Caregiver Lifeline Program

Gift of Life Famiy House Caregiver Lifeline Program is tailored to the transplant caregiver. You will find answers to many questions about financial issues related to being a transplant caregiver, health issues both physical and emotional related to being a transplant caregiver, and even some of the stages you may go through during the transplant process as a caregiver. If you don't find the support through for Caregiver Lifeline Program, it does not mean it isn't out there, email us at CaregiverLifeline@GiftofLifeFamilyHouse.org and we will try to help.

Education for Transplant Caregivers

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Additional Caregiver Resources

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Share your Transplant Caregiver Story

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Prescription Assistance: Trust Scripts

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CaringBridge

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Past Newsletter Articles

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Seminars

The Critical Role of Caregivers

In 2009 the National Alliance for Caregivers (NAC) estimated that a total of 65.7 million people in the United States were unpaid caregivers to either an adult or child.

Caregivers are shown to be predominantly female and an average of 48 years of age. Caregivers tend to be in their role for an average of 4.6 years, spending about 20 hours a week providing care.

Gail Sheehy, author of "Passages" and "The Silent Passages" writes:

" Like most new caregivers upon hearing the news of the diagnosis of a loved one's critical illness, I thought the crisis would resolve itself in six months - a year at the most - and then our lives would go back to normal. --- That was 15 years ago.

Within the first few days of sharing the news with stunned family members and friends, googling disease sites, tracking down doctors, comparing hospitals and growing dizzy from conflicting opinions, it began to dawn on me that my life had radically changed. I had a new job: "family caregiver". It's a job nobody applies for."

The Effects of Caregiving

• Department of Health and Human Services found that caregivers were 2 times more likely to suffer from depression than non-caregivers

• It can be estimated, according to the NAC, that 3 in 10 caregivers feel emotionally stressed and burdened due to their caregiving responsibilities.

• Caregivers often neglect their own physical and mental well-being to support the needs of the "patient" or the rest of the family.

• The NAC also found in their 2009 survey that approximately 17 percent found their health had actually gotten worse as a result of caregiving.

You are Not Alone...

Over 6,000 individuals are currently listed on our regional waiting list for a life-saving organ donation. Each year, thousands of patients - both children and adults - and their families and caregivers, travel to Philadelphia for diagnosis, treatment and care at one of the region's eight transplant centers. And while there has been tremendous growth and increase success in transplantation, for many transplant patients and their family members, even the good news of a life-saving organ match brings anxieties. Transplant candidates often have been disabled for years, with impaired earning abilities. A significant percentage of patients travel more than 50 miles to receive treatments so their joy at the prospect of receiving a compatible organ is tempered by the reality of extended hospital visits for the patient and significant out-of-pocket expenses for their family members. Following transplantation, organ recipients must return repeatedly for follow-up care, as often as 50 times in the first two years.

Please email CaregiverLifeline@GiftofLifeFamilyHouse.org with questions or comments.