September 10, 2025 • 22 mins
Alzheimer's and dementia aren't just elderly diseases anymore. This eye-opening conversation with Kemar Brown from Comfort Keepers reveals how these conditions increasingly affect people as young as their 50s, creating new challenges for unprepared families.
The podcast delves into the emotional journey families face when witnessing a loved one transform from occasional forgetfulness to profound cognitive decline. Kemar shares powerful insights about how personality changes and loss of independence create dual burdens - the practical demands of caregiving alongside the heartbreak of watching someone you love become unrecognizable to themselves and others.
Drawing from personal and professional experience, the discussion offers practical guidance for those noticing early warning signs. From consulting physicians to implementing cognitive stimulation strategies, listeners gain actionable steps to potentially slow progression. The conversation highlights how maintaining physical and mental activity serves as both preventative measure and management technique for those already diagnosed.
Perhaps most valuable is the detailed breakdown of available resources, particularly the newly launched Medicare GUIDE program providing up to 90 hours of free annual in-home care for eligible individuals. Kemar walks through qualification requirements and application processes, offering a lifeline to overwhelmed caregivers seeking respite.
Beyond practical advice, this episode delivers a profound reminder about preserving dignity. "They were once normal, just like you and I," Kemar emphasizes, encouraging caregivers to remember the person behind the diagnosis by looking at old photographs and hearing stories of who they were before the disease.
Whether you're currently caring for someone with cognitive decline or concerned about potential symptoms in yourself or a loved one, this conversation provides both the practical roadmap and emotional compass needed to navigate these challenging conditions with compassion and effectiveness. Have you noticed concerning memory changes in someone close to you? Don't wait - early intervention makes all the difference.
Please visit our website for more information: https://www.comfortkeepers.com/offices/florida/davie/
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:01):
Welcome to the Comfort Keepers.
Speaker 2 (00:03):
Davy podcast where we elevate the human spirit.
Here's your host, christyGroulet.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
Well, hello, hello, hello everyone.
Welcome back to another episodeof the Comfort Keepers Davy
podcast.
Unfortunately, in case youhaven't noticed, I am not
Christy Grulay, but I'm JeremyWolfe, and today we're joined by
Kamar Brown from the team atComfort Keepers.
And if you're out there andyou've had a loved one, a family
(00:35):
member, friends, somebody thathas suffered from dementia,
alzheimer's, you would know thatthese are no joking matter.
Myself, my grandmother,actually suffered from
Alzheimer's many years back andI experienced firsthand what
that does to somebody.
And you know, it's reallyhelpful to kind of look at these
things through the lens of acaregiver, somebody that you
(00:58):
know is on the ground dealingwith this day to day.
And that's really what we'regoing to get into today.
We're going to talk about, youknow, how to deal with these
issues with your family members,your friends.
We're going to give you someactionable tips, tricks, things
that you can do, and then we'regoing to talk about resources
that are available out there.
So, kumar, good to see youagain.
My man, you ready to get intothis.
Thank you, good to see you.
Speaker 2 (01:19):
Good seeing you too.
Yes, for sure.
Speaker 1 (01:31):
Let yes, for sure, let's get into it.
Speaker 2 (01:32):
Okay, so let's start off, kamar.
What would you say are some ofthe biggest misconceptions that
people have around Alzheimer'sand dementia?
I think the biggest one,straight off the bat, is that it
only affects old people, and byold I mean old is the term, old
is relative, and by old I meanold is term, old is relative,
but we're seeing it so rampantnow, so common in persons
younger in their 50s, early 60sand traditionally we were seeing
(01:59):
it in older folks, you know,yes, it comes to my mind right
when I think of these thingsbecause, like I said, my
grandmother had that.
Speaker 1 (02:04):
She was already an elderly woman at that point.
You're not really thinking thatpeople are getting this when
they're younger.
Why do you think it is thatmore and more young people I
mean?
We have better technologynowadays, better medicine.
We understand these thingspresumably better.
Speaker 2 (02:18):
Why do you?
Speaker 1 (02:18):
think it is that more people are being affected by
this at younger ages.
Speaker 2 (02:22):
You know, I wish I knew, Jeremy.
My thought would be I don'tknow, maybe it's the diet, maybe
it's the food, I don't know,but for some reason we're seeing
it affecting persons at ayounger age.
Speaker 1 (02:37):
You know, not too sure, but we're here to help,
that's all I know the jury'sstill out on this stuff because
nowadays, right everybody'splugged into electronics.
Just constant dopamine, quickfix.
Everything around our societyis geared towards instant
gratification and quick fix, sogod only knows what that's going
to do to the human mind.
(02:57):
Certainly it can't be apositive thing be plugged in all
the time.
Yeah, lots going on there, man.
Speaker 2 (03:06):
Yeah, it's definitely not the greatest thing, but
again we're seeing it in personsyounger, so much younger but
again we're here to help andwe've been helping changing the
lives of persons that we've comein contact with that are
suffering from this disease, andit's yeah, it's not a great
(03:30):
thing at all.
Speaker 1 (03:32):
So, kamar, you're someone that is on the ground
dealing with this stuff.
Right, you're dealing with thisday to day.
What are some of the biggestchallenges that you're seeing
out in the field that familiesare facing when caring for those
with dementia, alzheimer's?
Speaker 2 (03:49):
It's a host of things , jeremy.
It is.
For one.
It's seeing their family member, their loved one, their mom,
their dad, their aunt, theiruncle, progressing from just a
little bit of memory lapse intofull-blown Alzheimer's or
dementia in sometimes a veryshort period of time.
(04:09):
It's them changing.
Their whole personality ischanging.
Essentially, they are becominga child again, not being able to
do anything for themselves, notremembering where they are, not
remembering sometimes who thesepersons are, their loved one,
and it's extremely challenging Alot of family members.
It's very hard for them toadjust to these changes,
(04:31):
especially when it's happeningso fast, and it's very hard for
them to accept it.
So I think those are some ofthe most common things that
we're running into just familymembers accepting, um, the
diagnosis, or sometimes theythey aren't even, uh, they
haven't gotten a full diagnosis,but just seeing these changes
(04:54):
in them, it's, it's sometimesvery hard for them to accept,
you know yeah, it can be very,very scary, difficult,
challenging.
Speaker 1 (05:02):
uh, so much to deal with, right, right, we all got
our own stuff going on and thenyou have a loved one that's
suffering like this and you gotto deal with that on top of
everything that's going on inlife.
So bring comfort keepers intothe equation.
What kind of support do youguys offer?
Like I'm sitting out there, godforbid somebody my mother or
(05:23):
father, somebody gets one ofthese situations, one of these
diseases, and I pick up thephone, I call Comfort Keepers, I
say I need some help with this.
Like, what does that look like?
Walk us through.
What kind of support youprovide over there?
Speaker 2 (05:36):
Yeah, great question.
So, first and foremost, wewould kind of get an idea of
what is going on, the totalityof what's happening with your
loved one, to see if we are theright fit.
Oftentimes we want to help, butif you're looking for things
(05:56):
that we are not necessarily theright fit for, we would probably
steer you in another direction.
We'll help you nonetheless, butlet's say we are coming on
board to help you.
You know, we'd find out what itis that's going on with your
loved one and we would meet withyou in person.
Meet with them, get a feel oftheir personality, because
that's a big part of what we dois sending a caregiver that's
(06:20):
best suited for that person andindividuals that we notice that
are going through suffering fromAlzheimer's dementia.
They oftentimes do not likechange, they hate it.
It's a big, big, big big thingfor them.
But it gets so overwhelming forthe loved ones, for their
family members, for theirdaughters, for their sons.
They essentially want to be achild again and not be a
(06:44):
caregiver, but their mother orwhoever is suffering from this
requires sometimes 24-hour careand they're unable to do that
and it's overwhelming for them.
So comfort keepers will come into see.
We essentially meet them andthey're unable to do that and
it's overwhelming for them.
So comfort keepers will come into see.
We essentially meet them wherethey're at, whatever their needs
are.
They need us for a few hours tocome in, help them with their
daily living activities, helpthem shower, eat, dress,
(07:08):
stimulate them cognitively.
That's a big part of what we doplaying board games with them,
just being a companion to them.
That has shown so much, youknow, change in the clients that
we service right now that aresuffering from that.
Speaker 1 (07:32):
Yes, speaking of likements, where like, like dorm
laying dormant and not havingactivity leads to like you got
to keep your mind stimulated,you got to keep engaged and
isn't that something that you do?
And I encourage folks out there, like, don't wait until it gets
too late to deal with thisstuff.
Right, you got to stay active,you got to have a good diet, you
got to do all thesepreventative measures so that
(07:53):
you don't end up in cognitivedecline, because, so, this is a
lot of this stuff, I guess, isgenetic.
I'm not a doctor or anything,but there's so many different
things that you could do.
I mean, our bodies are ourengines.
Right, the better you take careof yourself, the less likely
you're going to have to dealwith this.
So, kumar, what if I'm noticingsome decline in a loved one?
If I'm noticing some decline ina loved one, maybe, again, like
(08:15):
I said, one of my parents whatare some things that I can start
doing early on, as soon as Istart to notice on a day-to-day
basis, what are some tips,tricks, things that you've
noticed that have worked to, atthe very least, kind of like,
stay the course of thedevelopment of these afflictions
?
Speaker 2 (08:33):
Well, first and foremost, I would say, contact
your mother or father's primarycare physician to see what's
going on.
If it's something greater thanthey can handle, I'm assuming,
or I'm sure they'll refer you toa neurologist to do further
tests to see, to get a certaindiagnosis of what's going on
with your loved one.
Once that is set, you know that, okay, mom has early onset
(08:59):
dementia, alzheimer's orwhatever it is the next thing to
do would to get them physicallyactive.
If they're not, and if they arecontinue doing so, and if you
can step it up a little, that'seven greater.
Stimulate them, read to them,have them reading, just using
their minds more.
Again, as you said, if you laydormant, you know that's not the
(09:24):
greatest thing to do.
It's only going to have themdeclining even faster.
And if you are unable to dothese things on your own, that's
where we come in.
And again, we are extremelyflexible, able to do these
things on your own, that's wherewe come in.
And again, we are extremelyflexible.
We are not in the business offorcing anyone to take us on for
(09:44):
long periods of the day.
We have clients who we visitthem once or twice per week and
that's all they need right nowand as their situation changes,
then we will adjust accordingly.
But first and foremost, visityour primary care physician and
if you're referred to aneurologist, just have that
diagnosis, you know, set, so youknow what's going on with your
loved one, and then just seeksome help, you know, from us, or
(10:07):
, if you can do it yourself,yeah, really, I mean, this stuff
is so, so frightening assomebody.
Speaker 1 (10:15):
As I get older I'm, you know, say, older, right, I'm
45 now.
But like how many of us havebeen out there, right?
And like you go to therefrigerator and you open the
door to get something and you'rejust like what the hell did I
come here, for it's completelyblackout.
And then you're like, oh my God, am I starting to get dementia
or whatever?
And like just sometimes thatstuff happens.
Or even like the general gardenvariety brain fog, right, we're
on here talking on the podcast,uh, and I think I'm gonna you
(10:37):
know, I know what I'm gonna say.
And then all of a sudden I blankout um man, the other day I was
driving home and I forgot whereI was.
I was in my community, likeI've driven down the road a
thousand times and I was like,for it was like a sheer panic
set in.
So I could only imagine whatit's like to have that, you know
, happen very, very frequentlyand have that in control.
(10:57):
I mean it's got to beunbelievably scary.
So tell us about the guideprogram.
You mentioned that to me.
What is it?
Who is it for?
Speaker 2 (11:10):
Yeah, so the guide program is spearheaded by
Medicare.
Yes, so the guide program isspearheaded by Medicare and it
was spearheaded to provideadditional support to persons
going through Alzheimer'sdementia.
Again, we're seeing it inpersons of much younger ages
compared to years ago.
There are so many I don'tremember the figures, but there
(11:43):
are millions and millions ofpeople suffering from this
disease and persons undiagnosed.
So I'm sure once informationgoes out and there's, you know,
there's more informationsurrounded around Alzheimer's
and dementia there are morepeople that will be, that will
be going to get tested, becausea friend of mine, her aunt, is
showing signs of Alzheimer's butshe is in the denial stage of
what it could be, so she doesn'twant to go to the doctor to get
tested or checked.
So, and there are a lot ofpersons like her, but diagnosed
(12:05):
patients or persons sufferingfrom this disease is in a
million.
So, with that said, the guideprogram is centered around them,
just providing additionalsupport.
It is the guiding and improveddementia experience.
So, again, it's spearheaded byuh, medicare and it's four
persons with the medicare partsa and b.
(12:26):
That's the traditional medicareand it is also it's it's a
respite care program.
So so it's for persons that aretheir loved ones are providing
care for them and their lovedones just need, you know, a
little time off.
It may be you don't have to bedirectly providing hands-on care
If you are in another state andyour mom is in Florida, you're
(12:49):
living in Washington or whereveryou are, but you are directly a
part of booking her doctor'sappointments or anything
centered around her care.
The guide program essentiallywould be for you, so it's one.
They have to have MedicareParts A and B and they have to
(13:09):
be showing some signs ofcognitive decline or a diagnosis
of Alzheimer's or dementia.
Speaker 1 (13:17):
Got it Now.
Is the program resources forthose or additional funding Like
, if I have access to the guideprogram and I qualify for that,
am I going to be able to accessfunding to hire a company such
as Comfort Keepers to come in,or do they have their own
resources in place?
How does that typically work?
Speaker 2 (13:35):
Yeah, yeah, great question.
So yes, the guide programallows you to.
Once you're qualified, it givesyou free in-home care per year
and every year that amount thatyou are awarded or rewarded is
renewed per year.
So now the program just gotstarted officially July of this
year, so it's pretty new.
(13:56):
If you go on their website Ithink you'll see sometime last
year but I think it was still inits beta stage and trial stages
but this year it officially gotkicked off.
So let's say, somebody appliedand was accepted in the program.
Dependent on their level ofcognitive decline, they can be
(14:18):
awarded anywhere from 30 to, Ithink, 90 hours of care per year
.
So it's not a lot when you lookat it on a per year basis, on a
yearly basis, but what it alsoopens up that person to is
24-hour access to a nurse and ahost of other benefits once
they're accepted in this program.
(14:41):
And for the clients that we areutilizing this program, that we
are servicing, they use it assupplemental hours to whatever
they were already receiving.
So it's not significant hours,no, but I'm assuming once the
program grows, the hours willgrow as well.
Speaker 1 (15:03):
Yeah, for sure, and there's so many unbelievable
programs and resources that areavailable out there and often
the problem is there's a lot ofdifficulty and red tape and just
it could be difficult to learnabout these programs and get the
information.
So how does somebody accessthis?
(15:24):
Is this like you go?
I guess you go through thegovernment website.
You just file an applicationthrough there.
Where's the best place to goand submit an application for
the guide program?
Speaker 2 (15:34):
So yes, you can apply from my knowledge on their
website knowledge on theirwebsite but if you want to
utilize the caregiving portionof this program, let's say you
come to an agency like ours likeComfort Keepers and you're like
(15:56):
, hey, we need some help.
My mom suffers from Alzheimer'sor dementia.
I'd find out what's going onwith your mom and essentially
it's pretty simple.
I'll get her Medicare policynumber, her date of birth,
medicare policy number andthat's about it.
I'd submit it and they wouldsee if she's eligible and once
she's eligible an officialintroductory call would be
(16:21):
scheduled with the program forthem to tell you some more about
it.
And once everything is done andyou will be notified when you
can now schedule free in-homecare and you can use all of
those 90 hours at once or youcould use it at four-hour
increments until it's done andthen the following year it will
(16:41):
be renewed.
So one you can apply directlyonline and if you apply directly
through the guide programonline and you want to utilize
the caregiving portion, I thinkthey will look to see what zip
code you're in and see whatcompanies like us are
credentialed with them and kindof direct you and send you in
(17:03):
that direction.
Speaker 1 (17:05):
Right on and if somebody is listening out there
and they have questionsspecifically about the guide
program, could they contactComfort Keepers.
Could you help walk themthrough that process on your end
.
Speaker 2 (17:13):
Definitely definitely Give us a call.
We'll be happy to help you, forsure.
Speaker 1 (17:18):
So, kamar, what would be one thing that you wish
people understood about caringfor someone with Alzheimer's or
dementia?
Speaker 2 (17:31):
One thing that they are people as well and they were
once normal.
I think sometimes we forgetthat these people were normal,
just like you and I.
It's sometimes, and even for me, when I go to a client and I'm
(17:53):
seeing them in their state.
More often than not I didn'tknow them prior to them.
You know suffering from thisdisease, and what I try to do
sometimes is get pictures ofthem, hear stories of them in
their former life, because ithelps me to see who they were
before this disease.
(18:14):
So I think that's the one thingI would say for us to try and
remember that they too were oncenormal, like us, living normal
lives and, with that said, weshould treat them as such.
They need more personalizedcare now, but they're
individuals like you and I,human beings like you and I, and
(18:34):
should be treated as such.
Speaker 1 (18:36):
Yeah, and I can only hope that for those that do
suffer from these terribleafflictions, yeah, and I can
only hope that for those that dosuffer from these, these
terrible afflictions, that theythey're not like when you're
struggling to find somethinglike like, the more you grasp
for it and the more you putpressure on yourself to find the
thing, like when you startforgetting stuff, the more you
suffer.
So I can only hope that at somelevel, when somebody gets
(18:59):
advanced enough in these stages,they're just kind of they're
just there, right, they're not,they're not constantly wondering
oh my God, who am I?
They're just kind of existingin the present, Much like a,
like a, like an animal, like adog does I'm not trying to
compare humans to dogs, but muchlike just like you're just
there, Like you don't know, likeignorance is bliss in that case
, and I know it's still toughfor families, but I can only
(19:19):
hope that that's the majority ofthe time for those that are
affected by this, because youknow the alternative is very
scary.
For sure, For sure.
No, I do agree.
All right, Anything we missed.
Anything else you want to touchup on or touch on before we
wrap up here?
Speaker 2 (19:35):
The only other thing I can think about was probably a
week or two ago.
I was just in the office makingcalls, responding to emails,
and I got a call from thiscompany that they are now
running clinical trials centeredaround dementia and Alzheimer's
.
They did round one already andthey're on round two now and
(19:59):
it's a paid clinical trial.
I've never heard of the companybefore.
I didn't know they existed, butyou know they said the
participants of round one sawgreat results.
I remember them saying there isa cure to Alzheimer's and
dementia.
And you know, yeah, they'rerunning clinical trials now and
(20:22):
I don't know if there's anytruth to that.
But it got me excited becausejust seeing again what I
mentioned earlier seeing someonebefore they started getting
this disease and who they arenow sometimes it leaves me
almost in tears, to be honest.
I I I remember coming in frontof a client and she was.
(20:44):
She was in her former life.
She was so accomplished and tosee who she was now it was it
was not the the best thing tosee at all.
So I'm hopeful that there willbe a cure for this disease in
the near future.
And you know, but for now,comfort Keepers is here to help
(21:07):
anyone that's struggling with aloved one that's going through
this, or if they themselves aregoing through it in early stages
.
Again, we will meet youwherever you are.
If you need us for a few hoursper week, that's where we'll
come in Companionship, help youwith all your daily living
activities.
We won't treat you as if youare a child or not a human.
(21:29):
We'll just be there for support.
Speaker 1 (21:33):
Absolutely All right, everyone.
Well, thanks so much for tuningin.
If you found this contentuseful, don't forget to like
subscribe all that fun stuff.
If you've had a personalexperience, don't forget to like
subscribe all that fun stuff.
If you've had a personalexperience with any of these
topics, any of these matters,let us know in the comments, or
let us know your biggesttakeaway.
We always love to get yourfeedback.
Thanks again, everyone fortuning in and we will catch
everyone next time on the nextepisode of the Comfort Keepers
(21:56):
Daily Podcast.
Everyone, take care, have awonderful day, Thank you.
Thank you for listening to theComfort Keepers Davey podcast.
For more information, visitcomfortkeeperscom or call
(22:21):
954-947-7954.
Welcome to the Comfort Keepers.
Speaker 2 (00:03):
Davy podcast where we elevate the human spirit.
Here's your host, christyGroulet.
Speaker 1 (00:13):
Well, hello, hello, hello everyone.
Welcome back to another episodeof the Comfort Keepers Davy
podcast.
Unfortunately, in case youhaven't noticed, I am not
Christy Grulay, but I'm JeremyWolfe, and today we're joined by
Kamar Brown from the team atComfort Keepers.
And if you're out there andyou've had a loved one, a family
(00:35):
member, friends, somebody thathas suffered from dementia,
alzheimer's, you would know thatthese are no joking matter.
Myself, my grandmother,actually suffered from
Alzheimer's many years back andI experienced firsthand what
that does to somebody.
And you know, it's reallyhelpful to kind of look at these
things through the lens of acaregiver, somebody that you
(00:58):
know is on the ground dealingwith this day to day.
And that's really what we'regoing to get into today.
We're going to talk about, youknow, how to deal with these
issues with your family members,your friends.
We're going to give you someactionable tips, tricks, things
that you can do, and then we'regoing to talk about resources
that are available out there.
So, kumar, good to see youagain.
My man, you ready to get intothis.
Thank you, good to see you.
Speaker 2 (01:19):
Good seeing you too.
Yes, for sure.
Speaker 1 (01:31):
Let yes, for sure, let's get into it.
Speaker 2 (01:32):
Okay, so let's start off, kamar.
What would you say are some ofthe biggest misconceptions that
people have around Alzheimer'sand dementia?
I think the biggest one,straight off the bat, is that it
only affects old people, and byold I mean old is the term, old
is relative, and by old I meanold is term, old is relative,
but we're seeing it so rampantnow, so common in persons
younger in their 50s, early 60sand traditionally we were seeing
(01:59):
it in older folks, you know,yes, it comes to my mind right
when I think of these thingsbecause, like I said, my
grandmother had that.
Speaker 1 (02:04):
She was already an elderly woman at that point.
You're not really thinking thatpeople are getting this when
they're younger.
Why do you think it is thatmore and more young people I
mean?
We have better technologynowadays, better medicine.
We understand these thingspresumably better.
Speaker 2 (02:18):
Why do you?
Speaker 1 (02:18):
think it is that more people are being affected by
this at younger ages.
Speaker 2 (02:22):
You know, I wish I knew, Jeremy.
My thought would be I don'tknow, maybe it's the diet, maybe
it's the food, I don't know,but for some reason we're seeing
it affecting persons at ayounger age.
Speaker 1 (02:37):
You know, not too sure, but we're here to help,
that's all I know the jury'sstill out on this stuff because
nowadays, right everybody'splugged into electronics.
Just constant dopamine, quickfix.
Everything around our societyis geared towards instant
gratification and quick fix, sogod only knows what that's going
to do to the human mind.
(02:57):
Certainly it can't be apositive thing be plugged in all
the time.
Yeah, lots going on there, man.
Speaker 2 (03:06):
Yeah, it's definitely not the greatest thing, but
again we're seeing it in personsyounger, so much younger but
again we're here to help andwe've been helping changing the
lives of persons that we've comein contact with that are
suffering from this disease, andit's yeah, it's not a great
(03:30):
thing at all.
Speaker 1 (03:32):
So, kamar, you're someone that is on the ground
dealing with this stuff.
Right, you're dealing with thisday to day.
What are some of the biggestchallenges that you're seeing
out in the field that familiesare facing when caring for those
with dementia, alzheimer's?
Speaker 2 (03:49):
It's a host of things , jeremy.
It is.
For one.
It's seeing their family member, their loved one, their mom,
their dad, their aunt, theiruncle, progressing from just a
little bit of memory lapse intofull-blown Alzheimer's or
dementia in sometimes a veryshort period of time.
(04:09):
It's them changing.
Their whole personality ischanging.
Essentially, they are becominga child again, not being able to
do anything for themselves, notremembering where they are, not
remembering sometimes who thesepersons are, their loved one,
and it's extremely challenging Alot of family members.
It's very hard for them toadjust to these changes,
(04:31):
especially when it's happeningso fast, and it's very hard for
them to accept it.
So I think those are some ofthe most common things that
we're running into just familymembers accepting, um, the
diagnosis, or sometimes theythey aren't even, uh, they
haven't gotten a full diagnosis,but just seeing these changes
(04:54):
in them, it's, it's sometimesvery hard for them to accept,
you know yeah, it can be very,very scary, difficult,
challenging.
Speaker 1 (05:02):
uh, so much to deal with, right, right, we all got
our own stuff going on and thenyou have a loved one that's
suffering like this and you gotto deal with that on top of
everything that's going on inlife.
So bring comfort keepers intothe equation.
What kind of support do youguys offer?
Like I'm sitting out there, godforbid somebody my mother or
(05:23):
father, somebody gets one ofthese situations, one of these
diseases, and I pick up thephone, I call Comfort Keepers, I
say I need some help with this.
Like, what does that look like?
Walk us through.
What kind of support youprovide over there?
Speaker 2 (05:36):
Yeah, great question.
So, first and foremost, wewould kind of get an idea of
what is going on, the totalityof what's happening with your
loved one, to see if we are theright fit.
Oftentimes we want to help, butif you're looking for things
(05:56):
that we are not necessarily theright fit for, we would probably
steer you in another direction.
We'll help you nonetheless, butlet's say we are coming on
board to help you.
You know, we'd find out what itis that's going on with your
loved one and we would meet withyou in person.
Meet with them, get a feel oftheir personality, because
that's a big part of what we dois sending a caregiver that's
(06:20):
best suited for that person andindividuals that we notice that
are going through suffering fromAlzheimer's dementia.
They oftentimes do not likechange, they hate it.
It's a big, big, big big thingfor them.
But it gets so overwhelming forthe loved ones, for their
family members, for theirdaughters, for their sons.
They essentially want to be achild again and not be a
(06:44):
caregiver, but their mother orwhoever is suffering from this
requires sometimes 24-hour careand they're unable to do that
and it's overwhelming for them.
So comfort keepers will come into see.
We essentially meet them andthey're unable to do that and
it's overwhelming for them.
So comfort keepers will come into see.
We essentially meet them wherethey're at, whatever their needs
are.
They need us for a few hours tocome in, help them with their
daily living activities, helpthem shower, eat, dress,
(07:08):
stimulate them cognitively.
That's a big part of what we doplaying board games with them,
just being a companion to them.
That has shown so much, youknow, change in the clients that
we service right now that aresuffering from that.
Speaker 1 (07:32):
Yes, speaking of likements, where like, like dorm
laying dormant and not havingactivity leads to like you got
to keep your mind stimulated,you got to keep engaged and
isn't that something that you do?
And I encourage folks out there, like, don't wait until it gets
too late to deal with thisstuff.
Right, you got to stay active,you got to have a good diet, you
got to do all thesepreventative measures so that
(07:53):
you don't end up in cognitivedecline, because, so, this is a
lot of this stuff, I guess, isgenetic.
I'm not a doctor or anything,but there's so many different
things that you could do.
I mean, our bodies are ourengines.
Right, the better you take careof yourself, the less likely
you're going to have to dealwith this.
So, kumar, what if I'm noticingsome decline in a loved one?
If I'm noticing some decline ina loved one, maybe, again, like
(08:15):
I said, one of my parents whatare some things that I can start
doing early on, as soon as Istart to notice on a day-to-day
basis, what are some tips,tricks, things that you've
noticed that have worked to, atthe very least, kind of like,
stay the course of thedevelopment of these afflictions
?
Speaker 2 (08:33):
Well, first and foremost, I would say, contact
your mother or father's primarycare physician to see what's
going on.
If it's something greater thanthey can handle, I'm assuming,
or I'm sure they'll refer you toa neurologist to do further
tests to see, to get a certaindiagnosis of what's going on
with your loved one.
Once that is set, you know that, okay, mom has early onset
(08:59):
dementia, alzheimer's orwhatever it is the next thing to
do would to get them physicallyactive.
If they're not, and if they arecontinue doing so, and if you
can step it up a little, that'seven greater.
Stimulate them, read to them,have them reading, just using
their minds more.
Again, as you said, if you laydormant, you know that's not the
(09:24):
greatest thing to do.
It's only going to have themdeclining even faster.
And if you are unable to dothese things on your own, that's
where we come in.
And again, we are extremelyflexible, able to do these
things on your own, that's wherewe come in.
And again, we are extremelyflexible.
We are not in the business offorcing anyone to take us on for
(09:44):
long periods of the day.
We have clients who we visitthem once or twice per week and
that's all they need right nowand as their situation changes,
then we will adjust accordingly.
But first and foremost, visityour primary care physician and
if you're referred to aneurologist, just have that
diagnosis, you know, set, so youknow what's going on with your
loved one, and then just seeksome help, you know, from us, or
(10:07):
, if you can do it yourself,yeah, really, I mean, this stuff
is so, so frightening assomebody.
Speaker 1 (10:15):
As I get older I'm, you know, say, older, right, I'm
45 now.
But like how many of us havebeen out there, right?
And like you go to therefrigerator and you open the
door to get something and you'rejust like what the hell did I
come here, for it's completelyblackout.
And then you're like, oh my God, am I starting to get dementia
or whatever?
And like just sometimes thatstuff happens.
Or even like the general gardenvariety brain fog, right, we're
on here talking on the podcast,uh, and I think I'm gonna you
(10:37):
know, I know what I'm gonna say.
And then all of a sudden I blankout um man, the other day I was
driving home and I forgot whereI was.
I was in my community, likeI've driven down the road a
thousand times and I was like,for it was like a sheer panic
set in.
So I could only imagine whatit's like to have that, you know
, happen very, very frequentlyand have that in control.
(10:57):
I mean it's got to beunbelievably scary.
So tell us about the guideprogram.
You mentioned that to me.
What is it?
Who is it for?
Speaker 2 (11:10):
Yeah, so the guide program is spearheaded by
Medicare.
Yes, so the guide program isspearheaded by Medicare and it
was spearheaded to provideadditional support to persons
going through Alzheimer'sdementia.
Again, we're seeing it inpersons of much younger ages
compared to years ago.
There are so many I don'tremember the figures, but there
(11:43):
are millions and millions ofpeople suffering from this
disease and persons undiagnosed.
So I'm sure once informationgoes out and there's, you know,
there's more informationsurrounded around Alzheimer's
and dementia there are morepeople that will be, that will
be going to get tested, becausea friend of mine, her aunt, is
showing signs of Alzheimer's butshe is in the denial stage of
what it could be, so she doesn'twant to go to the doctor to get
tested or checked.
So, and there are a lot ofpersons like her, but diagnosed
(12:05):
patients or persons sufferingfrom this disease is in a
million.
So, with that said, the guideprogram is centered around them,
just providing additionalsupport.
It is the guiding and improveddementia experience.
So, again, it's spearheaded byuh, medicare and it's four
persons with the medicare partsa and b.
(12:26):
That's the traditional medicareand it is also it's it's a
respite care program.
So so it's for persons that aretheir loved ones are providing
care for them and their lovedones just need, you know, a
little time off.
It may be you don't have to bedirectly providing hands-on care
If you are in another state andyour mom is in Florida, you're
(12:49):
living in Washington or whereveryou are, but you are directly a
part of booking her doctor'sappointments or anything
centered around her care.
The guide program essentiallywould be for you, so it's one.
They have to have MedicareParts A and B and they have to
(13:09):
be showing some signs ofcognitive decline or a diagnosis
of Alzheimer's or dementia.
Speaker 1 (13:17):
Got it Now.
Is the program resources forthose or additional funding Like
, if I have access to the guideprogram and I qualify for that,
am I going to be able to accessfunding to hire a company such
as Comfort Keepers to come in,or do they have their own
resources in place?
How does that typically work?
Speaker 2 (13:35):
Yeah, yeah, great question.
So yes, the guide programallows you to.
Once you're qualified, it givesyou free in-home care per year
and every year that amount thatyou are awarded or rewarded is
renewed per year.
So now the program just gotstarted officially July of this
year, so it's pretty new.
(13:56):
If you go on their website Ithink you'll see sometime last
year but I think it was still inits beta stage and trial stages
but this year it officially gotkicked off.
So let's say, somebody appliedand was accepted in the program.
Dependent on their level ofcognitive decline, they can be
(14:18):
awarded anywhere from 30 to, Ithink, 90 hours of care per year
.
So it's not a lot when you lookat it on a per year basis, on a
yearly basis, but what it alsoopens up that person to is
24-hour access to a nurse and ahost of other benefits once
they're accepted in this program.
(14:41):
And for the clients that we areutilizing this program, that we
are servicing, they use it assupplemental hours to whatever
they were already receiving.
So it's not significant hours,no, but I'm assuming once the
program grows, the hours willgrow as well.
Speaker 1 (15:03):
Yeah, for sure, and there's so many unbelievable
programs and resources that areavailable out there and often
the problem is there's a lot ofdifficulty and red tape and just
it could be difficult to learnabout these programs and get the
information.
So how does somebody accessthis?
(15:24):
Is this like you go?
I guess you go through thegovernment website.
You just file an applicationthrough there.
Where's the best place to goand submit an application for
the guide program?
Speaker 2 (15:34):
So yes, you can apply from my knowledge on their
website knowledge on theirwebsite but if you want to
utilize the caregiving portionof this program, let's say you
come to an agency like ours likeComfort Keepers and you're like
(15:56):
, hey, we need some help.
My mom suffers from Alzheimer'sor dementia.
I'd find out what's going onwith your mom and essentially
it's pretty simple.
I'll get her Medicare policynumber, her date of birth,
medicare policy number andthat's about it.
I'd submit it and they wouldsee if she's eligible and once
she's eligible an officialintroductory call would be
(16:21):
scheduled with the program forthem to tell you some more about
it.
And once everything is done andyou will be notified when you
can now schedule free in-homecare and you can use all of
those 90 hours at once or youcould use it at four-hour
increments until it's done andthen the following year it will
(16:41):
be renewed.
So one you can apply directlyonline and if you apply directly
through the guide programonline and you want to utilize
the caregiving portion, I thinkthey will look to see what zip
code you're in and see whatcompanies like us are
credentialed with them and kindof direct you and send you in
(17:03):
that direction.
Speaker 1 (17:05):
Right on and if somebody is listening out there
and they have questionsspecifically about the guide
program, could they contactComfort Keepers.
Could you help walk themthrough that process on your end
.
Speaker 2 (17:13):
Definitely definitely Give us a call.
We'll be happy to help you, forsure.
Speaker 1 (17:18):
So, kamar, what would be one thing that you wish
people understood about caringfor someone with Alzheimer's or
dementia?
Speaker 2 (17:31):
One thing that they are people as well and they were
once normal.
I think sometimes we forgetthat these people were normal,
just like you and I.
It's sometimes, and even for me, when I go to a client and I'm
(17:53):
seeing them in their state.
More often than not I didn'tknow them prior to them.
You know suffering from thisdisease, and what I try to do
sometimes is get pictures ofthem, hear stories of them in
their former life, because ithelps me to see who they were
before this disease.
(18:14):
So I think that's the one thingI would say for us to try and
remember that they too were oncenormal, like us, living normal
lives and, with that said, weshould treat them as such.
They need more personalizedcare now, but they're
individuals like you and I,human beings like you and I, and
(18:34):
should be treated as such.
Speaker 1 (18:36):
Yeah, and I can only hope that for those that do
suffer from these terribleafflictions, yeah, and I can
only hope that for those that dosuffer from these, these
terrible afflictions, that theythey're not like when you're
struggling to find somethinglike like, the more you grasp
for it and the more you putpressure on yourself to find the
thing, like when you startforgetting stuff, the more you
suffer.
So I can only hope that at somelevel, when somebody gets
(18:59):
advanced enough in these stages,they're just kind of they're
just there, right, they're not,they're not constantly wondering
oh my God, who am I?
They're just kind of existingin the present, Much like a,
like a, like an animal, like adog does I'm not trying to
compare humans to dogs, but muchlike just like you're just
there, Like you don't know, likeignorance is bliss in that case
, and I know it's still toughfor families, but I can only
(19:19):
hope that that's the majority ofthe time for those that are
affected by this, because youknow the alternative is very
scary.
For sure, For sure.
No, I do agree.
All right, Anything we missed.
Anything else you want to touchup on or touch on before we
wrap up here?
Speaker 2 (19:35):
The only other thing I can think about was probably a
week or two ago.
I was just in the office makingcalls, responding to emails,
and I got a call from thiscompany that they are now
running clinical trials centeredaround dementia and Alzheimer's
.
They did round one already andthey're on round two now and
(19:59):
it's a paid clinical trial.
I've never heard of the companybefore.
I didn't know they existed, butyou know they said the
participants of round one sawgreat results.
I remember them saying there isa cure to Alzheimer's and
dementia.
And you know, yeah, they'rerunning clinical trials now and
(20:22):
I don't know if there's anytruth to that.
But it got me excited becausejust seeing again what I
mentioned earlier seeing someonebefore they started getting
this disease and who they arenow sometimes it leaves me
almost in tears, to be honest.
I I I remember coming in frontof a client and she was.
(20:44):
She was in her former life.
She was so accomplished and tosee who she was now it was it
was not the the best thing tosee at all.
So I'm hopeful that there willbe a cure for this disease in
the near future.
And you know, but for now,comfort Keepers is here to help
(21:07):
anyone that's struggling with aloved one that's going through
this, or if they themselves aregoing through it in early stages
.
Again, we will meet youwherever you are.
If you need us for a few hoursper week, that's where we'll
come in Companionship, help youwith all your daily living
activities.
We won't treat you as if youare a child or not a human.
(21:29):
We'll just be there for support.
Speaker 1 (21:33):
Absolutely All right, everyone.
Well, thanks so much for tuningin.
If you found this contentuseful, don't forget to like
subscribe all that fun stuff.
If you've had a personalexperience, don't forget to like
subscribe all that fun stuff.
If you've had a personalexperience with any of these
topics, any of these matters,let us know in the comments, or
let us know your biggesttakeaway.
We always love to get yourfeedback.
Thanks again, everyone fortuning in and we will catch
everyone next time on the nextepisode of the Comfort Keepers
(21:56):
Daily Podcast.
Everyone, take care, have awonderful day, Thank you.
Thank you for listening to theComfort Keepers Davey podcast.
For more information, visitcomfortkeeperscom or call
(22:21):
954-947-7954.
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