Hospice by the Sea receives $10,000 to promote caregiving DVD

Published June 29th, 2008

FROM STAFF REPORTS

Hospice by the Sea has received a $10,000 grant from the Ernst and Gertrude Ticho Charitable Foundation to promote its 41-minute instructional DVD on caregiving. 

The Ticho foundation, based in Glen Echo, Md., honors the memory of internationally known psychoanalysts Doctors Ernst and Gertrude Ticho, and preserves the recognition of their work as educators of mental illness and treatments such as psychotherapy and psychoanalysis.

The grant will cover, in part, the costs of airing 30-second television spots to advertise Hospice by the Sea’s caregiver DVD, “A Lifeline for Caregivers.” The spots will run on cable and broadcast channels in Palm Beach and Broward counties.

“A Lifeline for Caregivers shows family caregivers how to safely care for their loved ones who are seriously ill,” said Paula Alderson, president and CEO of Hospice by the Sea.  “Nearly 40 percent of caregivers have never had any formal training in caregiving, yet, often suddenly, are put in the role of having to handle skilled nursing tasks, such as dressing wounds and giving medications.”

This lack of education, coupled with the long and strenuous hours caregiving entails, causes anxiety, stress, depression, and fatigue, she noted. As a result, caregivers suffer higher-than-normal rates of accidents and illness. 

The Ticho Foundation chose to support “A Lifeline for Caregivers” because of its potential to positively affect the mental well being of caregivers, said Jeff Pasternack, a representative of the foundation.  

He said “A Lifeline for Caregivers” is an important vehicle in Hospice by the Sea’s Sylvia Wolens Caregiver Education Program, a program that provides caregiving skills, self-care techniques, and a resource library for family caregivers. 

For more information, call 1-866-747-7385.