Caregiver Resource Meetings with Ed Sardella

As the news anchor on 9 News, Ed Sardella had a contradictory role. While he was responsible for reporting the significant news of the day, he could never lose sight of the importance of the ratings and the station’s bottom line. In his new role as spokesperson for Total Longterm Care’s caregiver resource meetings, there is no ambiguity. Ed says his job is to help people who must care for themselves and their family, while at the same time, caring for an aging or frail family member. “For me, this is a story that is just as important to tell, if not more important in the daily lives of people, than so many of the stories I told on newscasts,” he says.

“I gained valuable perspective from my own experience - watching my sister assume primary responsibility for our mother while caring for her own family, because I lived too far away to help.”

Ed says he wanted to represent Total Longterm Care because of the program’s mission and wide scope. He studied the program with his journalist’s natural skepticism and he says Total Longterm Care passed his scrutiny test. He sees his role as helping to tell a story that caregivers need to hear and it also provides him a way to spend part of his retirement time providing a valuable and benevolent community service.

Total Longterm Care is a non-profit organization that helps frail elderly individuals live their lives in their own homes and communities. The program also provides valuable support for family caregivers by providing care coordination, respite, education, and peace of mind.

At the caregiver resource meetings, Ed tells the Total Longterm Care story and introduces other community experts in the areas of elder law, financial planning, and Medicaid. Those meetings are free and open to the public.

He says the program is broad and requires some explaining so that family members understand how comprehensive it is, what its funding sources are, and what kind of relief it provides for the family. For those who qualify, Medicaid pays for the entire cost of the program. For self-pay, Ed says, caregivers need to understand the cost/benefit relationship, “They should ask themselves, ‘How can Total Longterm Care help with my responsibilities? Can I afford it? Can I not afford it?’”

“I’ve worked with Total Longterm Care for a year and I have found absolutely nothing that erodes my belief that caregivers should give the program a look and see if there might be a fit with their situation.” Ed says.

For more information on the program or caregiver resource meetings call 303-869-4664.