January 24, 2017
Powerful Tools for Caregivers Training
The Adult Development and Aging PFT is excited to support a Powerful Tools for Caregiving program training at the Garden City Area Office on February 27 and 28. Nancy Honig and Christine McPheter, master trainers of the program, will be leading the training. The cost for the training will be $300, but the ADA PFT will be providing a stipend of $150 to six non-PFT members who sign up to attend. If you are interested and able to attend, please email Erin Yelland before February 1.
Regarding the stipend/cost:
Powerful Tools for Caregiving is a team-taught program – two trained individuals must teach the program together. Therefore, preference for the six stipends will be given to agents who have a nearby agent who is already OR who will be trained on the program in February. Preference will also be reserved for the first six applicants who submit their application before February 1. We realize that the $300 is expensive, but this will cover certification fees as well as the cost of the book, notebook, and several CDs you will need to teach the class. Some agents charge a small fee for their program participants as a way to help recover some of the costs associated with delivering the program.
Here is more information on the program:
Powerful Tools for Caregiving is an evidence-based, nationwide program that provides self-care education for family (or informal) caregivers. The program provides caregivers with tools and strategies to better handle the challenges that all caregivers may face. The curriculum is scripted to be delivered over a six-week period, and has been shown to improve self-care behaviors, emotion management, self-efficacy, and use of community resources. The reality is that Kansas is an aging state and we have hundreds of thousands of caregivers living among us – there are 150,000 caregivers for individuals with Alzheimer’s disease alone in Kansas. This training will also include information for caregivers of special needs children – a component newly added to the program this year. Caregiving is so crucial to the health and well-being of so many of our residents, yet the accompanying stress can certainly take its toll. Through Powerful Tools for Caregivers, we hope to reduce some of the burden associated with caregiving and equip caregivers to make healthful decisions for themselves. Many agents already provide the program, and find it to be highly successful and rewarding.
To register for the training, please email Erin, erinyelland@ksu.edu, by February 1. If you have questions on the program itself, please email Nancy Honig, nhonig@ksu.edu; or Christine McPheter, cmcphete@ksu.edu.