Santa Cruz, CA - Close to 6 million Americans live more than an hour away from an aging parent or loved one that they are caring for. This number will increase, as by 2030 one of every five Americans will be over age 65. These valiant caregivers find themselves responsible for communicating with doctors and family members, coordinating medical appointments, monitoring prescriptions, managing insurance claims and much more on behalf of their aging loved ones. All this while simultaneously trying to live their own lives and raise their own families.
A new web site, ShirleyBOARD.com, hopes to ease the burden of those who care for older Americans. The free site allows caregivers to centrally store important information, keep a log of daily activities for family and friends to view, and network with other caregivers for support and inspiration.
ShirleyBOARD.com was developed by Mark Willaman, founder of Fisher Vista Marketing and HRmarketer.com. Mr. Willaman created ShirleyBOARD to help him organize the responsibilities of caring for his aging mother. He hopes the site, named after his mother and the concept of a community bulletin ìboardî, will help the growing number of Americans caring for aging family members from afar connect with each other and make their task easier.
The free site includes the following tools and features to help caregivers stay organized and communicate better while caring for an aging loved one:
- Online Journaló Members keep a log of caregiving activities, organize by using ìTagsî and share with others in your community.
- Photo KeeperóUpload photos to share with family and friends.
- PillBoxóRecord prescription information, including names of medicines, dose sizes, frequencies, names of the prescribing physicians, etc.
- Document KeeperóScan in and upload wills, power of attorney forms and other documents that you need to keep track of.
- Medical ContactsóSave contact information for doctors, home health aides, lawyers, family members, agencies, etc. so you can always find them.
- CarePlanner CalendaróPlan appointments, visits and other activities connected with care giving and share with others.
- Be a Peer/Find a PeeróUsers can search for fellow caregivers in the city where their loved one lives to get assistance in finding and evaluating local services, or just connect with other caregivers going through a similar experience to ask questions and share tips and stories.
- Helpful Tips and ArticlesóFind information to help you become better equipped for your responsibilities as a caregiver.
New ShirleyBOARD.com Web Site Provides Help to People Caring for Older Americans
Site Makes Patientís Information Easy to Manage and Connects Users with Other Long-Distance Caregivers
