If you are among the 65 million Americans that provide unpaid care to a family member or loved one, you know that how stressful caregiving can be. For those without first-hand experience, check out these striking statistics from the Caregiver Action Network.
- 23% of family caregivers caring for loved ones for 5 years or more report their health is fair or poor.
- Nearly three-quarters (72%) of family caregivers report not going to the doctor as often as they should and 55% say they skip doctor appointments for themselves.
- 63% of caregivers report having poor eating habits than non-caregivers and 58% indicate worse exercise habits than before caregiving responsibilities.
- 40% to 70% of family caregivers have clinically significant symptoms of depression with approximately a quarter to half of these caregivers meet the diagnostic criteria for major depression.
- More than 1 in 10 (11%) of family caregivers report that caregiving has caused their physical health to deteriorate.
- 64% of working parents caring for a special needs child believe that caregiving responsibility has negatively impacted their work performance.
While caregiving is grueling for individuals of all backgrounds, the American Psychological Association finds that taking care of a family member can be especially demanding for poor and minority caregivers who may not have access to quality medical care, social services and economic support. In fact, the APA notes that Hispanic/Latinx caregivers report worse physical health and higher levels of depression than white caregivers.
A recent article in AmeriDisability claims one reason Hispanic/Latinx-American caregivers experience poorer health is because of the language barriers some face. Non-English-speaking caregivers can’t benefit from a variety of online tools and supports that provide instruction in caregiving skills and can minimize their stress.
An online resource for family caregivers called Trualta hopes to change that. In July, Trualta announced it will begin offering its caregiver support platform, which includes courses, videos and modules, in Spanish.
According to AmeriDisability, Trualta’s Spanish platform provides lessons to help caregivers learn skills such as medication management, toileting, bathing and fall prevention. The lessons are appropriate for family members caring for individuals with conditions ranging from intellectual or developmental disability to Alzheimer’s disease to stroke recovery and other disorders requiring home care.
“We are thrilled to offer our family caregiver platform in Spanish,” said Jonathan Davis, Trualta CEO. “Our team is committed to helping as many caregivers as possible to better manage challenging care situations at home.”
To develop tools for Spanish-speaking caregivers, Trualta partnered with experts who translated Trualta’s materials and ensured that all learning materials were culturally appropriate for caregivers in the Hispanic/Latinx community.
Said Greg Olsen, Director of the New York State Office for the Aging: “We continue to be impressed with how Trualta helps family caregivers learn evidence-based skills, connect with one another, relieve stress and improve their quality of life. Trualta’s new Spanish content will be a game changer when it comes to addressing the needs of more family caregivers around the country.”
Currently, Trualta’s platform is available to Spanish-speaking caregivers in 32 states. Upcoming: look for Trualta to translate its learning tools into additional languages.
