Credit: Bucks County Women’s Advocacy Coalition
The Bucks County Women’s Advocacy Coalition (BCWAC) held a press conference last week to highlight a problem facing the economy and many people that might not be apparent if you weren’t looking for it.
The goal of a recent symposium was to produce a paper presentation advocating the need for higher awareness regarding caregiving, with a focus on family caregivers.
At the symposium, a number of experts came together to share experiences, research, and more to help combat and bring awareness to the mounting caregiving burden.
According to the “white paper” report, which is titled “Who cares? The Economics of Caregiving,” women commonly work full time jobs, as well as act as a caregiver in some capacity. The report recognizes that caregivers are stretched to the limit already. The report mentions the “sandwich” generation specifically, adults who are still raising children while aiding their parents as they get older, which spawns from late child bearing. In addition to the time and effort, in many cases, the caregiving can cost $5,000 every year for things such as medicine, transportation and food.
The report mentions ways in which business can provide support such as flexible hours and creative solutions for different individuals. Officials said the report argues for the intervention of the government, as the problem is too broad for single caregivers to work out in a cost effective manner on their own.
The full report can be viewed by clicking here.
