Opportunities & Challenges in Transforming Home Care Through Digital Communities

Opportunities & Challenges in Transforming Home Care Through Digital Communities

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Mike Paladino: Welcome to the CareSmartz360 On Air Podcast.

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Mike Paladino: I’m Mike Paladino, a senior account executive here at Caresmartz.

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Mike Paladino: Digital communities offer a wealth of opportunities to revolutionize home care.

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Mike Paladino: Imagine a platform connecting seniors with caregivers and healthcare providers.

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Mike Paladino: seniors can access educational resources, participate in support groups, and even remotely monitor vital signs.

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Mike Paladino: Caregivers can find respite services, share best practices, and receive real-time updates from healthcare professionals.

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Mike Paladino: This fosters a sense of community producing isolation and also empowering everybody involved.

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Mike Paladino: However, challenges do remain.

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Mike Paladino: Digital literacy varies greatly, and some seniors may lack the technology or Internet access to participate in these programs.

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Mike Paladino: Data, security and privacy must be rigorously addressed as well.

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Mike Paladino: Further integrating digital tools with existing workflows requires careful planning and investment.
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Mike Paladino: Despite these hurdles, the potential of digital communities and home care is undeniable.

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Mike Paladino: By embracing technology and fostering collaboration.

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Mike Paladino: We can create a more connections.

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Mike Paladino: informed and empowered home care experience. For all

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Mike Paladino: today, we have Christina Keys on the panel, who is the founder of Keys for Caregiving that connects businesses,

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Mike Paladino: organizations,

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Mike Paladino: and family caregivers to collectively transform the care space community

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Mike Paladino: and amplify their voice for change.

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Mike Paladino: Welcome to the podcast Christina.

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Christina K: Thanks for having me, Mike.

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Mike Paladino: Yeah, awesome. We’re very excited, as you can tell, it’s a very important topic. And one that we feel very passionately about. And also, we’re again excited to hear your expertise on such a profound topic that definitely needs, you know, attention today. And I think the technology aspect of it is really what I see as one of the bigger challenges that we face in this area today.

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Mike Paladino: So with that, said Christina, I have a series of questions I’d like to ask you today to really again help our audience understand? You know how to overcome some of these challenges and really lean on your expertise to, you know, provide guidance in such a hot topic of conversation if you will.

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Mike Paladino: So, Christina, the 1st question I have for you. What are the biggest challenges caregivers face today? And how can we, as a society, better address them.

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Christina K: Well, I think some of the biggest challenges, caregivers, faces

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Christina K: not having enough support.

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Christina K: And a lot of times they’re thrown into those roles without any training.

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Christina K: And for myself, when I was thrown into being a caregiver.

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Christina K: I was a career woman walked into a hospital and I walked out of that hospital no longer a career woman, but a family caregiver, and walked into the role of being a med manager, a Cna physical therapist, occupational therapist nurse doctor. Whatever. When she was between visits.

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Christina K: And I wasn’t aware of all the different support groups. I wasn’t made aware of all the different resources, and in talking to family caregivers all across the United States. That’s 1 of the biggest challenges they have is, where do I find resources? How do I find support? And I feel so alone. And we really aren’t. There’s so many of us out there.

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Mike Paladino: Yeah,

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Mike Paladino: yeah. You know, it. It’s something that could be pretty scary right? And I think

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Mike Paladino: you know oftentimes, it comes, when you least expect it, and and you obviously want to do the best you can to be there for your loved one, or those that ultimately need that family caregiving. No component so it’s very admirable. Of course, myself and my family. We’ve had to kind of go through something similar where? You know. It’s a bit of a different situation, likely, but it’s I have an elderly no grandparent. He’s 96 years old

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Mike Paladino: we tried to set him up with. You know, home care agencies. He actually did have some success with that.

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Mike Paladino: but no one was able to provide the care that he truly needed other than his family. So my father and his brothers and sister really have now taken on that ownership of caregiving, and it is tough when you have somebody who wants to age in place. It just doesn’t want to go into a home. Sorry, I should say, of a facility I should mention, but it wants to stay in his home that he’s lived in for 55 years.

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Mike Paladino: It’s important to them, and you know they’ve had to really maneuver somebody who’s challenging to manage or love my grandfather. He’s a lovely man.

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Mike Paladino: He’s just very stubborn. He’s an Italian straight off the boat kind of guy, and then he immigrated here and they’re very stuck in their ways. They like what they like, they like, what they like, they want what they want so it’s managing that, and then really figuring out how to best manage them and allow them to be comfortable, I think, is that as the main thing at the end of the day, too. Right? So.

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Christina K: Absolutely.

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Mike Paladino: It’s a very challenging gig. But you know, as you mentioned, you can feel alone.

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Mike Paladino: But you’re definitely not. There’s a lot of resources out there. And there’s many people that are likely doing, you know, just that which is being a family caregiver.

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Christina K: Right.

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Mike Paladino: That, said Christina, great segue into the next question.

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Mike Paladino: Many caregivers feel invisible and unsupported.

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Mike Paladino: What are some effective ways to raise public awareness about the vital role caregivers play in society.

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Christina K: Well, I think what it

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Christina K: things that caregivers forget is that there’s 2 people on that care journey. It’s not only the people out in the world that forget there’s people on the care journey. It’s the caregivers ourselves. We forget

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Christina K: how important we are and how important our voices are. Right? And I think it’s really important for caregivers to understand that their voice matters.

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Christina K: their journey matters, and however messy it is, however, confused they are, however much they know or don’t know, you know, sharing that experience is, gonna make other caregivers understand

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Christina K: that this is the new normal. And this is okay, because what happens for family caregivers. I don’t know about your family and you but for me

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Christina K: I was comparing my life before to as a caregiver, and so I was feeling like I was constantly failing, and once I started hearing other stories of caregivers and redefining what normal was for me. It made a huge difference in feeling like I could, you know, take on caregiving and a good job. So I think caregivers really underestimate the power of their voice and sharing.

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Mike Paladino: Lily.

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Christina K: Whether it be on social media, and it’s very uncomfortable@firstst I remember when I 1st started sharing my story, a lot of people.

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Christina K: not a lot of people. But a few people would say, Oh, you’re just doing that for attention. And you know, after a while I thought, Yeah, I am doing it for attention. Here. Here’s who’s attention I want. I want the healthcare systems to pay attention. I want the politicians

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Christina K: who are too busy ignoring us to pay attention. I want other caregivers who are out there feeling lost to pay attention to the fact that they’re not alone. Right?

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Christina K: You know your story matters as a family caregiver, even if it’s just a story of you know. My God, I I went through, and it took me forever to find the right place where we can buy prescriptions and afford them, because there are choices and things like that? Or where do I find? Adopt briefs? Or how do I hire a professional care or private care? Right? How do I do that? If we’re not speaking up and sharing our story?

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Christina K: Who else is? Gonna tell us how to do it, because, frankly, I’m just a caregiver who’s been there and done it more than I will trust somebody who’s never done it before, but they have some great ideas, you know.

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Christina K: So I think that’s the biggest thing I’d love caregivers to understand is.

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Christina K: You know, it doesn’t matter if you have it all right, you’re you’re you’re showing up for love, and you’re showing up for care. And that means you’re doing it right. And your story matters.
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Mike Paladino: I couldn’t have put it any better, and I think, you know there’s 2 things you said that stood out to me. It was, this is the new normal and acceptance. Right? I think one thing, and I’ll always leverage the story that I have personally, and it’s just the most relevant example that I have. But you know, with my my dad and his siblings

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Mike Paladino: they at least have themselves as a support group, so they can understand. You know what worked one day? What was the attitude that know the next day? What is he? How’s he feeling? Is he fatigued? Has he been mobile as he eating right? Is he going to the bathroom? All these hard questions sometimes that you don’t want to ask? But no, they at least have themselves to kind of lean on and and figure out how to get him to do certain things.

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Mike Paladino: That’s not always the case, and it’s not always at. I guess it’s that easy. It was challenging. But now I think they have a good system in place. But I think that the main thing that’s relevant about that story is communicating and asking questions and being curious and also recognizing that. Know if you’re experiencing something.

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Mike Paladino: there’s, I guarantee somebody else is also experiencing something similar. So to your point, it’s using your voice. It’s, you know, leveraging your local resources, if any right. I know that’s obviously a hot topic, and there’s largely scarce resources given to the industry and into our line of work. But I think you know, it’s being an advocate. It’s showing up to town halls. It’s going to conferences

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Mike Paladino: to events and really advocating for the need that we have in this industry. And I think

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Mike Paladino: you know, it’s getting better a bit over time. It’s long way to go, but I think there’s been a bit of a shift over the last couple of years at least with regard to programs being put in place, some more funding depending on where you are. Obviously certain States do it better than others. And I think the other thing is technology, and how technology is helping bridge that gap and helping onboard, new caregivers helping train them and giving them also an outlet to communicate with others, some, even if it’s like A, you know, a Facebook group.

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Christina K: Right.
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Mike Paladino: Something similar. Those things matter, and people sometimes want to just log in and tell their story in the comfort of their home. So I think that’s something that also has a good impact.

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Christina K: Oh, sure!

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Mike Paladino: Yeah, amazing. So now, we’ve already kind of talked about this loosely. But the next question I wanted to ask you, Christina, revolves around family dynamics which can be complex, especially in caregiving situations.

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Mike Paladino: What resources or support systems can be offered to help families navigate these challenges.

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Christina K: Well, I think that you know. 1st of all, I would suggest that any family caregiver finds a support group peer to peer support is super important, and if you can’t find a support group, some of the ways you can find a support group is.

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Christina K: you know, you can call the hotline, a caregiver action network. You can certainly check with some of your local area agencies on aging. You can certainly check with some of the senior centers. Amazingly enough, even adult protective services. I know that’s a scary word for some family caregivers.

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Christina K: Know about some you know, support groups as well, but

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Christina K: being able to talk to other peers is gonna help. And they’re also great, wonderful folks that are care coaches who actually act as mediators when it comes to family, because there’s usually one.

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Christina K: Usually typically, there’s 1 primary family caregiver who’s doing it. And there’s, you know, a couple of other people in the family who have various opinions on how it should be done, right and not, and not everybody also. Not everybody can be there. There are physical distances that.

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Christina K: you know challenges that people have to overcome as well. So

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Christina K: I think the biggest thing is having that communication with as much as you can. And being okay with it’s gonna be difficult. It’s gonna be difficult if you don’t talk to that. You know, other family member who’s not participating, or if you do talk to them right, it’s gonna be uncomfortable either way. And so really, if you’re a family caregiver, your 1st thing you need to be looking out for is person you’re caring for. So you have to show up for those uncomfortable moments. So you have to choose your uncomfortable.

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Christina K: And if you’re uncomfortable is I’m gonna talk to my brother.

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Christina K: who doesn’t want to be involved, but has all kinds of opinions. But he needs to know. Here’s why it’s a priority, because in, for instance, in my situation.

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Christina K: I didn’t have a lot of help from my other family members. But I had a mother

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Christina K: who really wanted those other family members in her life, and if I wanted to provide her the best care that meant that I had to take care of somehow finding a way to address her emotional needs, too.

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Christina K: and her having those family members was part of that right, although I might have not have got the support I needed. I was able to at times

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Christina K: help my mother get the emotional, you know, support she needed, which was even if it was just a phone call from them. So again, those conversations can be very difficult.

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Christina K: It’s okay. If you need to cry, it’s okay. If you need to write a letter. If you don’t know how to, you know, do face to face. If you don’t have a good relationship with those family members, it’s okay to do. Conference calls with the person that you’re caring for. It’s okay to just send updates.
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Christina K: you know. Just send updates. This is what’s going on and include the person you’re caring for, if you can, if they are, you know, have the cognitive ability to be there for those. Right? So it’s difficult, right? But it’s another one of those situations as a family caregiver where you really have to choose your uncomfortable

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Christina K: and you’re uncomfortable. The priority in that has to be. Is it going to help the person you’re caring for in the long run, right, either emotionally, physically, mentally, financially, or spiritually, whatever is, gonna get them to be a little bit more comfortable is what you have to do, and then what you get to do

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Christina K: as a family carrier, because you matter, you need to take care of yourself.

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Mike Paladino: Yeah.

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Christina K: You take those uncomfortable feelings, all those yucky feelings from having to talk to that family member who doesn’t support you, or who isn’t on the same page as you, or you know the person you’re caring for constantly asking, and you’re having to say they aren’t showing up how you take care of yourself.

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Christina K: So you do what you need to do. You show up for those uncomfortable moments. You choose your uncomfortable, and then you take a step back. And you go to one of those support groups. And whether that support group is.

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Christina K: you know, Zoom or in person, or even just a Facebook group or social media group that you’re part of, and you either, you know, share about it there, or listen to other people sharing about it. So you don’t feel so alone.

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Mike Paladino: Yeah.

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Christina K: Really there is at least hundreds of family caregivers going through the exact same situation you are going through today.
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Christina K: and they’re trying to just get through it just the way you are.

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Mike Paladino: Oh, yeah, absolutely. And I think the the hardest thing that we typically see. And this is both through our line of work. And also just also, just through the conferences I’ve gone to the people I’ve spoken to, and it also through my family.

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Mike Paladino: It’s understanding what’s most important to the person receiving the care right if they’re able to present that. And sometimes they aren’t right depending on their situation. But in your case you mentioned that you know your mother wanted the support emotionally, of the family, or to see the family right. And I think that’s something that is important to figure out how you can navigate that. It’s not always easy. Sometimes there’s

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Mike Paladino: challenging family dynamics. We’ve seen that time and time again. Right? But it’s really just kind of navigating as best you can, how to make that person feel heard.

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Mike Paladino: Kind of. Make them feel comfortable, because we’ve all seen the statistics, the comfortable, the person that’s receiving the care if they’re comfortable if they’re you know, familiar with the people that are providing the care whether it’s a family member or or someone outside of the family, as long as they’re comfortable and confident in that person’s abilities to hear them and understand their needs. The quality of care and the outcomes are way more likely to be positive. And I think the second thing on that topic that you mentioned just now

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Mike Paladino: is communicating to others. And it’s being, you know, taking that 1st step. Usually the 1st step is the hardest, and actually putting yourself out there because you don’t know. Sometimes you just don’t recognize how it’s going to be received. Once you kind of get over that barrier. Then, you see, yes, there’s so many people in my situation. It’s almost like a

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Mike Paladino: take a deep breath. You can kind of breathe right, and it’s almost like a reli. It’s a relief. But it kind of feels like a weight is lifted off of you. And you can say, Okay, you know what?

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Mike Paladino: There’s others that are going through this. They’re overcoming it, and they’re actually crushing it now in terms of, you know, providing the care. I can do it, too. And then that’s how you start. Build that confidence on your own, because you have to have your own self confidence to give those that you’re caring for know the quality of care that they deserve right, because you always want to be empathetic. Put yourself in their shoes and say, How would I want to be treated? What would I want if I was them, and trying to do that to the best of your ability.

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Christina K: And and that’s why those support groups, those peer to peer, support groups again, whether they be in person via Zoom, or even just a Facebook or social media group are so so important, because I think we all know when we’re caregiving, it does affect our self esteem, because

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Christina K: how rid of a caregiver I am. No matter how good of a caregiver I was for my mother for that 10 years she still had medical issues that I couldn’t magically solve right? And and that’s hard on us, right? Cause we love this person. We’re caring for this person, and and we want them to get better. And and they’re just not getting cured right. And even though logically, we know that emotionally, it’s really tough for us. So you know, the support groups are really really important for us. So.

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Mike Paladino: Yeah, like, like you said, it feels like you’re kind of fighting an uphill battle because you want them to get if they’re not improving, or if they’re kind of stagnant, sometimes stagnant is a good thing, right? They’re not getting worse, that it’s kinda in our terms. It’s kind of what you want depending on situation, obviously. But you know, there’s that that you know. It’s almost like a mental thing where you’re trying to overcome the idea that, like all this work I’m doing isn’t resulting anything, or it’s like you’ve taken time out of your

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Mike Paladino: career or other aspects of your life. To then focus on this compo, this part of it. So it’s like, you feel like you’re kinda losing one thing and then the other thing isn’t getting better but what we fail to recognize when in that context is the impact that you’re having and the work you’re doing, while you might not see the tangible results of that it is making a difference, and it is prolonging that person’s life or giving them a quality of life they deserve. And

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Mike Paladino: I think you know, through those peer to peer groups like you mentioned, it’s a lot easier to see that when you see the perspective of somebody else and have the impact that they’ve made on their loved one or the person they’re caring for. Right? So I think it’s just being open. That’s being honest with yourself and with others, and just allowing yourself to kind of be vulnerable a little bit right? And I think that’s how you really kind of level up in that regard of caregiving.

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Christina K: Yeah. And I love. I love talking to caregivers. I I get a lot of call from caregivers all over the United States, you know. And and I, you know, I’m very open about giving people my phone number, and especially caregivers, right? And and you know they call me. And they they talk about how they’re failing, and I listen for a little bit. And I say, well, let me tell you this story about this caregiver that I know, and I and I start sharing about their story. I’m like.

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Christina K: You know, if you heard somebody tell you that story about all the things you’ve done and all the things you step up to do, and all the challenges you faced.

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Christina K: and you’re still showing up all the name of love. Wouldn’t you? Just think, that person’s incredible.

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Mike Paladino: Yeah.

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Christina K: Do? Do you realize who you are and what you’ve done, and what you’re accomplishing, all in the name of love?

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Mike Paladino: Yeah.

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Christina K: No. And so I I like to take a minute to remind them that although in their mind they might feel like they’re failing, they’re they’re really going beyond anything they’ve ever known before. Anybody they’ve ever been before, and and loving on a on a completely different level than they’ve ever loved before, and and frankly them, finding that support, too.

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Christina K: you know, is gonna make them be able to be a better caregiver to the person that they love in my journey

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Christina K: that 1st 3 years I didn’t have support. I didn’t know resources. I didn’t know any of that. And 3 years in when I had to leave my career. You know it’s my last doctor’s appointment, and you know, they said, hey, your body’s literally shutting down. You know you you’re sleeping, maybe 5 to 10 HA week.

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Christina K: You! You probably won’t even live 6 months, I mean, they told me I had like 6 months to live right. And and so I had to practice that, you know. Awful thing, self care right? And I did, and amazingly enough, I was holding on to my mother so tight during that 3 years, so so afraid she was gonna die that I there was no room for me. There was no room for I didn’t exist

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Christina K: right, and the doctors told me that, and I had to start practicing that self care, and I had to start seeking support from other caregivers and hearing other stories.

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Christina K: What happened for me is, not only did I give myself a second chance at life right, but I was able to become a much better carrier for my mother, because I was happier, you know.

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Mike Paladino: It makes a big difference. And it it’s it’s an amazing story shared, obviously. And it, kinda you know, amplifies the challenges that

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Mike Paladino: family caregivers face. And there’s also it’s hard to kind of recognize the moment that you’re in, unless you kind of take a step back and and objectively look at where you’re at today, and and what things are looking like. And I think sometimes you need a bit of a wake up, call to say, Hey, you know, if you continue on this path. These are the outcomes. Possibly but it’s just recognizing that, you know to be the best caregiver.

00:22:28.290 –> 00:22:33.000
Mike Paladino: It’s the self care, aspect. If you can’t, if you can take amazing care at least of yourself.

00:22:33.250 –> 00:22:48.870
Mike Paladino: In in the frame of mind, need to be in that reflects in your work, and you could probably say that about most industries, most jobs. But I think when you put that into the context of caregiving, you have to be able to put your best foot forward, but also recognize that you all you matter. You. You have to take care of yourself.

00:22:48.870 –> 00:22:49.900
Christina K: Of 2 and.

00:22:50.186 –> 00:22:55.629
Mike Paladino: We see the best caregivers are the ones that are are usually practicing, that as best that they can.

00:22:55.820 –> 00:23:11.359
Christina K: Absolutely. And, you know, take a minute as a caregiver. You know we need to redefine what self care is, you know I mean self. Care was different when I was caregiving than it was when I was making 100 grand a year. Right? I was vacationing reading by the you know pool all this other stuff.

00:23:11.530 –> 00:23:15.519
Christina K: And then suddenly, when I had to redefine self care, it was.

00:23:15.520 –> 00:23:42.620
Christina K: I’m just gonna take a blood pressure pill. And text. I took it, and that 30 seconds was self care right? I had to completely redefine it. So because I was I was angry and sad that I couldn’t do the things I used to do, and I couldn’t afford the things, whether it be time or money that I used to do for self care. So in allowing myself to redefine that normal, I I gave myself and my mother a gift.

00:23:42.620 –> 00:23:43.230
Mike Paladino: Yeah.

00:23:43.430 –> 00:24:02.059
Mike Paladino: absolutely. And it’s yeah, I think it’s kind of recognizing we are where we are and and adjusting. And I think the word that I like to use. It’s word I use almost every day. It’s adaptability. It’s adapting to that new normal. And I think once you realize that you’ll see a shift like almost like it’s almost like scientific. It’s like, you see, a shift.

00:24:02.060 –> 00:24:02.500
Christina K: Right.

00:24:02.500 –> 00:24:08.269
Mike Paladino: And and all the outcomes right? And I think that’s something that is is is miraculous, truly
00:24:09.030 –> 00:24:22.910
Mike Paladino: alright, Christina. 2 more questions for you today. And the the second to last question, really revolves around the workplace, and you know, the workplace often doesn’t accommodate. Caregiver needs as as best we think it should.

00:24:22.990 –> 00:24:30.819
Mike Paladino: So what are some policy changes or initiatives that employers can implement to better support their caregiver employees.

00:24:31.640 –> 00:24:33.830
Christina K: I do need to, you know.

00:24:33.970 –> 00:24:37.560
Christina K: Say, a lot of employers have started to.

00:24:37.740 –> 00:24:56.349
Christina K: you know, bring programs into their Ea solutions and into the workplace that do support caregivers right? A lot of them have stepped up and done that. And I I think that every employer should do that because you’re looking at anywhere from, you know, 17 to 23 of your

00:24:56.350 –> 00:25:18.030
Christina K: workforce, our caregivers. And if you’re adding in people who are caring for children to, you’re up to 40. So if you want to have less turnover, if you want to have better productivity, you definitely want to bring something in, you know whether it be, whatever program it is, you know, while they care giving back whatever it is. Right. There are some great programs out there.

00:25:18.386 –> 00:25:30.819
Christina K: But one of places that I think that they fall short is that they’ll implement these programs. I work for this amazing company right? They didn’t, you know, back in 2,017. They didn’t have

00:25:30.930 –> 00:25:34.079
Christina K: you know anything like this before the pandemic. Really

00:25:34.280 –> 00:25:42.809
Christina K: it it was during the pandemic that people started really, really talking about, you know, family caregivers, because people had to step up in ways they never had before. Right?

00:25:42.960 –> 00:25:54.560
Christina K: So before the pandemic, there wasn’t a lot of stuff out there right for family caregivers and when I went back to that company to talk to them, to engage on a different level with them.

00:25:54.570 –> 00:26:06.309
Christina K: I asked when the workers there, I said, Did you guys finally get something to support your family caregivers? He said. You know, because he mentioned that he wasn’t at the Home Office anymore. He was at a different office.

00:26:06.490 –> 00:26:13.419
Christina K: he said. You know. I think they have something like they told us about it when I 1st started there. But this was 3 years later.

00:26:13.570 –> 00:26:42.659
Christina K: and he’s not hearing about it. So so why? Why are we not? Because we’re all getting those letters from our companies and Hr updates and all these other, why are we not being reminded in those letters that hey? If you’ve become a family caregiver over the weekend, because sometimes that’s all it takes is a weekend, you know, Saturday morning that my mom was a independent woman laying hardwood floors in her house. I was playing on 3 softball teams. That was at 10 o’clock in the morning by 3 42 pm.

00:26:42.920 –> 00:26:47.339
Christina K: She needed care, and I became a caregiver right? She we didn’t know right.

00:26:47.340 –> 00:26:48.060
Mike Paladino: Yeah.

00:26:48.060 –> 00:27:10.499
Christina K: They need to be sharing that those programs are there. They need to be having people come in and doing things like lunch and learns quarterly, or at least once a year to say, Hey, if you’re a caregiver, if you’re trying to balance work and life and caring for another person, this is how you can do it. This is what you can do here. This is what you can do in your own town.

00:27:10.500 –> 00:27:20.910
Christina K: you know they can a also offer. There are many large companies that offer a place for people to have, you know. Sometimes they’ll have 12 set meetings, so sometimes they’ll have other support groups and things like that.

00:27:20.910 –> 00:27:21.410
Mike Paladino: And.

00:27:21.914 –> 00:27:23.929
Christina K: Could they not have.

00:27:24.070 –> 00:27:39.210
Christina K: you know, a once a week lunchtime carrier support group at a company that has 500, you know, plus people, or even 100 plus people. And you’re looking at it being 1723% of the staff. You know, you’re gonna have people.

00:27:39.210 –> 00:27:41.320
Mike Paladino: Oh, yeah. A large cohort, right?

00:27:41.320 –> 00:27:42.209
Christina K: Yeah, people, yeah.

00:27:42.210 –> 00:28:05.549
Mike Paladino: Gonna be needing these services and and and sorry to cut you off. But it’s something that I think is super relevant, right? I think in a lot of thankfully, you know my organization. Now, Kara smarts, we obviously think about these things. So we do have great support programs. But I would say I’ve been had a pretty long career over 10 years in software and sales and technology. Not one company is ever

00:28:05.550 –> 00:28:15.650
Mike Paladino: put that at the forefront, and I think now maybe that’s changing a bit. But when you look at the stats like you said 17 to 23, if you’re in a company of 1,000 plus people.

00:28:15.650 –> 00:28:23.879
Mike Paladino: That’s over a hundred 70 employees that likely have to go through something like this or experiencing something like this. And

00:28:23.920 –> 00:28:52.799
Mike Paladino: That’s tough and it’s almost something that’s like the set of sites that are mind thinking about it. But the reality is this is people’s lives every single day, whereas they have the stress of their job, they, if they’re able to still work their job, that is, then they have to go home or take a break from lunch, or like no drive around during their workday, if they’re on the road and and support those family members, or if it’s not physically, you know, being there for them, it’s financially supporting them, which is another burden. Sometimes people take.

00:28:52.800 –> 00:28:54.010
Christina K: Alright, I should.

00:28:54.010 –> 00:29:09.541
Mike Paladino: I shouldn’t say burden, but it, kinda you know, you can kind of put it in that category, whereas you’d have to then work more hours to get a second job. And that’s kind of what goes on right. And again, I’m thankful that where we’re at here with Kara smarts we do have these amazing support programs, smart leadership.

00:29:09.800 –> 00:29:33.150
Mike Paladino: but it’s few and far between. I haven’t really seen much of it elsewhere. And again, times are kind of changing now, I guess. But I would love to see more of an effort or emphasis put from organizations, from the top down, like you’ve mentioned where it’s even like a weekly newsletter, or Hey, Fyi! If you’re going through something like this, check out these resources we put together to really let that employee know that

00:29:33.280 –> 00:29:36.679
Mike Paladino: they’re cared for, and I think that’s what people want right.

00:29:36.680 –> 00:29:43.850
Christina K: Literally once a month, even if you highlighted once a month, one of the resources that are there, or even something as simple as having

00:29:43.860 –> 00:29:45.999
Christina K: a quiet room in your office.

00:29:46.000 –> 00:29:46.540
Mike Paladino: Yeah, people.

00:29:46.540 –> 00:29:53.620
Christina K: And go and do a call if they need to do a call with a doctor rather than trying to be in the break room where everybody’s around. They’re talking about their family.

00:29:53.620 –> 00:29:54.640
Mike Paladino: Small stuff. Right?

00:29:55.050 –> 00:29:56.680
Mike Paladino: Exactly. Yeah.

00:29:56.680 –> 00:30:21.319
Christina K: It’s just not that difficult. And the money that companies are gonna save in turnover, because a lot of those employees are really really hard working, you know, and in there a long time and caregiving just happened. So you need to pay for turnover, or you take some money and invest it. You invest it in something that’s in your Hr stack. It’s gonna be able to help those family caregivers right.

00:30:21.320 –> 00:30:43.710
Mike Paladino: Yeah. And it’s a good point, right? Because I think what often happens if companies don’t recognize the actual cost of a new employee or cost of somebody leaving, or if you’re a 10 year deployment, if you’ve been there for like a year or 2, you’re at that point becoming an Sme, or you’ve learned a lot about the company. You understand the product or the service, or whatever it is, you provide right. And if

00:30:43.710 –> 00:30:55.689
Mike Paladino: life happens, and things need to be shifted or you have to. Kinda I, you know, align your priorities differently to the point where in some cases you have to leave your work or or job if you’re not being supported with those new life changes.

00:30:56.000 –> 00:31:22.079
Mike Paladino: all they had to do is just put a little bit of money into those employee programs rather than having to go through the efforts of retraining somebody. Probably if you’re getting a new person in that role that now the average salary or the pay for that role probably increased. Right? So you’re gonna be having to pay somebody more for less. And you know, it’s. It’s a simple fix, really it is in my mind and likely in your mind. But it’s something that I hope more businesses and corporations can

00:31:22.335 –> 00:31:26.164
Mike Paladino: emphasize, because if you take care of the employee they’ll take care of you right.

00:31:26.420 –> 00:31:46.510
Christina K: Absolutely, absolutely, absolutely. I you know I just remember I had to keep it a secret, not because the company made me keep it a secret, but I felt so much shame that I was going through, and it was interesting how you know my company even found out about me being a family caregiver. You know, we had to do

00:31:46.610 –> 00:31:53.610
Christina K: a gofundme because we couldn’t afford care, and we couldn’t afford, because obviously Medicare doesn’t pay for that

00:31:53.640 –> 00:32:00.910
Christina K: we couldn’t forward things like, you know, dot briefs or anything. We had tapped through my mother’s and my 401 k our life savings

00:32:00.960 –> 00:32:16.180
Christina K: And you know, I’m paying anywhere from 1,500 $3,000 a month where? And so I put that on. At that time my social media was very, very, very private, so I don’t even know how this happened, but one of my customers on the east coast happened. Somebody shared it.

00:32:16.180 –> 00:32:16.860
Mike Paladino: Wow!

00:32:16.860 –> 00:32:20.129
Christina K: And my customer called me, and he says, You know, Christina.

00:32:20.590 –> 00:32:25.770
Christina K: and it was one of my top customers like I was making my quota each month from this time, right.

00:32:25.770 –> 00:32:26.470
Mike Paladino: Yeah.

00:32:26.470 –> 00:32:28.629
Christina K: He’s the last person I wanted to find out right.

00:32:29.270 –> 00:32:31.950
Christina K: And he calls me, and he says, Christina.

00:32:32.030 –> 00:32:43.099
Christina K: I just saw this thing he’s like, Are you caring for your mother? I’m like, Yeah, and he’s like, I had no idea. You know, you’re always so positive and everything. And he called my CEO

00:32:43.140 –> 00:33:02.200
Christina K: and said, Do you know that one of your employees is struggling in this way, and like the whole management team, approached me, and they’re like, you know, how can we support you? You know. And this before we even had things like, you know, the programs that we have today, how can we support you? How can we be there for you? I mean they were absolutely fabulous that I

00:33:02.730 –> 00:33:09.499
Christina K: and if I would have known you know that kind of support and and and care, and they actually cared about their employee that I mean

00:33:09.650 –> 00:33:11.150
Christina K: it. It was.

00:33:11.580 –> 00:33:16.840
Christina K: It was incredible to feel that, and imagine if employees felt that way, if they felt, I mean.

00:33:16.840 –> 00:33:17.240
Mike Paladino: Yeah.

00:33:17.240 –> 00:33:21.959
Christina K: Education they would give cause. These are ride or die. People caregivers are riot people, so there

00:33:22.460 –> 00:33:27.949
Christina K: be there for your company, and give 150 if you’re taking care of them.

00:33:27.950 –> 00:33:51.950
Mike Paladino: Yeah. And you know what I think. One of the things you just mentioned there that stood out to me was almost feeling like, you’re isolated right, whereas you have to keep it a secret. And then that’s just another kind of self inflicted burden. You’re having to manage and deal with it. And you know, then you have a stress at work or other life stress plus the things you’re keeping in. And again, it all reflects the self care it. It ultimately is very damaging to to us individually and inside

00:33:52.210 –> 00:34:05.469
Mike Paladino: when we can’t be honest about these things, that it’s funny. I have a lot of these podcasts. I do a lot of these types of interviews. If you call them that and the number one thing that I think is synonymous with every conversation that I have.

00:34:05.470 –> 00:34:33.580
Mike Paladino: It’s communication and being open and allowing yourself to be vulnerable. And I think it’s a believe me, it’s a lot easier as you would know. It’s a lot easier said than done. But once you can overcome that kind of stigma behind it. That’s when you truly feel that relief, and you truly feel the support of those around you. Right? So I think there’s a lot to it. It’s look, it’s a difficult thing to be doing, but I think the the what we’ll emphasize is

00:34:33.840 –> 00:34:44.669
Mike Paladino: the resources are there if you’re looking for them, and if you put yourself out there, and it’s those peer to peer groups as you mentioned, that are really going to be that 1st step to finding out what that new normal looks like for you.

00:34:44.670 –> 00:34:45.770
Christina K: Absolutely.

00:34:45.969 –> 00:34:46.689
Mike Paladino: Yeah.

00:34:47.009 –> 00:35:08.789
Mike Paladino: Well, Christina, the last question, a half word today, this has been a fantastic conversation. I really appreciate your thoughts and your input so far the last one that I have no, hopefully ending off on a positive note here, is, what are some success stories you’ve seen in terms of creating a more positive and also supportive caregiver.

00:35:10.240 –> 00:35:32.380
Christina K: Well, I think one of the biggest things I’ve seen with my travels across the Us. And being able to see different companies come together and work together. One of the things I was most excited about right kind of companies. I understand the need for competition. I understand. We all need to be profitable. But what but what we have to understand, too, is there’s 53 million plus

00:35:32.500 –> 00:35:44.929
Christina K: family caregivers out there that are struggling, that are taking care of loved ones right? And the mortality rates for family caregivers are, I think, 30% of them pass before the person they’re caring for 35% of them pass

00:35:45.266 –> 00:35:51.920
Christina K: within 5 years. Person they’re caring for. And if they’re over 70, 65% of them pass for the person they’re caring for. So

00:35:51.980 –> 00:36:05.139
Christina K: I I feel like in my travels across the United States. I found a lot of companies were able to say, Hey, you know, we might be doing the same thing. But there’s enough business for all of us, and we need to support people in our communities.

00:36:05.180 –> 00:36:17.120
Christina K: And I don’t think caregivers understand? And what I want to say to caregivers is, there are a lot of people in your community who want to support you and be there for you. There are a lot of amazing companies and individuals

00:36:17.170 –> 00:36:26.969
Christina K: A that are gonna be there to support you. And they’ve actually been through what you’re going through. They’ve either are caring. They either have cared for a loved one, or they are caring for a loved one.

00:36:27.100 –> 00:36:28.120
Christina K: So.

00:36:28.170 –> 00:36:46.639
Christina K: and also when they’re very good about if you call them and say, because you need their services. If you just ask this question, do you know any other resources in town that might be beneficial for me and the person I’m caring for ask that question to every single resource you call.

00:36:46.640 –> 00:37:05.331
Christina K: and they’ll share with you one or 2 other ones. And that’s how you’re gonna be able to build your network. So I, you know, I think that’s something that’s really helping to build community. That’s 1 of the biggest changes is that people are really saying, Hey, we gotta work together, cause we can’t sit around and wait for the government to fix this like

00:37:06.160 –> 00:37:27.150
Christina K: fine. I’ll do it myself moments right. But it’s all together and say, we are going to do this, we’re going to step up and make this change, and I’m so grateful that it’s not just the family caregivers using their voice. But it’s all the companies that are coming together to say, Hey, we really want to make a difference. And we really want to show these families that we care for them. And we’re going to walk with them on this journey.

00:37:27.150 –> 00:37:33.080
Mike Paladino: Yeah, yeah, beautifully said. And I couldn’t agree more with a lot of that sentiment. And

00:37:33.120 –> 00:37:55.789
Mike Paladino: I think you know, looking back on this whole conversation. You know. What we again wanna emphasize is that you’re not alone out there? Right? You’re not. You’re not on an island, and there is resources out there, and I think, as you mentioned one of the, I think it’s a sticking point that I have personally, but it is something we have to overcome. It’s we can’t wait around, for, unfortunately, our governments to help us, we have to kinda

00:37:55.790 –> 00:38:03.360
Mike Paladino: take the bull by the horns and and almost do it ourselves. And these are the conversations. I’ve had. A lot of the time, too, with similar influencers in the space is.

00:38:03.360 –> 00:38:10.810
Mike Paladino: You know, the more of us that are advocating the more of us that are making noise. And, kinda you know, putting this at the forefront. Well.

00:38:10.830 –> 00:38:36.399
Mike Paladino: the truth is, the more likely it is that someone’s going to listen. And we have started to see that there’s a lot of advocate groups, a lot of associations out there the Home Care Association of America, for example, and they do a lot of amazing work to the point where no, they’re loud. They are asking for things, and we have started to see that move the needle. It’s not moving too quickly, but it’s moving in the right direction, and that is something that we need. And I think.

00:38:36.540 –> 00:38:38.249
Mike Paladino: you know, there was a Stat.

00:38:38.940 –> 00:39:03.090
Mike Paladino: I forget the actual specifics of the staff. But it was something about how obviously the baby boomer generation now, there’s gonna be an influx of need for caregiver support. And that’s what we’re now thinking about technology to help support, because the truth is the amount of baby boomers that there are. Well, this number is rising, but the amount of caregivers is getting less right. And there’s many different challenges there. It’s

00:39:03.090 –> 00:39:19.949
Mike Paladino: pay. Right. Pay is a big one I’ve seen. We’re talking about Medicaid, right? We work with a lot of agencies that do medicaid and compliance and electronic visit verification as a need. Right? So that’s part of the services that we offer, but because we work in compliance in every State that’s considered an open state for outside software.

00:39:20.330 –> 00:39:32.000
Mike Paladino: What we hear a lot of the time now, especially, I’m not gonna name the States, but there’s a few states that pay really low, from a reimbursement level. Right then to the point where

00:39:32.080 –> 00:39:58.629
Mike Paladino: caregivers, as we all know, it’s a very difficult job. Often it’s referred to as a very thankless job, right? Because you’re doing a lot of work that ‘s hard. And it’s a lot of times physically hard could be whether you’re lifting somebody or you’re working with somebody that’s combative, or that’s incontinent. Or maybe they wander, they’re abusive. There’s so many different variations and variables we’re gonna possibly deal with in this industry. Way too many to name.

00:39:58.630 –> 00:40:04.170
Mike Paladino: But people are now recognizing that it’s like, okay, I could either do this job for $15 an hour.

00:40:04.170 –> 00:40:31.509
Mike Paladino: or I can go work at Mcdonald’s for $16.5 an hour. Right? So I may just go work at a fast food restaurant or something like in the service industry or the food industry, because it’s gonna pay me honestly, slightly, more. And I don’t have to deal with sometimes the abuse that comes with being a caregiver, right? There’s a different nuance with the service industry. Obviously. But I think those are the challenges we’re trying to solve for so we’re talking about the baby boomer generation.

00:40:31.720 –> 00:40:53.989
Mike Paladino: This can be a lot more need for caregiving. This is where technology is coming in and helping people age in place and giving the current caregiver, ecosystem, better tools to do their jobs better, or to support their families better. And I think that’s what excites me honestly and just to give you a bit of a reason. Why, of course, to talk to you about my grandfather, who, of course, needs that round the clock. Care now. But

00:40:53.990 –> 00:41:20.770
Mike Paladino: my mom was a nurse for 35 years. She’s retired now, thankfully. She’s unretired and retired like 5 times now, as is the running joke with nurses. But she worked and managed the Home Care agency and managed home care agency for 30 plus years of her career, and I saw the challenge in what it looked like through my childhood and her managing everything right. And it’s only gotten more difficult. Technologies bridge the gap. But you know, I think we’re.

00:41:20.890 –> 00:41:43.800
Mike Paladino: You know, probably still lagging behind 5 to 8 years of where technology should be in our industry compared to other industries. Because you’re talking AI, you’re talking all these other like, you know, self service things. And it’s like, I hope, that we can get there soon, because that’s going to alleviate. It’s not going to solve it. But it’s going to alleviate a lot of the stresses that caregivers are experiencing today, whether they’re working for an agency or providing family care.

00:41:44.140 –> 00:41:49.060
Christina K: Right? Yeah. And I talk about that a lot. I talk about technology being the other caregiver. You know.

00:41:49.240 –> 00:41:50.059
Mike Paladino: Yeah, absolutely.

00:41:50.060 –> 00:41:56.196
Christina K: Security systems, keyless entry, whether it be software programs, whether you know, whatever it may be.

00:41:56.580 –> 00:41:58.099
Mike Paladino: Is a big one, too, right where?

00:41:58.100 –> 00:41:58.810
Christina K: Exactly.

00:41:58.810 –> 00:42:14.920
Mike Paladino: The data you can get from somebody falling, or it’s the quick time to response, right? And that’s actually saved lives more than we can even think about. Now we’ve seen the stats on that. It’s it’s it’s remarkable. But again, it’s it’s it’s slow moving right in terms of the development of it.

00:42:15.160 –> 00:42:27.640
Christina K: Well, I had a situation. I was traveling. I was in Austin, Texas, my! I live in Vancouver, Washington. We had gotten a wearable for my mother right, and she had

00:42:27.720 –> 00:42:33.806
Christina K: fought it forever. We had one forever made it go away. Whatever. I finally convinced her to get another one and

00:42:34.740 –> 00:42:54.210
Christina K: She had a period during the day where she had 4 h, where she was by herself, because she loved her independence right well. During that 4 HI get a call. I’m in Austin, Texas, and it’s my mother, and I can hear her choking on the phone. And I can’t call 911 from Austin and get them there, and she doesn’t have a caregiver there. And so

00:42:54.510 –> 00:43:03.510
Christina K: I’m freaking out. I’m trying to. I I text the caregivers that, and none of them are responding. And so I remember not only she have the whereabout. We have

00:43:03.920 –> 00:43:33.019
Christina K: Home Security cameras, one in a room that I can talk through because I I tried to call her back. She had hung up. You know you have like 6 min when somebody’s choking right my mom’s case. We did. So I got on the cameras on my phone and yelled, I’m like, Mom, push your button, push your button right, and so she pushed her button. Push your button on your wrist. She pushed your button, and you know they had everything programmed in how to get into the door. All of this other stuff, the address, everything. So from Austin, Texas.

00:43:33.450 –> 00:43:52.179
Christina K: I was able to see my mom’s life because we had home security cameras that had 2 way intercom systems on, and she had a wearable, and if those would have not been in place, my mom, her life would have been shortened. So much so that technology can definitely be like the.

00:43:52.180 –> 00:43:58.699
Mike Paladino: Game changer. Yeah, oh, absolutely. That’s an amazing story. And it’s definitely a feel good story. And

00:43:59.230 –> 00:44:08.079
Mike Paladino: It really emphasizes the importance of tech, and also, like you mentioned, I haven’t used this term before or coined it, but I love it. Its technology is the other character.

00:44:08.080 –> 00:44:09.020
Christina K: Absolutely and.

00:44:09.276 –> 00:44:20.580
Mike Paladino: I’m gonna probably steal that from you. If that’s okay, because it’s wonderful, it’s a wonderful way to put it. And I think. You know the other end of that coin. And I think the last thing I’ll say about it.

00:44:20.580 –> 00:44:42.159
Mike Paladino: It’s the behavior around technology, right? A lot of the times, and no, generally, if you look at caregiving. And my mom was just like this. She was also a caregiver as a nurse, and she filled in that kind of thing. She hated technology. She was a paper, pen and paper kind of gal would love to go in there, write it out. Just have a paper record to her. That was just what computed right. And I think there is a bit of a

00:44:42.340 –> 00:44:59.870
Mike Paladino: you know, a disparity in caregivers that are have been doing it for a long time. Maybe they’re a bit elderly, and they just don’t like technology. Again. I put my mom in that bucket. And I think we’re starting to kind of bridge the gap a little bit, because technology is getting easier. That’s the biggest thing we have heard over the last 10 years is.

00:44:59.870 –> 00:45:17.719
Mike Paladino: if it’s hard to use. They, as caregivers will not use it. They want to go back to what they know works and what they trust, cause they’ve been doing it for 23 years right? But now, with Tech, especially with, you know, I’ll use ours as an example, like our caregiver app is just really easy to use. It’s obvious. And I think

00:45:17.990 –> 00:45:31.699
Mike Paladino: We have this idea with technology not saying care smarts. But just in general technology. Oh, this can do so many things, or it’s complex. Look how configured it is like how many options there are.

00:45:31.750 –> 00:45:47.979
Mike Paladino: But honestly, that’s not necessarily a good thing, sometimes less. In fact, in our industry less is more the more simple it is, the more easily it’ll be adopted, the more likely it’ll be used. And you’ll recognize the impact from that a lot quicker. So

00:45:48.200 –> 00:46:09.890
Mike Paladino: Yeah, I think, Christina, this has been a fantastic conversation. We can leave it kind of at that. And yeah, I just wanted to say, thank you for preparing this time and sharing great insights on your experience as a family caregiver, and just your experience in the industry as a whole, really useful insights for the audience. So.

00:46:09.900 –> 00:46:17.119
Mike Paladino: thanks to everyone that’s now tuning in, and until our next episode. This is Mike signing off with Christina. Thanks. Everyone.

00:46:17.120 –> 00:46:17.740
Christina K: Thank you.