endorsement

Quote Dr. Joanne Lynn

Connie Siskowski

“The job of caregiving youth is to become educated; yet, it is tough to focus in school with the worries of adult-sized family caregiving responsibilities. The American Association of Caregiving Youth (AACY) supports the efforts of the Family Caregiver Platform Project to educate leaders about the challenges children face as caregivers. The AACY encourages public policies that will support these children through high school graduation and help them become healthy, educated, productive adults.”

Connie Siskowski, RN, PhD
President and Founder
American Association of Caregiving Youth (AACY)
aacy.org

A diagram showing how to go from opportunity to policy change through advocacy.
Dr. Joanne Lynn

Focus on Community Catalyst

The Family Caregiver Platform Project (FCPP) is pleased to have Community Catalyst as one of our National Partners. Working together we can bring about changes to better serve the needs of family caregivers. Community Catalyst is a consumer advocacy organization working in 40 states. Kate Villers, President and Founder of Community Catalyst, says of their mission, “Each state is different, with a different political environment, so there is no single, cookie-cutter approach.“

Community Catalyst’s state-based partners provide leadership to state and local consumer organizations, policymakers, and foundations. Their experts assist state activists with research information, technical support, and political strategies to ensure consumers have a voice in decisions that affect their health. They share our view that community leadership is essential to transform the health care and social services that caregivers depend on.

Community Catalyst ran a guest editorial about the FCPP in the January 14, 2016 issue of their newsletter, The Dual Agenda. The piece by Victoria Walker, MD, explains how the goals of the FCPP overlap with those of Community Catalyst. You can subscribe to The Dual Agenda newsletter at communitycatalyst.org.

If any issue can unite communities across America it is caregiving. It’s easy and fun to bring caregiver issues to the attention of your local representatives. Many states are organizing now in preparation for caucuses and conventions. Go to Find Your State to discover upcoming events you can attend. You can download model language that can be customized for platform plank or resolution submission in your own state.

We urgently need your help. You can make a difference!

Quote Dr. Joanne Lynn

Ira Byock, MD

“Families are the backbone of care for ill people, including patients enrolled in home health or hospice care. Nowadays, caregiving takes a toll of family members’ work life, finances, as well as their emotional and physical wellbeing. It is as if family caregiving itself were a serious diagnosis.”

“Our policies must deliver family caregivers from anonymity and support the vital work they do.”

Ira Byock, MD
Institute for Human Caring, Providence Health & Services, Torrance, CA
Active Emeritus Professor, Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth
Author of The Best Care Possible