As the population ages, many adults are grappling with an unprecedented social, economic and personal revolution as they transition into the primary caregiver role for their aging parents. With family members now responsible for 80 percent of eldercare in the United States, nearly every generation is feeling the ripple effects of the aging process. Caring for Your Parents, which aired Wednesday, April 2, 2008 at 9:00pm on PBS39, draws much-needed attention to this emotional and universal reality. The program comprises a moving 90-minute documentary followed by a 30-minute panel discussion led by Dr. Art Ulene.
Credit: (C)WGBH/Mark Ostow
Through an intimate look at five American families, the first 90-minutes of Caring for Your Parents underscore today's struggle to keep parents at home, the tensions among siblings and the complexity of shifting caregiver roles. In the end, the documentary -- produced, written and directed by award-winning filmmaker Michael Kirk -- contends that successful caregiving requires one primary ingredient: love.
Credit: (C)WGBH/Mark Ostow
"Aging is the chapter in life that is too often skimmed over. However, it is a critical topic that directly impacts all of us, or will in the very near future," explains Kirk. "It's imperative that we turn to our loved ones today, so we are prepared for what happens tomorrow."
Over the course of the film, Kirk examines the caregiving process through the experiences of families from varying cultural and economic backgrounds. The documentary exposes struggles to keep parents at home, shows the impact of caregiving on marriages and reveals the financial repercussions of eldercare. Through the stories of these five families, viewers glimpse the emotional and physical effects of caregiving that often go unnoticed. Heartbreaking stories explore the decision to stop driving, loss of independence and friction between carergivers and medical professionals.
Credit: (C)WGBH/Mark Ostow
Immediately after the 90-minute documentary, medical correspondent Dr. Art Ulene leads
"A Conversation About Caring." This half-hour panel discussion offers concrete advice and guidance on how to start the conversation -- often the most difficult step in caregiving. The panel of experts includes AARP Publications editor-in-chief and co-author of Caring for Your Parents: The Complete AARP Guide, Hugh Delehanty; Newsweek columnist Jane Bryant Quinn; best-selling author of Passages, Gail Sheehy; renowned physician Dr. Cora Christiansen; and leading eldercare expert Dr. Bill Thomas.
A list of local eldercare resources and more information about caregiving is available at:
pbs.org/caringforyourparents
Following the broadcast premiere, Caring for Your Parents -- the complete 90-minute documentary and 30-minute follow-up discussion -- will be available, free of charge, on that Web site.
Caring for Your Parents is a Kirk Documentary Group,Ltd. Production for WGBH, Boston.
Major Funding for Caring for your Parents is provided by The Harrah's Foundation. Additional funding provided by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting and Public television viewers.
Special Thanks to the staff of
AARP publications for their generous assistance with this program.
Copyright (c) 2008 WGBH Educational Foundation. All rights reserved.
pbs.org/caringforyourparents
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Locally, PBS39 is offering a variety of resources and programming after the inital airing of CARING FOR YOUR PARENTS to allow you the chance to become engaged with resources and support available to people who find themselves caring for their parents.
PBS39's Calendar of Events for
Caring for Your Parents
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Allen County Public Library
7:00pm
Caring for Aging Parents Without Killing Your Siblings
Do you secretly wish you were an only child? Do you feel like you are wearing a target, "Mom Likes Me Best"? Dorian Maples & Associates will discuss the role of siblings in our culture for caring for aging parents, how this causes interpersonal stress among the siblings, and if there is anything you may do about those siblings.
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Sunday, May 25, 2008
5:30pm on PBS39
Encore broadcast of Caring for Your Parents
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Sunday, May 25, 2008
7:30pm on PBS39
A Closer Look at Caring for Aging Adults
Featured topics will be Transportation and Housing.
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Wednesday, May 28
Allen County Public Library
7:00pm
Help Your Parents Preserve Family Memories
There's no better time than the present to talk with your parents about their family memories and life experiences. A staff member of the library's Genealogy Center will talk about different ways to collect and preserve family history as older parents move through the aging
process.
Local Underwriters for PBS39's outreach efforts surrounding Caring for Your Parents are:
