Alzheimer’s disease affects not only those diagnosed but also their caregivers. Vanderbilt student Jackson Noland, originally from the Tri-Cities, has witnessed this impact firsthand. His family member has Alzheimer’s, and he has seen how caregiving has taken a toll on his grandmother’s health as well.
“I have a family member with Alzheimer’s, and while it’s been sad to see him decline, really the saddest experience has been seeing my grandmother decline as he has,” Noland said. “Her health has taken a toll as well as his.”
Noland began researching how caregiving affects quality of life in high school. He found that caregivers often experience higher levels of burden and lower health-related quality of life compared to their peers. To address this, Noland decided to draft legislation aimed at relieving some of the burdens on caregivers.
“What I found is there’s just a tremendous impact on being a caregiver where you have so much higher levels of burden than your similarly aged peers and so much lower of a health-related quality of life,” Noland explained.
Noland shared his story with local representatives, including Tennessee Representative Renea Jones. Jones was moved by Noland’s account of the financial and personal strain caregiving places on families. “His story really touched me and resonated with me as he was telling me about not only the burden that was causing financially, but on her physical well-being and as well as just her identity,” Jones said.
Jones is now supporting the “Caring for Caregivers Act,” which would provide a $6,000 grant to qualifying families to help cover caregiving expenses. To qualify, the patient must have Alzheimer’s or another form of dementia, the caregiver must be a family member, and the care must be provided in the caregiver’s home. Jones noted that similar grants in states like Georgia, Mississippi, and South Carolina have shown positive results. “It just might relieve something, some burden, a financial burden on them. The assistance really helps provide a better-quality care for the patient as well,” she explained.
Alzheimer’s Tennessee has also endorsed the bill. Tracey Wilson, the Regional Director in Johnson City, highlighted the sacrifices caregivers often make. “There are also times that caregivers have to step away from jobs,” Wilson said. “Many times, all of their needs, desires, wants, and sometimes health is put on the back burner.”
Noland’s goal for the bill is to provide relief for caregivers. “I just would like to see the impact on that,” he said. “I’d like to see how it can improve the quality of life. I’d like to see some of those caregivers be able to regain some of the loss of identity that they have.”
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