The Area Agency on Aging of the Capital Area (AAACAP) — a CAPCOG division — and the Aging Services Council of Central Texas are hosting a conference to educate caregivers and care management providers about sharing their lived experiences to bolster caregiver support locally, regionally, and nationally. The Share Your Voice conference will be from 9 a.m. to 1:30 p.m., March 7, at the Norris Conference Center, 2525 W. Anderson Lane suite 365, in Austin.
“Caregiving is an issue that affects all of us; we may be a caregiver, know a caregiver or need a caregiver during our lives,” said Patty Bordie, AAACAP director. “Sharing our stories can be so powerful. They let us know we aren’t alone, help others navigate their caregiver journey, and shape our joint caregiving landscape.” Jessica Lemann, with AARP who specialize in advocacy and storytelling, will open the conference by discussing how personal stories can impact personal and public change. But the heart of the conference will be participant led, breakout session discussions that focus on the attendees’ ideas for additional training, education, respite and other services needed to improve support for family caregivers in the CAPCOG region.
The conference is be held in part by the Aging Services Council’s — a collective local nonprofit and government organizations that support older adults — efforts to participate in the Recognize, Assist, Include, Support and Engage (RAISE) National Strategies that were developed to expand access to home and community-based services, strengthen the direct care workforce, enhance supports for family caregivers regarding long-term care systems, and understand the challenges family caregivers face.
