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Subscribe to RSSIt is difficult for families to talk about death and dying, but by proactively resolving complicated end-of-life issues it's possible to stave off future financial worries and stress. NBC's Dr. Nancy Snyderman reports.
As our elderly relatives age, families grapple with all kinds of issues from end-of-life care to funeral costs.
On Wednesday "NBC Nightly News" hosted an online chat with the Rev. Dale Susan Edmonds, a hospice chaplain and founder of the caregiving website Talk Early Talk Often.
Do you have questions about how to care for your aging loved ones? Do you have a caregiving plan in place? If you're wondering how to assess the needs of your elderly relatives, Edmonds offered tips below based on her experience working with the families of senior citizens.
To review a transcript of the chat, please click on the box below.
Please note, this chat was moderated. We answered as many questions as possible during the half-hour time frame.
For more on caregiving, please visit the AARP resource page, and learn more tonight during Part 2 of Nightly News' caregiving series. You can watch Part 1 here.
The Field family explains their approach to end-of-life conversations, and how they made difficult decisions about the future.
Geriatric care manager Debbie Reinberg explains why children should have end-of-life talks with their parents and put their wishes in writing sooner rather than later.
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My Aunt had stroke last year. She lost her ability to speak and move her leftside. With therapy she and regained most of her speech and movement, except for her left arm and had trouble walking . She recently woke up back at square one. The hospital said she did not have another stroke and could not find a reason for a relapse. He doctore thinks it was a reaction to medication, and has adjuster her dosage. He husband and son have been her 24 hour caregiver and think she is nearing the end. The doctor has not said that, or has not recommended hospice. I think my uncle and cousin have refuses repeated offers by her sisters, and myself, to take breaks, and we could provide care for her, as we have for my grandmothers in the past. My question is this, do they have caregiver burn out or is the doctor wrong? What could be the cause of a relapse if not another stroke? Is there a real chance for her to recover? I'd like to prepare my mother...but I don't who to believe or what to do here...
Beware of granting people Power of Attorney over your person and estate! POAs are very easily manipulated by unscrupulous people who may start out with good intentions but end up using all the money and resources of the elderly person they're 'protecting'.
In Idaho they have legislation that's among the strongest in the country to eliminate elder abuse yet, they prosecute almost NO ONE. There's no teeth in their law.
I know of one case where the person holding the POA not only used all the money($600K) of the person they cared for but sued the estate for the time they worked as POA and caregiver (for another $600K). The estate had to settle with the POA for a lump sum in order to get rid of them. That is criminal and the estate has virtually NO recourse.
In this case it appeared the POA had all the power and the courts & estate had none!
And this is why I created this site!
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What I want to know is how you deal with a mother who doesn't want to help the children at all. We went through H... when my Dad died in March. We didn't know where any of his papers were & it was almost 4 weeks until we could bury him. She doesn't care if we go through the same thing when she dies. She thinks it will be fun for us!
"I am not afraid of death, but I do not want to be there when it happens." And I am quoting Woody Allen
A Merry Christmas to all
My mother is aging and starting to lose her cognitive skills and is having a lot of trouble with speech. This is breaking my heart but out of 6 kids I seem to be the only one concerned for her future and well being. My siblings have their head in the sand and the "well there is nothing I can do about it" attitude. Thank you so much for showing this segment today because I have been so worried about what to do for her. I am sharing this story with all of them. Thanks again
Some years ago my Mother was dying of Cancer. Hospice was involved thru my Mom's Health Care Provider, We never talked about her wishes for the end of life but rather all 7 children (All adults) and our Dad took care of our Mom up to the time when she was so frail that she had to be admitted to a Hospital for Hospice Care. They say, People that come to Hospice Centers come to die with dignity, My thought is the staff at this center did not allow any type of liquid intake into my mom's mouth, They feel by doing so you are allowing the patient to live when there is no hope for survival. Her eyes looked as they were waxed over then she died. It doesn't seem to be the right thing to do, But on the other hand you just know your mom could not have ever survived this terrible decease. Thank You