.
Find out if you qualify for this free program here.
Caregiving for Adolescents
Sesame Street and the VA have partnered to work through the difficulties of a parent or family member coming home from a deployment with visible or invisible injuries to a young child. Explaining these complicated topics to children can often be hard to navigate and below are some of the resources that they offer:
- Three videos starring Rosita – a familiar face on Sesame Street - along with her Mami and Papi, who uses a wheelchair after an injury.
- A music video that features footage of military and veteran families with an injured parent celebrating their “sunny days” together.
- Two documentary-style videos for adults about parenting after an injury.
- A series of articles for parents about tackling children’s tough questions, asking for support, and embracing a sense of family togetherness as routines change.
Visit the Sesame Street Workshop for all of the content above, along with other activities and articles to help you as the caregiver, and your child.
REACH VA
It’s important as a caregiver to also take care of yourself, alongside your care recipient. REACH VA is an available program for caregivers of those suffering from ALS, Dementia, MS, PTSD, or Spinal Cord Injury/Disorder and tackles stress and mood management techniques, how to understand the care recipient’s condition, and provides resources for care planning.
The REACH VA Program is customized to your needs and has been shown to decrease caregiver depression, burden, frustrations, and reduce the number of challenging problems reported. Find your Caregiver Support Coordinator and ask them about the REACH VA program.
If you’re looking for something else, head over to the VA Caregiver Resources page where they have the full list of available resources and programs available to you and know that we at IHG Army Hotels appreciate the sacrifice of your care recipient as well as all of the work that you do as their caregiver.
