With the aging baby boomer population, learning how to care for the elderly is more important than ever, said Jacqueline Marcell.
Marcell, a radio talk show host and author, will focus on this topic during her lecture, "A Caregiver's Journey," at 6:30 p.m. Thursday in the Alumni Center.
Marcell will give a similar address at 9:30 a.m. Thursday in the Alumni Center.
The lecture is the keynote address of the 49th annual Kirkpatrick Memorial Conference on Aging. Events will be held from 8 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Alumni Center.
"Caregiving is a natural part of life, but some get involved in situations they don't think about," said Kathy Segrist, gerontology program director for the Fisher Institute for Wellness and Gerontology.
About 52 million in the United States are caregivers of some type, Segrist said.
Segrist said people need to be prepared in case a parent gets Alzheimer's disease, suffers a stroke or heart attack or any other illness that would require constant care from another.
The way to prepare, Segrist said, is by learning the caregiving options that are available.
"You don't want people to smack their heads and not know what to do," Segrist said. "It is something people need to think about, so at least you know your resources so it (a tragedy) won't be such a shock for you."
Segrist said she felt that most people never think about such things until they have to.
"Not until there's a crisis in the family will we look around for what's in front of our faces," Segrist said.
Marcell said she was the same way until her father became ill.
Marcell said her father's dementia began slowly and almost went by unnoticed.
Evidence of her father's illness began with angry outbursts, Marcell said.
"He had always had a bad temper, but never at me before," Marcell said. "When it starts, it's very subtle."
Over time, though, her father's symptoms progressed, and professional care was needed for him, Marcell said.
Marcell said she went through almost 40 caregiving institutions before finally finding the right kind of care for her father.
The job of caring for her father, which strained her professional and personal life, would have been easier if Marcell had known her options, she said.
That is why she wrote a book about her experience, "Elder Rage, or Take My Father...Please!" and lectures on the importance of educating young people to care for the older generation.
"You guys are in big trouble (with the large baby boomer population) so we have to train everybody in early prevention and care," Marcell said.
The Kirkpatrick Conference was established by the family of J. Walter and Arrena I. Kirkpatrick and focuses on community interest issues.
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