Lectures and Seminars

Carol Abaya Associates has developed unique audience interactive programs that provide an unusual perspective of the emotions involved in aging, elder/parent care, and role reversal and that help develop techniques and build skills to achieve positive caregiving objectives.

A Chinese philosopher once said that knowledge is the key to a better life.

My own philosophy is that if you have accurate information you can make better life decisions.

The Sandwich Generation^® started out by dealing with the everyday realities of aging and the roller coaster emotions of elder care. Becoming a parent to a parent is what I call a new role on the stage of life for which no one can ever rehearse.

However, as years passed, accurate information on world politics became even more critical. This arena sparked an unusual book.

Consequently, programs available here deal with two main areas.

1. Political history and the personal experiences of journalist Carol Abaya as exemplified in her book "Riots & Revolutions."
2. The sandwich generation, elder/parent care and aging issues.

Aging programs are geared to: Family caregivers Geriatric and health care professionals Corporate management and executives They are audience interactive and provide an unusual perspective of aging and caregiving.

They are designed to:
	increase the understanding of the aging process and dynamics and the emotions of both elders and caregivers.
	strengthen caregving skills and develop new ones for all caregivers, both family and professionals.
	provide TIPS for making caregiving more effective and less stressful.
	enable caregivers to more sensitively help elders maintain independence and a higher quality of life.
	help reduce employee turnover, and the inherent high costs involved, in corporations and health care facilities.

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Family Caregivers:
Family members make up the vast majority of elder caregivers. They are the unpaid heroes of the 21st century. Because of the high divorce rate, today there are as many male caregivers as female. 70% of women work full-time outside the home. Almost 20% of working women have either reduced the number of hours they work, taken advantage of flex-time or quit working to stay home and care for an elder.  

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Professional Health Care Providers:
According to Provider magazine, the average annual turnover rate for certified health aides (the mainstay of nursing homes) is 71% and for RNs 50%.

Staff retention is the key to consistent quality care, customer satisfaction, and a positive bottom line.  It is also critical given today's state and federal regulations for licensing and accreditation.

Interactive programs:
	provide a new perspective on the emotional issues of aging and caregivers and elders' psyche.
	strengthen staff caregiving skills and develop new ones.
	focus on developing techniques to enhance resident/family--staff relations.
	enable staff to more sensitively meet customer (both resident and family) needs.

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The Corporate Arena:
As more Americans live well into their 80s and 90s, elder care will affect most employees at some point in their work careers.

Employers simply cannot afford to lose the expertise of many of their most experienced and dedicated employees. Bottom line losses due to elder care is more than $50 billion a year.

An Abaya extrapolation indicates that for every 34 employees a company has, it loses the equivalent of one full year's worth of productivity. To get your loss number, divide the number of employees by 34, and multiply that number by the average salary and benefits package cost. This gives bottom line dollar loss impact.

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Program Specifics:

Program #1: Protecting Assets: What NOT to Do
All too often, elders and sandwich generationers jeopardize the elder's assets. Changing asset ownership can result in the elder losing hard-earned money. Learn how to avoid money "traps.

Program #2: The Emotions of Aging -- THE Most Critical Element
Emotions, because they can't be 'seen' or 'felt' by anyone else are the most difficult element in elder care scenarios. Participants will actually experience what the elder is experiencing in this unique skill building session.

Program #2: Alzheimer's & Dementia - How to Deal With Unreality
With millions of older Americans experiencing Alzheimer's or some other dementia, learning how to cope with the progress of such illnesses and the stresses involved is critical. Participants learn techniques to help elders retain their own dignity and to reduce caregiver stress.

Program #3: Corporate Specials
Corporate programs combine Program #1 or #2 with the development of a better understanding of what elder care responsibilities means to productivity loss and corporate bottom line. Also, TIPS on how to more effectively deal with caregiving employees.

CONFERENCE SPECIALS

Programs are specifically developed and tailored to meet conference (organization) objectives and audience.

Program Length: The length of a program depends on the audience and sponsor objectives and ranges from 1 1/2 hours to all day. The basic family caregiver program is 1 1/2 hours. Professional geriatric and corporate programs are a minimum of two hours.

Program Costs: Our fee depends on the audience and length of the program. Out-of-pocket and travel expenses are billed separately at cost.

Geographic Coverage: There are no restrictions as to the location of a program. We are located in New Jersey, USA. National and international presentations are welcomed.

For More Information or to Schedule a Program
Call Carol Abaya
at 732-536-6215
or send Email to: SandwchGen@aol.com

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