Georgia Caregiver of the Year Awards
2010
If you provide assistance to someone with a long-term illness, a disability
or limitations due to aging, you may be the next
Georgia Caregiver of the Year
!Each year the Rosalynn Carter Institute awards caregivers in three
categories:
Family Caregiver
Para-Professional Caregiver
Volunteer Caregiver
The Georgia
Caregiver of the Year winners are selected from RegionalWinners submitted by the CARE-NETs around the state of Georgia.
The state winners will be honored at the Annual Awards Banquet to
be held in Americus in October. Travel expenses and hotel accommodations
will be provided to each winner who will also receive a gilded
rose from Mrs. Carter and a check for $1,000.
The first step is to submit a nomination form to your local CARE-NET.
Additional information and the nomination form is available
online at www.rosalynncarter.org/statecaregiver/ or by contacting:
Karen Nelson
NWGA Area Agency on Aging/CARE-NET
PO Box 1798
Rome, GA 30162
706-295-6485
Nomination forms must be received at the AAA office by July 31, 2010.
Georgia's CARE-NETs are Leaders in Supporting Family
and Professional Caregivers in their communities.
Beginning in the 1990s, the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregiving (RCI) developed the CARE-NET (Caregivers Network) program as a unique coalition of caregiver support organizations across a broad array of illnesses and disabilities. The coalitions involved leaders and advocates from community and state agencies, private corporations and churches together with family caregivers in the same planning process.
The creation of 12 community CARE-NET coalitions, one in each Area Agency on Aging district in Georgia, has been supported by grants from the Pew Charitable Trusts, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, and the Administration on Aging. These active and ongoing coalitions are highly suited to address the major needs of all caregivers. CARE-NET coalitions provide ongoing assessment of community resources, identify and remedy gaps in services, share information and resources among agencies, develop strategies for complementary professional and family caregiver activities, and offer caregiver education. Today, this caregiver network represents a unique resource in the state of Georgia and one of the most promising opportunities for developing comprehensive caregiver supports anywhere in the country.
CARE-NETs serve many functions. In particular, they:
1. Link professional and family caregivers in a supportive community concerned
with caregiving.
2. Identify and study community caregiving strengths and needs.
3. Develop effective services and educational programs for caregivers.
4. Organize community-based forums for public feedback on caregiving issues.
5. Develop a resource capacity for information on caregiving.
6. Provide a source of support for caregivers.
7. Foster strong relationships among community leaders concerned about
Caregivers
8. Provide a forum for agencies and stakeholders to work collaboratively,
coordinating human and fiscal resources.
9. Educate the community about caregiving.
10. Identify policy issues and advocate on behalf of Caregivers.
11. Work to assure Quality Care in their communities.