“Caregiving Matters” is proud to be a member of the Ontario Caregiver Coalition (OCC), who along with the Community and Primary Health Care (CPHC) are celebrating Family Caregiver Day. Jointly these organizations will be showcasing three invisible heroes of the health care system … and their families may be very surprised.
Did you know that more than three million people in Ontario provide supports for family members facing illness, disability, or challenges related to aging? Sadly though, often their efforts go unrecognized
As part of the celebrations this year, three generations of caregivers will be profiled. The first group is young caregivers (more than 500,000 family caregivers are between 15-24). The second group is the “Sandwich Generation”. Many within this group are often working while caring for both their parents and their children. The last group are caregivers who are over 65 years old (almost 375,000 in Ontario alone).
Family Caregiver Day hopes to raise awareness about the importance of family caregivers in Ontario, according to a CPHC-OCC joint release. “It’s an opportunity to challenge some of the pre-existing ideas Ontarians may have about unpaid caregivers, to thank them for their work, and to highlight some of the ways we can support caregivers so they can continue to provide care to their loved ones,” says Lisa Levin, chair of the OCC.
Please join the celebration and acknowledge the value that family caregivers play in our society. We ask you to sign the thank you card at: www.ontariocaregivercoalition.ca or using the hashtag #thxcaregivers.
