Family Caregiver Support
As a partner with county and tribal aging programs, GWAAR is your resource for up-to-date information, training, and technical support to help you provide information and assistance to caregivers and their families.
All counties in Wisconsin receive funds through the National Family Caregiver Support Program (NFCSP) and the Alzheimer’s Family Caregiver Support Program (AFCSP), two Older Americans Act programs (NFCSP is a federal program and AFCSP is a state program). NFCSP funds are to be used to support family and other informal caregivers in caring for their loved ones at home for as long as possible. AFCSP funds are used to assist caregivers of people with Alzheimer’s or other dementia, regardless of their age. For support or technical assistance regarding AFCSP, you may contact GWAAR's lead, Lyndsay DeKeyser.
Wisconsin county and tribal aging programs can get NFCSP support and technical assistance by contacting any member of GWAAR’s Family Caregiver Support Program Team. Team members are: Lyndsay DeKeyser, Janell Keeter, and Jane Mahoney. Click here to contact the team.
The following are resources for county and tribal aging program staff:
NFCSP Coordinators for Wisconsin's Counties and Tribes
Click here to be taken to the trainings/classes/events page for professionals to find out when the NFCSP statewide calls, AFCSP statewide calls, and NFCSP Coordinators' trainings are for 2012.
new page
Lead County/Tribal NFCSP Contacts updated 2-3-12
National Family Caregiver Support Program Information
The National Family Caregiver Support Program (NFCSP) was established in 2000 as an amendment to the Older Americans Act of 1965. Its main purpose is to assist families and other informal caregivers in caring for loved ones at home for as long as possible. Research shows that caregivers experience high levels of emotional, physical, and financial stress which often leads to diminished health of the caregiver. NFCSP funds are given to each county to be used in developing programs and services to support caregivers. A range of services and support should be offered to caregivers and must include the following Five Core Areas:
1. Information to caregivers about available services
2. Assistance to caregivers in gaining access to the services
3. Individual counseling, organization of support groups, and caregiver training
4. Respite care
5. Supplemental services, on a limited basis
Funds and programs from the National Family Caregiver Support Program are intended to assist caregivers. By nature, the services will in turn improve the life of the care receiver, but the main focus of the NFCSP is to support caregivers.
More in-depth information about the National Family Caregiver Support Program can be found on the Administration on Aging Website. A variety of tools, resources, and ideas are available on this Website to assist counties in meeting these core requirements.
To read the NFCSP Policy, click here.
New Employee Training on NFCSP
Grandparents and Relatives as Parents
Grandparents and relative caregivers can be served through NFCSP (see policy above). For more information on relative and grandparent caregiving, click here.
Documentation and Forms
The distribution of funds for respite care, supplemental services, and other goods and services must be documented in SAMS (Social Assistance Management System) per federal and state guidelines. NFCSP policy also requires an assessment be done on caregivers and their care receivers to determine eligibility for the program. The basic information required that needs to be entered into SAMS can be gathered by using the following forms. Please note that one form is to collect information on the caregiver and the other is used to collect information on the care receiver.
Caregiver Intake Form
Care Recipient Intake Form
Each county can choose their own method of paying for respite care and other services. The following are samples of forms used by different counties to pay for these services:
Payment Request 2011
NFCSP Reimbursement Voucher
Family Caregiver Reimbursement
For assistance with SAMS documentation:
Recording Units of Service in SAMS
Marketing Assistance
One of the biggest challenges in assisting family caregivers is finding the caregivers who need help; many of them do not identify themselves as caregivers and some think they don’t need help. And still, others are too overwhelmed by the day to day tasks to take the time to seek out help.
Effective marketing tools are vitally important to reach those caregivers who need help. Distributing brochures and posters to local businesses such as pharmacies, clinics, grocery stores, senior centers, etc., is a great form of outreach. Writing articles for newsletters and local papers can also be an effective way to reach caregivers. The WisconsinCaregiver.org Website features valuable information and resources including a marketing toolkit to enhance caregiver support programs. To access the Marketing Toolkit which contains an array of brochures, posters, articles, news releases, and more, click here.
Family Caregiver Support Education/Training
The Wisconsin Alliance for Family Caregiving, a program of Bethany Community Care Ministry/Bethany, Inc., provides leader training for a variety of caregiver education curriculums. Two of the most widely used curriculums are Powerful Tools for Caregivers and Caregiving Relationships. For more information about these trainings, click here.
Caregiver Coalitions and Support Groups
NFCSP policy states that aging units should be a member of a local family caregiver coalition or coordinating committee with other local providers who currently provide support services to family caregivers. The following documents may provide assistance in starting and/or sustaining a coalition:
Building Effective Coalitions: Thirteen Tips
Components of a Workable/Sustainable Coalition
Principles of Collaborative Leadership
Tips for Making a Coalition Work
12 Keys to Building Caregiver Coalitions
Share The Care Project
Learn about how to help families and friends organize offers of support into a powerful caregiver team. Share The Care, based on the book by the same name, provides all the tools necessary to help family and friends create a volunteer network that has staying power—over the long run. For more information, contact Claire Culbertson, Share The Care Project Coordinator, at 608-243-5687 or by email.
To learn more about Share The Care, visit their Website.
Useful Handouts and Tools for Effective Outreach
Ideas for Spending NFCSP Funds
Caregiver Self-Assessment
Six Stages of Caregiving
Caregiver Bill of Rights
Caregiver Support Group Topics
Support Group Guidelines (sample)
ADRC Library Book List (sample)
Alzheimer's Family Caregiver and Support Program Information
The Alzheimer’s Family Caregiver and Support Program (AFCSP) was created by the Wisconsin state legislature in 1985 as a way to provide assistance to families who are caring for a loved one with irreversible dementia at home. The program is available to persons with a diagnosis of Alzheimer’s disease or other dementia and their caregiver. Their household income must also be less than $40,000/year with allowances for disease related expenses.
For a description of the Alzheimer’s Family Caregiver and Support Program (AFCSP), click here.
To read the AFCSP policy, click here.