StemCellResearch

Caregivers, large voting block

Mon, 22 Sep 2008 07:15:42 GMT

Large voting block 100 million people needing care plus 50 million caregivers

by Janine M Lodato

~|__
( o )\_

There are 50 million informal caregivers (family and friends) in the USA. They attend to the 100 million people in need of caregiving. Both the caregivers and the care recipients need political support by a politician with courage and foresight who should serve as the next President.

Of course, the small businesses who employ caregivers would also support such an enlightened campaign supported by this very large voting block.

We need a tax break for businesses, especially for small businesses, when they hire and retain an informal caregiver as an employee. Businesses already have a tax break when they employ a disabled person. The same or similar tax break should be given to the business which hires informal caregivers or who already employ such caregivers.

It is imperative to create legislation which will enable the caregivers to do tele-work from the homes of the people in need of care. These are the so called informal caregivers, family and friends, who work without pay and provide unbelievably valuable service. Then the caregivers and care recipients would tele-campaign for legislation which would provide tax credits to the businesses who allow their employees to perform tele-work style.

There could also be major political support for this project by means of allowing businesses to receive carbon credits for each day they allow each of their employees to perform tele-work style. Then the business could sell these carbon credits, which is becoming a very large market.

In addition to allowing the caregivers to earn a living tele-work style from the homes of the care recipients they could also participate in tele-training to improve their abilities. Then they can become field representatives for the assistive technology industry, for alternative energy industry, for independent living home improvement industry and tele-work part time to very efficiently serve these industries and allowing the companies of these industry segments to penetrate markets which would not be available to them otherwise.

We could create a Presidential campaign based on legislation which would provide a tax break to the employers of caregivers. This campaign issue would assure that such a candidate certainly would be supported by much of the above 150 million population segment of the USA: caregivers and care recipients, as well as by the small business owners.

We could also save the environment and lower the use of petroleum if we gave the small businesses a large tax credit if they allowed their employees to tele-work.

The US Department of Labor predicts that by 2008, 54 percent of the work force will be involved in caring just for an elderly person making doctors' appointments, handling emergencies, giving transportation, buying and cooking food, all the basic functions of life the elderly person has difficulties performing.

But the informal caregivers who are also full time employed have a major problem; not everyone is able to manage the conflicting demands of working and caregiving.

A MetLife study reported that 16 percent of employees who perform as caregivers quit their jobs and 13 percent retired early in order that they could provide caregiving to the people in need. This study found that the average life-time loss per such person was an estimated $ 566 thousand in lost wages, $ 67 thousand in lower pension benefits, plus $ 25 thousand loss of Soc. Sec. benefits.

Also, many of the employees who are caregivers get passed over for promotions and are the first ones who are eliminated when a downsizing of the business takes place.

The legislation which would support the employers of the caregivers could also include a double or increased tax break for the employer if the business would allow the employees, who are involved in caregiving, to perform most of their work with great degree of flexibility such as telecommuting and flexible time.

The future of the US economy, including solutions for major problems like healthcare, environment, innovation, depends on micro enterprises and small businesses especially if they are organized in the lower cost environment of the rural communities. The 50 million informal caregivers, family members and friends of the care recipient, are perfectly positioned to organize and run these small and micro enterprises. They will concentrate on clean, green and assistive technologies (including telemed) taking the many products of the various manufacturers to the 100 million people in need of care and other users in the community.

The telemedicine, telehealth application segment alone can justify this campaign since it is the fastest growing problem in the USA. The future of the economy will, to a large degree, depend on a good solution for the largest problem: the runaway cost of healthcare. Telemedicine, telehealth would be great help to solve this problem. The family and informal caregivers can become the ones who take and report the vital signs of the care recipients, thus lowering the cost of medicine.

The caregiver can also help the care recipient to participate in clinical trials and do the necessary reporting. The monitoring the general condition and vitals of the care recipient even when the caregiver is not on location can be accomplished via the Web by the video capable Web terminal products allowing tele-conferencing so the care recipient would not feel alone.

An elegant statement from the family caregiver organization puts it just right:

There are more than 50 million family caregivers in the USA and they provide 80

percent of the long term care services to the 100 million homebound people in need of care.

These uncompensated services provided by the caregivers amount to more than 400 billion dollars annually.

Recently in a Fortune article Dr. Andy Grove made some very important and eloquent statement regarding the healthcare costs in the USA. His comments relate especially to the cost of care for the people who are in need of home based care: the frail elderly, the chronically ill and the disabled, about a 100 million in the USA alone. Medical spending in the USA is at 16% of the GDP and it is the fastest growing segment. The average American spends 440,000 dollars in his/her lifetime on healthcare. 280,000 of which will be spent after age 65 and approximately 50% of this will be spent on assisted-living facilities and nursing homes. So it stands to reason that if there were a way to keep the people in need of care in their own homes longer we would have a better and lower cost system: we could save $ 300 billion per year.

Thus it is clear that the caregivers and the carerecipients need political representation. They would be a loyal supporter of the Presidential candidate who represents them.

About the author

I have gained deep insight into the requirements of the people in need of caregiving and their caregivers when I worked for John Garamendi, now Lieutenant Governor of California, then State Senator

I have many years of personal experience using AT and found it very helpful in SPMS (secondary progressive multiple sclerosis) conditions as described below in a brief review of my personal experiences.

In addition to my extensive experience with AT, I also have related graduate credentials from both California State Univ at Northridge (the center for AT corporate interactions) as well as CSU in Sacramento and UOP in Stockton.

   To compensate for a total loss of motor skills due to Multiple Sclerosis (MS), I have focused on the development and performance of mental tasks. I write articles. I create books, I play Scrabble all with the help of my caregiver hero husband Laszlo. We watch DVD movies and documentaries from Netflix, a great service indeed, and listen to magazines and books on tape provided by the Library of Congress, another worthwhile service to people with disability, delivered at no charge then we discuss the content of these.

   I am absolutely sure I am avoiding the onset of cognitive problems, dementia and Alzheimer's. I firmly believe that using my brain in activities requiring the mind will continue to keep me productive in spite of my severe physical disability. My husband even jokes that I am causing him to develop dementia because I remember all the phone numbers, all the names, all the activities in which we have participated, so he gives himself permission to forget such information.

   There are things I can still do such as think, talk, observe, feel, react, compose: all mental functions. I have been forced to concentrate on the mind oriented activities.

People around me marvel at how I seem so normal, even though I am very physically limited I am also very mentally active. Yes, I have a disability, but my mind and emotions still work fine, maybe even better thanks to my husband‘s efforts to keep me involved.

My husband reminds me frequently that "no one is disabled when on the Internet, when one interacts via the Web". So I use him as my VoxBot (voice robot) and KeyBot (a keyboard robot) when I want something quick via the Web.

I am the luckiest person on the face of the earth, as Lou Gehrig so appropriately announced in his farewell speech, that I am surrounded by the support of my hero husband, my family and my friends and they all appreciate my mind and ignore my physical disability.

Janine M. Lodato
P.O.Box 838
SAN ANDREAS, CA.
95249-0838
~|__
( o )\_

A Fast Tele-Work Net

Thu, 01 Nov 2007 23:34:52 GMT

Improve the
Productivity of Half of the Population

100 million People in Need of Care
and Their 44 million Caregivers

www.myproviderspace.com
by Janine M Lodato
LodatoClan@aol.com

The combination of the informal caregivers and their care recipients do amount to half of the population of the USA. And it is the same in the other 7 industrialized countries of the G-8 group of nations.

This very large group need political representation as well as non-profit support. They would be a loyal supporter of the Presidential candidate who represents them. They do need help as described below but it would be a simple set of legislation.

We must enable the caregivers to do tele-work from the homes of the people in need of care. These are the so called informal caregivers" family and friends who work without pay and provide unbelievably valuable service. There are 44 million of them in the USA Then we could give tax credits to the businesses who allow their employees to perform tele-work style.

There could also be major political support for this project by means of allowing businesses to receive carbon credits for each day they allow each of their employees to perform tele-work style. Of course then the business could sell these carbon credits which is becoming a very large market.

In addition to allowing the caregivers to earn a living tele-work mode using a community wide WiMax broadband system. The caregivers could also participate in tele-training to improve their abilities.

Then they can become field representatives for the assistive technology industry, for alternative energy industry, for independent living home improvement industry and tele-work part time to very efficiently serve these industries and allowing the companies of these industry segments to penetrate markets which would not be available to them otherwise.
The employers of these caregivers would install an open source strong tele-work oriented tele-presence system on their web server. A team-work oriented collaborative system like the one offered by www.ubuntu.com called Croquet.

Recently in a Fortune article Dr. Andy Grove made some very important and eloquent statement re the healthcare cost in the USA especially of the cost of care for the people who are in need of home based care: the frail elderly, the chronically ill and the disabled. About a 100 million in the USA alone. Medical spending in the USA is at 16% of the GDP and it is the fastest growing segment. The average American spends 440,000 dollars in his/her lifetime on healthcare. 280,000 of which will be spent after age 65 and approximately 50% of this will be spent on assited-living facilities and nursing homes. So it stands to reason that if there were a way to keep the people in need of care in there own homes longer we would have a better and lower cost system: we could save $ 300 billion per year.

This community wide broadband Web connection serving the caregivers can also help the care recipients, the people in need of care. For this user group a simple voice recognition capable Internet server what is needed and can be supplied by any server far, of Web 2.0, the social Web such as MySpace, Facebook, Wikia, etc. The care recipient end user is connected to the Web through a simple laptop in each of the homes of the care recipients. This allows the care recipients to participate in virtual group sessions, visit people virtually and in general get involved. This virtual group participation's can also be achieved with the Croquet system.

Janine M. Lodato
P.O.Box 838
SAN ANDREAS, CA.
95249-838

Independent PartY; Unity08 for Caregivers

Tue, 01 Aug 2006 00:32:43 GMT

I would like to apply and cover this large population segment with frequent articles. I need to perform the job telework style.

Bio and sample below.

The Voting Power of 44 Million Caregivers

by Janine M Lodato

LodatoClan@aol.com

There are 44 million informal caregivers (family and friends) in the USA who attend to the 100 million people in need of caregiving. They need political support and an independent third party www.unity08.com or any political candidate, with courage and foresight (democratic or independent), for the 08 presidential election could be just perfect. Of course the small businesses who employ caregivers would also support such enlightened campaign supported by this very large voting block.

There are 44 million informal caregivers in the USA. These informal caregivers are members of the family or friends of the person in need of caregiving. There are 100 million people in the USA who are in need of an informal caregiver. These are the frail elderly, chronically ill and the disabled. This population sector is the fastest growing segment due to the aging of the baby boomer population.

If an independent third party politician or a democratic candidate for political office would create and push through the legislation which would provide a tax break to the employers of caregivers, it would assure that such politician or candidate certainly would be supported by much of the above 144 million population segment: the combination of the informal caregivers and the people who are in need of care.

What a campaign issue, indeed!

But the informal caregivers who are also full time employed have a major problem; not everyone is able to manage the conflicting demands of working and caregiving.

Also, many of the employees who are caregivers get passed over for promotions and are the first ones who are eliminated when a downsizing of the business takes place.

These problems of the employees, who are also serving as caregivers, could be almost eradicated if the employers of caregivers would let their caregiving employees to perform telework style for some or much of their workload. About only one in four businesses offers employees who are caregivers such advantages as flexible hours, telecommuting, paid leave in case of emergencies and compassionate understanding.

So let us organize a strong campaign for the independent third party online convention, or the convention of the democrats, followed by an election campaign in each of the 50 states and then onto the Presidential elections, which could include in their platforms the special tax break for the businesses who employ and appreciate employees who are also dedicated caregivers.

References:

National Family Caregivers Association

NFCA: National Family Caregivers Association. Dedicated to making life better for America's family caregivers. Includes information on NFC Month, ...http://www.nfcacares.org/

FCA: Family Caregiver Alliance Home

Handbook for Long-Distance Caregivers · A Physician's View of Caregiver Health ... Caregivers at Risk · Updated Fact Sheet: Selected Caregiver Statistics ...http://www.caregiver.org/

Empowering Caregivers - Choices, Healing, Love

A rich, safe nurturing site for all caregivers focused on providing practical emotional and spiritual support with tools for self-empowerment and a strong ...http://www.care-givers.com/

MedlinePlus: Caregivers

Caregivers. ... Financial Issues; Financial Steps for Caregivers: What You Need to Know about Money and Retirement (Administration on Aging) - Links to PDF ...http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/caregivers.html

The AgeNet Eldercare Network

http://www.caregivers.com/

CareGiver :: Information Source for CareGivers for Those in Need .....

CareGiver.com is a leading provider of support and information for those caring for the elderly, heart attack survivors, diabetes care, ...http://www.caregiver.com/

National Family Caregiver Support Program

The report, Young Caregivers in the US, can be downloaded from: http://www.caregiving.org/data/youngcaregivers.pdf. *, Financial Steps for Caregivers ...http://www.aoa.gov/prof/aoaprog/caregiver/caregiver.asp

Coalition of Essential Schools National Office

For over twenty years, CES has been a national leader in public education transformation. Guided by the Common Principles, CES strives to create and sustain ...http://www.essentialschools.org/

CareGivers-USA Help that's close to home

CareGivers-USA Finding help at home. ... CareGivers-USA is a nationwide, non-commercial directory of community-based caregiver support services -- intended ...http://caregivers-usa.org/

ALZwell Alzheimer's Caregivers Page

Information and support for people caring for elderly with Alzheimer's Disease and other forms of dementia.http://www.alzwell.com/

Janine M. Lodato
P.O.Box 838
SAN ANDREAS, CA.
95249-838
~|__
( o )\_
http://www.publishedauthors.net/janinemlodato/bio.html
http://journals.aol.com/lodatoclan/StemCellResearch/
http://www.publishamerica.com/greetingcardpro/createcard1.asp?PostCardID=10026
http://www.disabilityworld.org/09-11_04/access/weblish.shtml
http://e-bility.com/articles/weblish.shtml
http://www-cs-students.stanford.edu/~liao/cokesymbol.html
http://www.funlist.com/www/coke/lib/symbol.html
http://www.eclicktick.com/voicerecognition.htm
http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/futurist/index.html?ts=1103041565
http://www.telenovela-world.com/~spade/linux/lg/authors/lodato.html

In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Hungarian student revolution

Sun, 16 Jul 2006 15:38:38 GMT

Coca-Cola: The Taste of Freedom

by Janine M Lodato

LodatoClan@aol.com

(In celebration of the 50th anniversary of the Hungarian student revolution: abstracted from Janine's book titled: From the Iron Curtain to Pebble Beach)

After a very difficult, all-night escape effort to cross the Iron Curtain toward the west, a group of Hungarian revolutionary students, under the leadership of Laszlo, arrived at the no-mans' land: part of the border between communist occupied Hungary and the free west. Before they arrived at this unmanned section of the otherwise heavily guarded Iron Curtain, they head to fight through mine fields, barbed wires, watch tower protected sections and dodge the communist boarder guards.

The boundary is not marked. Another mine field may have been positioned still hundreds of meters from the border with the country next door. There may

still be other fortified KGB border-guard positions ahead of them. The two KGB guards the Hungarian students have captured earlier and forced at gun point to guide the refugees toward freedom may have on purpose guided them right in the direction of one of these traps. He once more motions the two captured KGB sentries to turn toward the border and walk, at gunpoint, ahead of him and past the tightly bunched-up group of the group of escapees he was commanding. He makes them sit on the ground a few meters from the group.

Laszlo senses the group of escapees holds him responsible and does not completely trust his judgment any longer since he made a few risky decision earlier in their escape effort. He is not willing to take any more wild chances. He tells them all to sit on the ground so they will not be easily detected under the thick bushes. He instructs them firmly to be absolutely quiet. He signals his young armed troops to encircle the two guards. When he sees everyone is motionless and quiet he ventures toward the border, taking only two of hissmallest armed youngsters with him.

The three refugees move slowly so as not to rustle the bushes. They walk, crouched down to stay below the tops of the bushes. The leader is the first to notice the faint outline of a village as a hint of fog starts to drift toward them.

It is a cold, unfriendly fog, with a wet, frosty bite. It rapidly gets denser as it approaches.

A cheap-looking building on the edge of the village in the distance is just barely visible. It is clearly a block-shaped building. This could still be our imprisoned country, not the freedom we seek, he warns himself. It could be a fortified village. A trap. We should plan to go around it. But in which direction? Left or right? Either one could take us back into enemy-held territory. The border winds its way back and forth among the hills and through the fog-covered valleys. Better check out the village.

He and his two young troops move ever so carefully, walking and crawling toward the distant building on the edge of the village. Finally he sees it clearly: a block-shaped two-story building. On the upper right-hand corner of the second floor, facing oncoming travelers, is some kind of massive, red, circular sign. Red, the color of our oppressors, he tells himself. It is a strange sign raised, round, with an emblem through the middle of it. Maybe it is an enemy emblem, but he cannot detect the precise shape. As his eyes adjust to the fog, he discerns a white stripe across the middle of the red circle. He has to move a few steps closer to be sure. He is very curious now. But he does not want this curiosity to stand in the way of making a good decision. He just wants to know once and for all he can still make good decisions. Be a leader and deliver his entourage to freedom. A few more careful steps toward the building before he sees clearly what is written on the white stripe: Coca-Cola.

Dirty white, or maybe yellow letters stand out on a shabby red, raised, button-shaped monstrosity. The entire image is unusual, decadent-looking and not ever seen in occupied countries where Coca-Cola is forbidden. As far as the tyrannical dictators he had been living under for nine years were concerned, Coca-Cola was an evil, capitalist drink. Not like vodka, the true and honest pacifying drink of the proletariat, those unhappy citizens in the workers’ utopia: communism. So, this is what freedom looks like, he smiles an inner smile.

The three escapees look at the conspicuous red sign for a long minute, then at each other. What can this mean? The leader asks the key question, “Is this a trap?” A long silence ensues. The KGB was famous for putting phony western looking villages in the Iron Curtain area, passed the mind fields and barbed wires, which served as a trap for escapees who thought they have made to the west and freedom.

Almost at the same time, all three refugees break into an all-knowing, sneering laughter. It is loud, with a disregard for its potential danger, trumpeting a deep disrespect for the opposition. It builds to hysterical proportions. Raucous, venomous, a tremendous release, an idiotic display of carelessness. All of them in unison, say: “This is no trap.” It cannot be a trap.

Our communist enemy may not be devious or smart enough to set up a trap like this using Coca-Cola since most of the escapees who attempt the dangerous crossing to the west would not know what Coca-Cola stands for, he finally realizes with regained confidence.

Then he hears it, just barely: three bars of a tune rung out by the bell of the church tower in the village just behind the ugly block house with the Coca- Cola button. The sound of freedom? This beautiful sound makes him even more convinced that they are safe and in the free west.

Laszlo, the leader, and the fugitive people he commanded across the Iron Curtain in their quest for freedom slowly continue toward the west all the while staring, smiling and pointing at the building with the Coca-Cola button. It did look real for them, and they hoped deeply that it was so.

The International Red Cross provides the bus to transport the fugitives to a displaced persons camp. As the refugees board, they are greeted for the first time by the leader of the escape with a glance and a nod. Nothing more familiar: no handshake, no hug, no exchange of names or words of any kind even in the camp that followed, the ubiquitous enforcement police having infiltrated every aspect of their lives in its constant quest for spies and agents.

Climbing onto the bus, the refugees are handed a survival kit of snack foods and a bottle of Coca-Cola. The leader trades his rifle for a survival kit and a Coke as he boards the bus after everyone else. For some reason, he notes the feel of the Coke bottle in his hand: the shape, its ridges and weight.

As the bottle opener is passed around, he pops the lid off his bottle of Coca-Cola, chugs down a generous and lengthy swallow of the sweet, bubbly drink and savors it as the coveted, long-sought and hard-won taste of freedom.

But just after 50 years this revolutionary is fighting another battle. This time in support of the caregivers in USA, 44 million of them. Laszlo is now the husband of a quadriplegic lady in wheelchair and needs 24/7 caregiving.

These informal cargeivers, family and friends, are overworked and underpaid to the extreme. They need political representation and this is what Laszlo is fighting for.

Once a revolutionary is always a revolutionary.

What a campaign issue, indeed!

But the informal caregivers who are also full time employed have a major problem; not everyone is able to manage the conflicting demands of working and caregiving.

Also, many of the employees who are caregivers get passed over for promotions and are the first ones who are eliminated when a downsizing of the business takes place.

References:

National Family Caregivers Association
NFCA: National Family Caregivers Association. Dedicated to making life better for America's family caregivers. Includes information on NFC Month, ...http://www.nfcacares.org/

FCA: Family Caregiver Alliance Home
Handbook for Long-Distance Caregivers · A Physician's View of Caregiver Health ... Caregivers at Risk · Updated Fact Sheet: Selected Caregiver Statistics ...http://www.caregiver.org/

Empowering Caregivers - Choices, Healing, Love
A rich, safe nurturing site for all caregivers focused on providing practical emotional and spiritual support with tools for self-empowerment and a strong ...http://www.care-givers.com/

MedlinePlus: Caregivers
Caregivers. ... Financial Issues; Financial Steps for Caregivers: What You Need to Know about Money and Retirement (Administration on Aging) - Links to PDF ...http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/caregivers.html

The AgeNet Eldercare Network
http://www.caregivers.com/

CareGiver :: Information Source for CareGivers for Those in Need .....
CareGiver.com is a leading provider of support and information for those caring for the elderly, heart attack survivors, diabetes care, ...http://www.caregiver.com/

National Family Caregiver Support Program
The report, Young Caregivers in the US, can be downloaded from: http://www.caregiving.org/data/youngcaregivers.pdf. *, Financial Steps for Caregivers ...http://www.aoa.gov/prof/aoaprog/caregiver/caregiver.asp

Coalition of Essential Schools National Office
For over twenty years, CES has been a national leader in public education transformation. Guided by the Common Principles, CES strives to create and sustain ...http://www.essentialschools.org/

CareGivers-USA Help that's close to home
CareGivers-USA Finding help at home. ... CareGivers-USA is a nationwide, non-commercial directory of community-based caregiver support services -- intended ...http://caregivers-usa.org/

ALZwell Alzheimer's Caregivers Page
Information and support for people caring for elderly with Alzheimer's Disease and other forms of dementia.http://www.alzwell.com/

Janine M. Lodato
P.O.Box 838
SAN ANDREAS, CA.
95249-838
~|__
( o )\_
http://www.publishedauthors.net/janinemlodato/bio.html
http://journals.aol.com/lodatoclan/CaregiversoftheWorldUnite/
http://journals.aol.com/lodatoclan/StemCellResearch/
http://www.publishamerica.com/greetingcardpro/createcard1.asp?PostCardID=10026
http://www.disabilityworld.org/09-11_04/access/weblish.shtml
http://e-bility.com/articles/weblish.shtml
http://www-cs-students.stanford.edu/~liao/cokesymbol.html
http://www.funlist.com/www/coke/lib/symbol.html
http://www.eclicktick.com/voicerecognition.htm
http://pqasb.pqarchiver.com/futurist/index.html?ts=1103041565
http://www.telenovela-world.com/~spade/linux/lg/authors/lodato.html

The Great Equalizer and Democratizer: the Web

Sat, 03 Jun 2006 23:38:50 GMT

The Greatest Equalizer and Democratizer: The Web

by Janine M Lodato

(The most important campaign issue for all politicians)

I have been fighting MS, in specific SPMS, for the last thirty years and now I am a cripple in a wheelchair. At present I am in the process of writing important books and technical articles. I enjoy being busy. However, after fighting off an assault of multiple sclerosis (MS), my hands can no longer type.

I am quadriplegic and most people when they see me cannot deal with my problems. I am a useless cripple in their eyes, a burden on society. But my aging geek husband and caregiver, a Hungarian revolutionary, said it well: "nobody is a cripple on the Internet". The Internet is a great equalizer, the greatest ever invented.

So we had to put it in a poem. Poems are a great and short way to communicate, perfect for the Internet especially on small size screens like a mobile phone or a PDA.

There once was a girl from the hills

Who had lost all her motor skills

So she uses the Net

It is a safe bet

For information and writing drills

The Web is her means to explore

The world's mysteries in digital store

A cripple she is not

Her brain is still hot

With Internet she is equal or more

The Internet can also be great benefit or extreme danger to mankind. While it can enable and equalize and democratize all the people of the world it can also serve a great tool for destructive elements in our populations: the terrorists, the sexual abusers, the pedophiles, the scam artists and many others. Each new great invention has the potential for both uses: doing great good, but doing great evil as well.

In order to continue writing, I now rely on voice recognition technology to do my typing for me. Baby boomer that I am, I must learn new tricks of the trade, with new tools of the trade, taking into account the effects of my multiple sclerosis. Once connected to my new technology, I feel connected to the world via email and word processing.

Voice recognition technology is still in its infancy, and has provided me with some amusing and frustrating moments. Finding a voice recognizable to readers is tricky. Finding a voice recognizable to a computer is even trickier. But voice recognition plus my husband who works as my InfoBot: I tell him what I want and he keyboards it into the computer, thus he is an information robot of mine. These capabilities allow me to become involved with the world in spite of my quadriplegic condition. I find this involvement very beneficial for my mental conditions and even my physical well being. By concentrating on something which is worthwhile I do not feel that anybody who reads my articles pays any attention to the fact that I am handicapped.

In order to connect to the Internet one must have a PC (personal computer) and the Windows version by Microsoft just simply will not do. Windows based PCs by Microsoft are maddeningly complex, insanely unreliable and criminally expensive.

The Internet can be very good or it can be a pain: and it can be summed up in the following poem:

Data, data everywhere, not one chance to think;

Email, email overbear, one can hardly blink;

Virus, virus constant scare, Windows, you sure stink;

Promo, promo all unfair, in trivia we sink;

But,

Info, info searched with care, to knowledge one can link.

What we need is a simple, reliable, clean, low cost PC like the ones running Linux and just equip this simple machine with web search capability, e-mail features, instant messaging features and simple document generation capabilities. That is all needed to get involved.

The best way to control someone's chronic conditions or disabilities is through involvement and the positive effects such activity brings about. The so called mind body interaction and it therapeutic capabilities. Most of the 100 million population segment of the USA who are inneed have major difficulties to participate in face to face group interaction which would be very beneficial to bring about health improving effects. But they can do it and can get involved in a "virtual" manner via the Internet: instant messaging, blogs, emails, group teleconferencing are all potential tools offered by the Internet.

We also need a tax break for businesses, especially for small businesses, when they hire and retain an informal caregiver as an employee. This tax break could allow the employer to pay for high speed Internet access at the location where the caregiver has to provide care: the home of the care recipient.

Businesses already have a tax break when they employ a disabled person. The same or similar tax break should be given to the business which hires informal caregivers or who already employ such caregivers.

A courageous and enlightened candidate for political office should create and push through the legislation which would provide a tax break to the employers of caregivers, it would assure that such politician or candidate certainly would be supported by much of the above 144 million population segment: the combination of the informal caregivers and the people who are in need of care.

But the informal caregivers who are also full time employed have a major problem; not everyone is able to manage the conflicting demands of working and caregiving.

Also, many of the employees who are caregivers get passed over for promotions and are the first ones who are eliminated when a downsizing of the business takes place.

So let us organize a strong campaign for the Democratic primary and then the Presidential elections, both which could include in their platforms the special tax break for the businesses who employ and appreciate employees who are also dedicated caregivers.

References:

National Family Caregivers Association

NFCA: National Family Caregivers Association. Dedicated to making life better for America's family caregivers. Includes information on NFC Month, ...http://www.nfcacares.org/

FCA: Family Caregiver Alliance Home

Handbook for Long-Distance Caregivers · A Physician's View of Caregiver Health ... Caregivers at Risk · Updated Fact Sheet: Selected Caregiver Statistics ...http://www.caregiver.org/

Empowering Caregivers - Choices, Healing, Love

A rich, safe nurturing site for all caregivers focused on providing practical emotional and spiritual support with tools for self-empowerment and a strong ...http://www.care-givers.com/

Caregiver Support Team

Sun, 28 May 2006 16:14:04 GMT

My Support Team

by Janine M Lodato

There was a time when people in my condition (quadriplegic with multiple sclerosis - MS) became bedridden. But, thanks to my Hoyer lift, I am able to change locations from the bed, to the bathroom, to the shower and to the couch in the living room. My Hoyer lift offers me the mobility that people in my condition did not have before. Thanks to my Hoyer lift I can also get into my standing frame, and a few times each week I take advantage of this opportunity. I much prefer hoisted around by my Hoyer lift than being lifted manually by my husband.

Hydraulically, the lift functions to raise me gradually into sitting position. Because the lift is on wheels, it can roll me around my handicapped equipped, one level, hard floored house.

Because the house was built after I became paraplegic with MS, it has small ramps going to the shower, to the patio to the parking area, etc. No steps anywhere at all. It is very convenient for the frail elderly and the disabled people. Since the baby boomer generation is about to retire, this habitat construction style is all important.

With the Hoyer lift, no matter what girth the disabled person may have she/he can be lifted into different positions. Even the frailest of my friends can use the lift to manipulate me and move me anywhere in the house or even outside on the patio.

I thank my lucky stars for my support team consisting of...

...my Sisters-in-Care

...my Brothers-in-Repair

...my Husband-who-does-Dare

...and my Machine-that-destroys-despair.

This is a most appropriate poem I composed as I was thinking about my support team.

There was a girl from the golden hills

Who had lost all of her motor skills

She uses a lift

To keep her adrift

The lift by Hoyer, rugged, no frills

My caregivers do their part

Friends and clan, all have good heart

They lift me with ease

Make life a breeze

The Hoyer lift, a design so smart

People often wander why I am not more depressed than I am and I believe I have such a full life that I do not have time for despair. I spend my mornings listening to magazines and books sent to my by the Library of Congress free of charge. What a great service, indeed. I can also sit up straight on a couch, placed there by my Hoyer lift, and watch DVDs from Netflix ( another fine service, but should be offered cheaper for the disabled) and highly selected programs from PBS (many different informative shows), ABC (Millionaire) and CBS (Numbers). I can listen to CDs and I can write articles and poetry and even a book or two as I see fit. I am honored that www.PublishAmerica.com has published two of my books and they are also being offered by www.Amazon.com. Many of my articles were published by such great magazines as Senior Citizens, The Futurist, Linux Journal, Reflections and E-Bility. They all can be found by simple Google with "Janine M Lodato", the name must be kept in quotation marks to focus Google just on me.

I am educated and I am fortunate that in spite of my disability my mind stll works rather well.

My only regret is that I cannot participate in the Millionaire show. Maybe if a team of two: one in the hot-seat and I on the phone supporting him, would be a wonderful show. Many disabled people and their caregivers would be very interested and watch it.

I would need a simple, low cost Linux based machine, equipped with laser controlled keyboard by www.lomak.co.nz. Maybe the www.NouvoNet.com PDA will do the job with the LOMAK attached to it.

Maybe, just maybe, Hoyer would offer such a machine to the 100 million people in need: the frail elderly, the chronically ill and the disabled. What a great addition this machine would be when attached to the Hoyer lift offering almost complete independence.

I realize that my condition may be just temporary. It is a matter of hanging in there and my Hoyer lift allows me to hang out anywhere in and around the house.

Caregiver support

Fri, 26 May 2006 14:51:47 GMT

Democrats for Caregivers

by Janine M Lodato

LodatoClan@aol.com

If a Democratic politician or candidate for political office would create and push through the legislation which would provide a tax break to the employers of caregivers, it would assure that such politician or candidate certainly would be supported by much of the above 144 million population segment: the combination of the informal caregivers and the people who are in need of care.

What a campaign issue, indeed!

But the informal caregivers who are also full time employed have a major problem; not everyone is able to manage the conflicting demands of working and caregiving.

Also, many of the employees who are caregivers get passed over for promotions and are the first ones who are eliminated when a downsizing of the business takes place.

References:

National Family Caregivers Association

NFCA: National Family Caregivers Association. Dedicated to making life better for America's family caregivers. Includes information on NFC Month, ...http://www.nfcacares.org/

FCA: Family Caregiver Alliance Home

Handbook for Long-Distance Caregivers · A Physician's View of Caregiver Health ... Caregivers at Risk · Updated Fact Sheet: Selected Caregiver Statistics ...http://www.caregiver.org/

Empowering Caregivers - Choices, Healing, Love

A rich, safe nurturing site for all caregivers focused on providing practical emotional and spiritual support with tools for self-empowerment and a strong ...http://www.care-givers.com/

MedlinePlus: Caregivers

The AgeNet Eldercare Network

http://www.caregivers.com/

CareGiver :: Information Source for CareGivers for Those in Need .....

CareGiver.com is a leading provider of support and information for those caring for the elderly, heart attack survivors, diabetes care, ...http://www.caregiver.com/

National Family Caregiver Support Program

Coalition of Essential Schools National Office

For over twenty years, CES has been a national leader in public education transformation. Guided by the Common Principles, CES strives to create and sustain ...http://www.essentialschools.org/

CareGivers-USA Help that's close to home

CareGivers-USA Finding help at home. ... CareGivers-USA is a nationwide, non-commercial directory of community-based caregiver support services -- intended ...http://caregivers-usa.org/

ALZwell Alzheimer's Caregivers Page

Information and support for people caring for elderly with Alzheimer's Disease and other forms of dementia.http://www.alzwell.com/