Primetime Living 9.27.26 - Flipbook - Page 6
6
| Sunday, September 27, 2026
HEALTH
The Caregiver’s
Checklist
Easing access to what you need
By Margit B. Weisgal, Contributing Writer
D
espite the warning signs, the tests and the doctors’ appointments, hearing the
diagnosis of dementia threw the family into a heightened state of anxiety as
to how they would cope. What they faced moving forward was overwhelming.
Where did they start?
Thanks to the collaboration and
teamwork by the Maryland Department
of Aging (MDOA) and the Johns
Hopkins University School of Nursing,
Marylanders facing the prospect of
becoming the caregiver to someone
with dementia now have access to the
Johns Hopkins Memory Care Family
Checklist, “Charting a Path for Families
Navigating Memory Care,” an online
assessment personalized to help them
figure out what they need to do, where
they can find the information they need,
and what support is available to make
each task easier. Best of all, it’s free,
has been thoroughly tested and is completely private, with no personally identifiable information saved.
“Imagine a resource that helps you
identify exactly what you need to know
about a dementia care related issue,
what you can do, and where to find
help in your community,” says Quincy
M. Samus, Ph.D., M.S., B.A., director,
memory and aging services innovation center, Johns Hopkins School of
Medicine, for whom this was a passion
project. “What we’ve developed is a
list of common challenges a caregiver
could face based on 15-plus years
of our earlier research and, by partnering with the MDOA, the Maryland
Information Network, and Maryland
Access Point, commonly referred to
as MAP, we have made it available for
people looking for accurate information about dementia care and guidance
on what to do next. It generates a
Personalized Report that includes specific suggestions to address specific
challenges along with information on
local resources. Through its tie to the
MAP, it does a lot of the research caregivers don’t have time to do.
“We’ve brought together a nexus for
dementia care. It’s designed to be helpful regardless of the stage of dementia
and provides fact-based information,
suggestions for what support services
are available in your community, and
day-to-day practical guidance. Because
dementia is progressive and impacts
nearly all areas of a person’s life, people
with dementia often have needs that are
best met with an interdisciplinary team.
Nursing, geriatric medicine, psychiatry,
occupational therapy, physical therapy, social work, and community health
workers/care navigators are only a few
of the support team members someone
with dementia may need as the disease
progresses. And supporting the family
is just as important. This new online
tool can be a starting point to empower
caregivers with insights on how to handle everyday needs and challenges and
where to begin accessing support.”
When you realize there are over
250,000 informal caregivers in Maryland,
you can see why this is so necessary.
And, since it provides detailed local
information as a self-service online tool,
users may be able to skip the call to the
hotlines at Maryland Access Point. No
matter what, they are always available.
Mark Tesoro is a cognitive and behavioral health specialist for the MDOA.
His current focus is on expanding services to build dementia capabilities
of Maryland’s network of aging services by collaborating with local Area
Agencies on Aging (called triple As),
state partners, and diverse stakeholders. Tesoro works closely with Maryland
Access Point, providing consultation
and oversight of the dementia navigation referrals they provide.
“Led by Secretary of Aging Carmel
Roques, Maryland has a multi-sector
plan for our aging population called
Longevity Ready Maryland (LRM),”
explains Tesoro. “Many states are incorporating this type of planning to serve
their own older adults because the baby
boomer demographic is so large.”
Caregiver’s Checklist
Continued on page 18
