Since launching a new caregiver education series last month at the Flathead County Agency on Aging, Director Carla Dyment told county commissioners on Tuesday the workshop turnout has been high in its first two sessions.
“We were scrambling for chairs that first day,” Dyment said during the Feb. 24 commissioner meeting as she provided a monthly update.
In a partnership with The Life Care Experts, a consulting firm offering long-term planning, educator Kerry Nagel (pictured above) teaches the series and covers various stages of caregiving ranging from diagnosis to hospice.
Dyment said 30 people attended the second dementia education class on Feb. 11 while she’s also received requests for Zoom participation and recordings.
A separate open forum is offered on the fourth Monday of the month at 4 p.m. in the Agency on Aging dining room, which provides an informal setting for a guided discussion.
The demand for caregiver programs come as the Baby Boomer generation ages and the volume of Flathead County residents suffering from dementia expands.
Out of the 22,000 Flathead County residents over age 65, roughly 2,000 of those individuals lives with dementia while there are 21,000 Montana residents living with Alzheimer’s, according to Alzheimer’s Association data.
While a network of resources including memory care units, independent living residences and home health aide systems are established to provide support in the Flathead Valley, a high volume of individuals rely on family caregivers.
In 2024, there were 17,000 caregivers in Montana who provided 25 million hours of unpaid care, a value of $478 million, according to the Alzheimer’s Association. More than half of caregivers took care of their loved ones while battling their own ailments and nearly a quarter of this group dealt with depression.
The Dementia Education Series takes place on the second Wednesday of each month at the Flathead County Agency on Aging in the South Campus Conference Room at 40 11th Street West on the second floor from 10:30 a.m. to noon in Kalispell.
The Dementia Caregiver Open Forum will take place on the fourth Monday of each month at the Flathead County Agency on Aging Dining Room at 40 11th Street West from 3 p.m. to 4 p.m.
The workshops are free to attend and no RSVP is required.
Dyment (pictured above) also updated county commissioners about the Meals on Wheels program, which has seen a spike in demand of roughly 40% in the last six years.
As of this month, the Agency on Aging has 328 active Meals on Wheels clients, which does not currently have a waitlist as it usually does thanks to successful driver recruitment in recent months.
“We do not have a waitlist for the Meals on Wheels program – I really love saying that every time … our drivers for the Meals on Wheels program are the heart and soul of everything that we do four our recipients,” Dyment said. “They provide social connection and a friendly check-in with each delivery and we are so very grateful for every single volunteer.”
To volunteer to be a Meals on Wheels Driver, call (406) 758-5711.
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