Caregivers and Rights: Supporting Alzheimer’s and Older Persons
Behind every older person living with Alzheimer’s is a caregiver, often a family member or healthcare professional, whose daily work is invisible but indispensable. Caregiving is a labour of love, but it comes with emotional, physical, and financial challenges.
The Silent Heroes
Consider Sipho, who cares for his mother living with Alzheimer’s in KwaZulu-Natal. Each day he manages medications, supervises meals, provides cognitive exercises, and navigates moments of confusion or distress. The weight is heavy, the responsibility constant. Yet, Sipho’s dedication preserves his mother’s dignity and safety.
Caregivers like Sipho are the backbone of elder care. They face:
- Emotional stress, anxiety, and burnout
- Limited recognition or support
- Financial strain and lost work opportunities
SAMDP’s Role: Advocating for Caregivers and Rights
Behind every older person living with Alzheimer’s is a caregiver carrying an immense, often unseen load. Our members support them daily in their practices by:
- Guiding families with practical knowledge, early recognition, and coping strategies.
- Advocating for policy change to secure financial, social, and healthcare support.
- Raising awareness to reduce stigma and affirm caregivers as essential partners.
- Promoting person-centred care that unites doctors, families, and caregivers.
By focusing on caregivers, SAMDP and its members help ensure that older persons receive consistent, dignified, and compassionate care.
Conclusion
As we close this October series, one truth stands out clearly: ageing, memory, and dignity are not medical issues alone, they are deeply human ones. Every older person carries stories, wisdom, and love that deserve to be honoured. Every caregiver carries a weight that must be lightened by recognition and support. And every doctor who listens, explains, and comforts plays a role in weaving a safety net of compassion around our elders.
At SAMDP, we are proud to walk this journey with our members, our communities, and our partners. Together, we are breaking the silence around Alzheimer’s, lifting up caregivers, and building a healthcare culture that treasures dignity as much as it values treatment. Because when we honour our elders, in memory, in care, in voice we honour the very heart of who we are.
