Senior Care Academy - A Helperly Podcast

Your Parents Are Turning 65 - It's Time to Have "The Talk"

• Helperly, Caleb Richardson • Season 3 • Episode 11

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What if we approached aging with the same enthusiasm and preparation as expecting parents planning for a baby? This transformative perspective is just one of the powerful insights Kayla Cook brings to our discussion on navigating senior care with confidence and compassion.

Drawing from her psychology background and extensive experience in home health and hospice, Kayla challenges common misconceptions that prevent families from accessing vital resources at the right time. She paints a vivid picture of modern senior living communities that feel more like cruise ships than clinical facilities, with vibrant activities and amenities designed to help residents thrive rather than merely exist.

Our conversation tackles the widespread misunderstanding of hospice care, revealing how this Medicare-covered service can actually extend life while dramatically improving its quality when utilized early enough. Yet many families wait until the final days of life, missing months of comprehensive support that could transform their experience.

Kayla advocates for proactive planning, suggesting families begin care conversations at milestone moments like a 65th birthday, when everyone is still healthy enough to express their preferences clearly. This approach normalizes aging as another life stage worthy of thoughtful preparation rather than something to be feared or avoided.

We explore underutilized resources from specialized fitness training to help maintain crucial muscle mass, to educational programs like Kayla's upcoming "Senior Pathways" course. This monthly program will equip families with practical knowledge about dementia stages, available resources, and financing options without sales pressure.

Listen now to reframe your approach to aging and discover how early planning can transform this journey from one of crisis management to meaningful connection. Join Kayla's first Senior Pathways course on May 1st at Abington Senior Living in Murray to take your first step toward confident, compassionate care planning.

RSVP here: https://web.facebook.com/SeniorPathwaysUT

• Psychology background shapes Kayla's person-centered approach to helping families make difficult care decisions
• Modern senior living communities offer vibrant social environments comparable to cruise ships, far from outdated stereotypes
• Hospice care is drastically underutilized and misunderstood – studies show it can actually extend life by about 15 days
• Families should start care planning conversations at milestone moments like age 65, long before crises occur
• Physical fitness and muscle maintenance are critical yet overlooked factors in healthy aging and longevity
• Understanding the landscape of Medicare-covered versus private pay options requires early education
• Senior Pathways course launches May 1st to help families understand dementia stages, caregiving tips, and available resources

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Speaker 1:

Welcome back to Senior Care Academy, the podcast where we equip families and caregivers with the tools they need to navigate the aging journey with confidence and compassion. So today I'm excited to announce and welcome Kayla Cook. Kayla holds a degree in psychology and a master's in gerontology from the University of Utah. With over five years of experience in home health and hospice as a service coordinator and a marketer, she has seen firsthand a lot of the challenges that families face when navigating senior care. Kayla played a key role in developing the vital aging program for her county and now she's training to become an executive director of Abington Senior Living, which is a great senior living facility. Throughout her journey, one gap that she consistently has noticed is how little guidance the families have when it comes to care planning for their elderly loved ones. So, to help facility Throughout her journey, one gap that she consistently has noticed is how little guidance the families have when it comes to care planning for their elderly loved ones.

Speaker 1:

So to help bridge that gap, kayla's launched a one-time course called Senior Pathways. It's actually coming out on May 1st, so in about a week. That's exciting. The course is designed to empower families with knowledge about the three stages of dementia, practical caregiving tips and a comprehensive look at resources, both like insurance coverage and private pay, that can make a major difference when used at the right time. So we're thrilled to have her on today and to share her insights and passion for educating families on not only the realities but the possibilities of aging well. So, kayla, thanks so much for coming to Senior Care Academy. I'm excited to have you.

Speaker 2:

Thank you, I'm excited to be here. Thanks for that lovely intro.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, so just to get started, what drew you to? So you got your degree in psychology, but what drew you to gerontology? I think that a lot of people might not even know what that means.

Speaker 2:

Most people don't. It's actually fun. When I go on like dates or meet new people, they're like so what did you study? And I love saying gerontology, and their face just goes blank. They don't know what to say. So, um, super niche. So I volunteered in high school at an assisted living down the street, just helping with activities. Um, I just loved seniors. I just think they're so adorable, so fun to work with, so kind of gentle.

Speaker 2:

And then I moved up to college, originally studying to do sports broadcasting. I wanted to be the next Aaron Andrews but quickly learned in school that's not the route I wanted to go and I was really fascinated with psychology. So my undergrad is in marriage and family therapy. And during college I needed a job because I needed to pay for, you know, living and everything. And at the time I was working some job that just paid so little and I was really trying to find something else. And there was one day I was driving around, I was at the hospital for something and I found a cute little old man walking around the parking lot at like 10 PM and so I pulled over and it was cold and I said, hey, do you need a ride? Like, are you okay, and he goes. Yeah, I just forgot where I parked my car. So he sat on the passenger side and we drove around the parking lot looking for his car and in the meantime he was telling me stories about his wife and their marriage and just we just chatted for a while and it reminded me how much I love this population.

Speaker 2:

So, um, my graduation date was coming up soon and um, I said, okay, I needed a job to carry me through the last year or two. So I just went to an assisted living and I said, hey, I don't know what kind of jobs are here, but like I love your population, what can I do? What can my skills help with? And luckily, the activities assistant had just turned in his two weeks the week prior. So she hired me after like one or two interviews and then I did activities at a cute little building down in Provo and fell in love with it. I just absolutely loved it. I never got sick of it, and so when I graduated I was only 21 and I said, well, no one's going to take me seriously, I'm not a nurse, I just graduated in psychology. I'm not gonna be able to be a hospice nurse or anything like. What can I do? So I found the program at the? U. There's only a few colleges in America that offer a gerontology program.

Speaker 2:

So, I found that the? U had one and I instantly applied, got in, and I'm really glad I did that because I learned a lot, but that's kind of what sparked my passion. It's honestly, I just love the population and the people.

Speaker 1:

And yeah. That's so fun. And so, coming from a psychology background, what kind of do you think that that shaped your approach a little bit when it came to working with seniors and their families, rather than I feel like a lot of activities directors come from more of just a. They don't have a psychology background, they're just love hanging out, you know they do like rec therapy. Yeah, very clinical.

Speaker 2:

I mean a lot of people in the field are very like clinical minded or business minded.

Speaker 2:

I am psychologically minded, so very different but it does help because, um, I mean, we talk a lot about person centered therapy and marriage and family therapy. We talk about like the answers are within the people. You just need to talk and be a soundboard, help them work through it. And, um, you know, in my jobs I work with seniors but also their families, and their families are the ones caretaking and making decisions and they know what they want. They know what mom really wants in their heart of hearts, but they're just in denial or they don't want to let go and they have all these barriers that block them. So by being there, I'm just there to listen, Like they already know what they want to do. I'm not going to tell them what the best thing to do is. That's up to them. So I think that skillset is really good to have in those conversations with families just to let, to guide them to do what they already know they need to do essentially, yeah, yeah, I like that it's.

Speaker 1:

it gives you kind of the room to be able to have more of a conversation with them, rather than like having a clinical mind. You're like no, these things need to happen. Versus I feel like a psychology background. You're almost more like curious, of like, oh well, why do you feel that way or why? And it just helps really pull from them exactly what they, like you said, the things that they know inside don't want to say you're able to kind of help get that out of them.

Speaker 2:

which is cool.

Speaker 1:

What, as you've worked with families, are some of the most common misconceptions that families have when they start their senior care journey, and do you feel like they start their senior care journey on time, or is it typically a little bit later than they maybe should have?

Speaker 2:

So that's the biggest barrier that I've in my whole career. This is like the one thing that has surprised me the most, right, I mean, I always thought I would run into problems, seeing like, well, there's just not enough care, or it's too expensive, or families don't, they're in denial, but I think the real problem is there's misconceptions and people don't utilize what's available when they should be. So that's like my whole soapbox whenever I talk about this subject.

Speaker 2:

So the most common misconceptions that I see a lot are. You know, senior livings are stinky, gross, scary hospitals that are dim, there's people yelling, it smells weird.

Speaker 2:

I don't want to put my mom or dad in one of those and I would say maybe 50 or a hundred years ago that's probably true. But, um, as a country, as a world, we've grown a lot and we have smart people that are innovative, and these services have evolved so much over the years that now these communities like the one I work out, I feel like I'm on a cruise ship every day because there's activities going on all day long. There's an ice cream bar here that I'm gaining weight every day eating at. I mean we have clubs based off the residents goals and hobbies that they have. I mean we really help them thrive.

Speaker 2:

And I think that's a common misconception that families just don't know because they don't ever step foot until it's too late and then they move mom and dad in when they're on hospice and it's near the end of their life and they don't get to benefit from those friendships and activities and life enriching programs. So that's one of them. The other one, the misconception is hospice care. I have a strong love for hospice care. I think it's one of the most beautiful healthcare programs in our country and, having worked in it for a few years, I've really noticed that families utilize it way too late and they just think that it's for when you're actively dying. You know, mom now is on her last string of life and they miss out on all the cool services and all the support they get. And I just saw it every day working in hospice and it made me sad for those families that missed out.

Speaker 1:

We've had. That's actually with hospice I had. There was one client that we were working with that the family didn't want to put them on hospice because that means that she was their love. Their dad was going to die and I was like hospice's goal isn't to like kill your dad, it's the opposite, like their goal is to try to help them get better. Um, so I thought that was a little bit of a funny misconception about hospice is that it has to be like the last little bit of life and their whole point is to transition. But I'm like no, like they want to help and I'll make my little plug here at this.

Speaker 2:

So it's actually been proven, like studies have shown, that by electing hospice their lifespan actually adds up like 15 more days to their life.

Speaker 2:

Wow, because by taking off all those medications and all those extensive, you know treatments that they're doing, and being in and out of hospitals and adjusting to all that, by just being home and being comfortable, their body can just breathe and chill and they get to be around family in their own home. They don't have to worry about getting poked and labs done all day long. It actually prolongs their life a little more and their quality of life is just way better. So I also think, like hospice gets paid a lot of money because they do a ton for the families, right, and every month we get Medicare taxes pulled out of our paychecks and this is when we get to, like, really see the rewards of it, because you get a doctor assigned to you, a nurse assigned to you, an aid assigned to you. They're there at your beckoning call If you ever have an emergency or need them. And I just think families don't understand that until they're in it and then when they're in it, they're like, wow, this is really cool.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, my grandma passed away almost two years ago now and she was on hospice for about nine months. It was really cool to see the amount of support that she had from this hospice company that made it so. That way she has 10 kids, but all the daughters were able to kind of be there for more like homemaker and to be daughter rather than yes and nurse and and all these things.

Speaker 1:

So I think that it is a super underutilized tool. Um, in your experience, when do you feel like family should start planning for care? Because I to be more proactive? I think we're still in the elderly or in the aging. 95% of the people are reactive of like, oh crap, mom fell, what do I do? Or oh no, you know, dementia got is starting. What do I do? Versus how do we? How can families be more proactive as everybody gets old?

Speaker 2:

So yeah, I mean, that's, that's the golden question, right, like when is the right time to start planning? And I truly think there's never one right time. But I also think it's so good to be proactive. Like you, look at new moms or expecting moms when they're pregnant, they're so excited, they like remodel the nursery and they start reading all these books and they get excited. And we should kind of do like incorporate that love and knowledge into this, into this stage of life too, right? Like I even think when my parents turned 65, which they're coming up on in the next 10 ish years or so and when they turned 65, we're all going to have a big family dinner and say, okay, let's talk about this.

Speaker 2:

Obviously you're not passing away anytime soon and you're not declining yet. You're still young and active. But now that Medicare is covering you and you're retired, let's talk about all the scenarios that could happen and how you would want me to help with that, because maybe what I would think is best for you and what I want for you is not what you do, so let's talk about that now, in case something were to happen in the next few years, right? Or maybe someone gets diagnosed with early onset dementia and you just would never think that because they're so young and healthy and active. Maybe after you get that diagnosis it might be tricky and hard to have that conversation, but if you do it in like a loving light and a good space to just talk about it, I think that's the best way to just get it out in the open, start talking about it, and then you realize it's not as scary and ugly as you think it is and then you can be ready, prepared.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, I love that example of like at 65, most people are relatively still in independent and they're still they ski they're still skiing, you know yeah.

Speaker 1:

But it's like it's okay to have that conversation and be like let's look at all of these, um, all of the different scenarios that could happen over the next. You know, heaven forbid next year, but the next 20, 30 years, who knows how old you're going to get? But these things are eventually going to happen. You know, let's make a game plan. How can we be the most supportive as a family, as kids and things? I like that example of an expecting mom, because I wanted to add to that list of you know, redoing the nursery, all of that, like they go above and they have enough clothes for like eight kids by the time the baby gets, there, he gets so excited.

Speaker 1:

It's like way over prepared and then you have the kid and it's like obviously a lot of work, but you're prepared for it, so it's a lot of fun. Versus the opposite end, where it's like we're way under prepared and it is like some work with, depending on the situation, to have an aging loved one. But being prepared can make it a lot easier. So I like that example.

Speaker 2:

And like when you're, when your child is being born, it's so exciting and then people think passing away is so sad and dark and gloomy. But it's not like, it's a beautiful part and like usually by then they've lived a fruitful, good life and they're ready to go up to their sweetheart and take on the next stage and I think we need to like be proud of them. They've lived such a long, healthy life, they've had their children, they've done their roles that they needed to do, and so let's be excited about that and let's plan and make it the best, most fruitful experience for them. We should treat it equally right. I just hate that we're so hush hush about death and passing and aging in general, like getting old is so frowned upon now and we should celebrate it. It shows that you're like wiser and you've accomplished a lot more and we've made it another day. You know, maybe I'm weird for thinking that way.

Speaker 1:

No, I think I agree and I think having that preparation or like those conversations early make it easier because then if you have that conversation at 65 and your mom and dad live until 85, 90, that's like a whole lifetime of memories that they can have and you don't have to like it's not a hard, um, every new milestone that they hit as they get older isn't a hard, uncomfortable conversation, like they're retired and they're super involved in your life and it's like 25 years of having just awesome memories. And it makes it easier to transition rather than, um, just avoiding. You know they're never going to die, they're never going to die, they're never going to get older. And then it does happen and it's a really sad, hard thing because we're not fully experiencing it the whole time. So I like that a lot. I agree that it could be a happy thing. I do want to talk um you're launching a course in seven-ish days seven days, actually seven days today.

Speaker 1:

You're right One week next Thursday called Senior Pathways. So what inspired you to make that? And then, what do you cover in Senior Pathways?

Speaker 2:

Okay, so I'll give you the little rundown of how this all started marinating in my brain. But so in my program we had to do a thesis project or a paper, and I'm much more of a project person than I am a writer. So I went the project route and I put together a course for um caregivers of dementia patients. But it was focusing on self-care, like how to, you know, take care of yourself and to build a good relationship with your care recipient while you're caregiving, and I was really proud of it. I thought I put a lot of work into it and it was needed. But then, once I started working in the field, I realized that the people that this would target don't really need to learn how to take deep breaths and how to plant a garden with mom and dad. They need to learn what the heck is available, where to start, who to call, what do I have to pay for versus what's insurance covered? All these things.

Speaker 2:

And then, having worked in the field, I was a hospice and home health liaison. So a hospital would call me and say, hey, we have a patient that's declining and needs your services. Come talk to them about it. So I would come in specifically to talk about home health or hospice. But I would leave and I, you know, gotten them in contact with the new geriatric doctor and told them about an assisted living and like, got the family set up with a therapist, like I just was a resource person for all of them, which is totally not my job description, but I mean no one else was helping him with that.

Speaker 2:

So I thought, wow, these family members. And then in my own family too, my grandma was my grandpa's main caregiver and she did not know where to go. Um, the senior centers have some great um support groups to go to, but in there they just kind of share stories and help each other and empathize, which is so great. We need a space for that. But my grandma would leave saying I just don't know like he needs a therapist to help him when do I find that?

Speaker 1:

How do I do that? So you'll have to take care of him all day, every day.

Speaker 2:

Yes, like, do I need to do this? Like he's waking up in the middle of the night going to the fridge, like, what do I do? So so for that reason, when I started this job or actually, funny enough, I quit my previous position in October and I took three months off to just go travel, learn more about what I want to do, kind of where my skills will fit in. And then I found this role and got really excited about it and they are giving me the freedom and creativity and space to do this project on the side. But it can also go hand in hand with our community, because we have a great event space and we can hold those programs here. So that's how this all started. Then I just started ramping up, putting the program together. I utilized another dementia specialist in the community. That's really smart and we're putting our heads together and put this program together.

Speaker 1:

So that's where we're at. That's awesome. So what? As you've done your research and putting this project together and this awesome resource, what are? Some of the resources that you've found are most often underutilized by family. You mentioned hospice often is getting used too late. Assisted livings often have a terrible image because of the 70s. But what other resources are out there that people could be using but just typically aren't because they don't know about it?

Speaker 2:

Yeah. So hospice will always be my number one answer for that. I mean not even just because I worked in that field, but I also just I just see that every day, um, there's. I mean I think every resource could be utilized more. I totally do, like you guys work in. I mean we have a personal care agency and I think those are awesome. My family utilizes those first. Some families just don't know that that's available. They don't know what that cost looks like, they don't know that they could just have a couple hours a day versus needing them 24 seven. You know those companies could benefit a lot.

Speaker 2:

I think assisted livings, I think that stigma we're still beating those myths and I think a lot of families think if I need to move mom into a building, that means I can't take care of them and she's going to think I'm neglecting her and not loving her, but it's so fun. But since I've been here, I've also worked in another facility or assisted living community in DC and since I've been working in these settings I noticed that families move them in and they come and visit and then they get to visit and just be mom or sorry, just be daughter or be niece and they get to go walk around and play games with mom and come to do all the events and eat lunch with her, but you know, changing briefs and showering and taking meds can be done by our team, so they get to just be daughter, and then mom has friends here and has a whole new group of support and socialization. So, man, I think they're just really underutilized, truly.

Speaker 1:

Yeah.

Speaker 2:

And then my last little plug for that one. I'm actually a personal trainer too and I have emphasis in senior fitness, and having worked in you know home health hospice, I see that patients, as they get older, they don't know how to exercise anymore. Their bodies don't work the same, so they just kind of stop exercising and stop moving and then they get more stiff, they have more falls, they get more diseases, they get more sick and then their last days aren't as quality as they should be. So I think physical therapists and senior personal trainers are really, really helpful and should be utilized more to help them exercise and be happy.

Speaker 1:

I agree with that. My grandpa, one of my grandpas, he's turning 90 in June and he's you know, he's still moving around. He's like I'd get up the stairs slower but he's still like he has this junk trailer that he just fills up and takes to the landfill once a month or something. Just like, continue to move, because that's one of the best things me. But I'm fairly certain there was like a study or a correlation between muscle density in older adults and like longevity, uh, dementia, all these other things. Like it showed, um, the basically the quad, the thigh muscles of an old man that worked out and how dense it was and kind of his life compared to one that was more sedentary and his life compared to one that was more sedentary and his life. And it's just interesting, like you don't have to be some crazy gym rat at 90 or something, but like continue to move. You know, pick up cans of beans or something. You move, use your muscles a little bit. I think goes a long way.

Speaker 2:

So yeah, and we could do a whole podcast and I would just geek out with you about longevity and like exercise and fitness and nutrition. I mean, I'm a big longevity nerd and it's so right. Muscle is medicine. There's so many podcasts and new studies that are coming out talking about that and how muscle density and strength training is something that like back in the day it was all just cardio and eat less carbs and eat less fat, you know. And now it's like no, we need muscle, we need strength and that like helps every aspect of your body and your mind, you know. So totally agree with that. That's sweet.

Speaker 1:

You mentioned kind of in this resource that you also talk through. Once you're on Medicare, the world opens up as far as different things like that. So how can families better understand the difference between what is covered by insurance or by Medicare and then what private pay options are out there? Like you said, a lot of families for companies like Helperly we work with insurances but also out of pocket and people just don't know that it exists. So it's crazy how long different industries have been around and yet people are still like, oh my gosh, this is a genius idea and it's like well kind of, but also people just don't talk about it.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, oh, it's been around for a hundred years. I mean that's that's the golden question is, how can families learn about what's covered and what's not, and what they can afford and not? And I mean, I hate to just say, educate yourself, but that's kind of what they need to do. They need to just educate themselves. And that's kind of where I'm hoping my class can help with. That gap is coming and learning about it. I think usually so in hospitals, when whenever a patient's admitted whether whether you're a newborn or you're a senior you're always assigned a case manager and those case managers help set you up with resources. After, usually, they're the ones that are insurance covered right.

Speaker 2:

Yeah, um, insurance pays for your hospital stay and they usually do continuum of care moving forward to therapy, whether that's outpatient or in home health therapy, so those case managers can be great resources. Doctors know a little here and there, but that's not what they studied. And they're meeting with the patient for 15 minutes. They can't go over everything.

Speaker 2:

And they don't know about all the private pay services and all the cool new services that have been created in the last few years. So I mean, it's kind of up to us professionals to really do some more outreach and reach out and to the families to, you know, poke their head out and, you know, listen to podcasts, like you guys that have started and, you know, just call up local agencies and say, hey, like how much do you guys charge if I were to have this need? And by having those early conversations when mom and dad are 65, not when they're 90 and just had a fall, that gives them time to just be aware and keep their ears open and research and understand what's available. But man, it really it's hard. It's hard to know unless you're really in the field or you're like you're aware of it, right.

Speaker 1:

Yeah, and I think that families should there should be less of a worry or a stigma. I've, like you said when you were in marketing for forever you'd go in, but you were there to be as a resource and I think families should be okay with having an assessment. You know, have a home health company come in and be like I'd love to get an assessment done. They're not going to.

Speaker 1:

you know, use car salesman, pressure you into getting care or something like come and let them somebody that's in the space say these are all the things that are available to you whenever you need them, and I feel like nine, 99 times out of a hundred, whatever company you have come in. That's what the conversation is going to be like. They're not going to be like and let's, we'll get somebody in here tomorrow. You know like, just talk to them.

Speaker 2:

Most people are pretty well connected within the industry right. If you're talking to a home health liaison. They know assisted livings because they market to them. They know personal care agencies they market to them. So they all have networks that they're in and can be really good tools to help you get started.

Speaker 1:

But yeah, what's been one of the most rewarding moments in your career so far.

Speaker 2:

Oh, man, that's I know. When you, when you asked me that or when I saw that question I got, I really started to reflect back because truly, man, I'm in the best field. I really will never lose my history and I was trying to think of one like monumental moment that I was like this is the most rewarding thing and I think it's just the daily little conversations that I have with the resident. I try to make time every day to spend 20 minutes with the resident or so and just get to know him a little more and that fills my bucket. But as far as like a whole career, like my one proudest moment was when I worked for that home health and hospice agency. And there's a, there's a hospital here in Murray that they're an intermountain hospital and they have their own home health and hospice agency that they use 90% of the time Right and um, everyone at my company said, oh, you can try and market there, but they're kind of tough, they'll probably not use us, you know.

Speaker 2:

But I was able to find a connection through someone and um, go to meet all the case managers. They have three on every floor and they have like 12 floors, but I made relationships with like four or five of the floors, and I think what really helps them see the value in using my company is that I was willing to be there every day if I needed to be, and I would be that resource. I wasn't there to just get the paperwork, close the deal. I was there to talk to the family and set them up with something else too and be a listening ear. And I was there to talk to the family and set them up with something else too and be a listening ear. And they saw that in me and so they would use me a lot. And that became our top producing account for our company, which was really fun from a business perspective and I just it filled my altruistic bucket because I got to help people every day instead of just cold call.

Speaker 1:

So yeah, that's awesome. I think that's a huge lesson for marketers in the industry of just being available as a resource, rather than the guy that you know brings in coffee or something once a month being like I'm still here, like be an actual resource and and things will come back around, you know, and tenfold People can smell and they can sense where your heart really lies.

Speaker 2:

You know, it's not that hard to weed out the people that just want their paycheck versus wants to help. So that's all the difference.

Speaker 1:

That's awesome. The timer went off, which is crazy, but how can listeners join the course that you've made or connect with you if they are interested in learning more?

Speaker 2:

Yeah, so I have a Facebook page for it. It's called Senior Pathways and we're holding it so it's the first Thursday of every month, from 537 or 530 to seven as of right now. That may change based off the um is it virtual?

Speaker 1:

Is it going to be at Abington?

Speaker 2:

No, it'll just be Abington. So the goal is to get them here so that they can get to see other people that are kind of in their same shoes and they can stay and ask questions after. I feel like their attention is more here when they're present. Yeah, and also, so my whole presentation. We talk about it's in three phases.

Speaker 2:

Phase one, we talk about dementia what the stages of dementia are, what to expect in those stages and how to intervene, and kind of like a little to-do list of what to do as a caregiver in those stages. And then part two, we're going to talk about a majority of the resources available, so home health versus personal care versus assisted living, um, placement agencies. We just talk about everything available. And then part three, I leave open for questions. So if they, you know, have a question they want answered based off what we talked about, we can. And then I it's not endorsed by any company, it's not funded by a company. There's, it's not a sales pitch. Um, however, at the end I will have tables in the back that have brochures to each service that we mentioned in the program, so that they can at least have a starting point and start interviewing calling around. Maybe they don't go with any of the services on the table, but it's just, you know something to start with, um, and so we have a few vendors that'll bring stuff, set it up and then leave.

Speaker 2:

They're not going to be there to bombard anyone. Um, so yeah, it's just once a month you can. I mean it's the same course each time. The goal is to just keep it minimalistic show up, get the information you need, get some phone numbers and then go from there you know.

Speaker 1:

Just a starting point, and so the first one is next Thursday. At what time?

Speaker 2:

Yep, may 1st, 5, 30 PM at here at the Abington and Murray.

Speaker 1:

That's awesome. I think I might actually come to that. That'd be fun.

Speaker 2:

It's going to be a good time.

Speaker 1:

Cool. Well, kayla, it's been really fun. Um, and I think insightful and big takeaways is get prepared, you know, uh, educate yourself early, make plans early. Resources are out there. Um, and then for people in the space is to be somebody that's there with the right reasons and just there to give and support and help, and that's the best way that you can create, um, that network and create an impact, a long lasting impact for everybody that we come in contact with as senior care providers. So I feel like it's just been a really good conversation and episode.

Speaker 2:

So, yeah, thank you, caleb. It's a pleasure talking to you. You guys do some good work out there. I see you out there.

Speaker 1:

Well, thanks, thanks, awesome. Well, this was so great.