Pierce County Aging and Disability Resources, in collaboration with the Health Care Providers Council, will present the 2021 Pierce County Caregiver Conference as a two-day online event May 8 and 15. Both days will feature four consecutive half-hour workshop sessions aimed at supporting family caregivers, “the backbone of our healthcare system.”

May 8 will cover topics on providing care to the care recipient.  The schedule of sessions is:

• 9:30 – When a Loved One Resists Care.
• 10:05 – Using the Gift of Music.
• 10:40 – Keeping Families in Touch Using Virtual Connections.
• 11:15 – Sharing Purpose and Responsibility.

May 15 will focus on taking care of the caregiver.  The schedule:

• 9:30 – Caregiver Stress, Frustration and Guilt.
• 10:05 – When to Go to the ER and When Not To.
• 10:40 – Involving the Whole Family in Caregiving.
• 11:15 – Assembling Legal and Emergency Resources.

Registration is at piercecountywa.gov/caregiver by phone at 253-798-4600.

Handouts, workshop materials, caregiving tools and community resources will be available online before and after the conference. Paid, in-home caregivers may qualify for up to four hours of continuing-education credits from the state Department of Social and Health Service.

“Caregivers are the backbone of our healthcare system,” said Aaron Van Valkenburg, manager of Aging and Disability Resources, a county government program. “Nearly 900,000 unpaid family caregivers in our state provide 80 percent of the services their loved ones need to remain home for as long as possible. These caregivers need support to prolong their ongoing caregiver activities and to ensure their own mental and physical health stays intact while coping with related challenges.”

Information about the presentation is available from Aging and Disability Resources at 253-798-4600 or 800-562-0332.