How to Become an Advocate for the Elderly

Helping With Daily Life

Volunteer in a nursing home. Speaking to and spending time with the elderly will increase your awareness about their daily concerns and challenges. Issues you might observe include concerns about healthcare, common health challenges like dementia, unmet nutritional needs, social isolation,and a continued need for physical or recreational activities. Ask the volunteer coordinators how you can help address issues you see impacting the daily life of those living at the home, on top of your regular volunteering. If you have a friendly dog or cat, ask if the home participates in an animal visitation program. Animal visitation programs aim to provide comfort and happiness to senior home residents.

Volunteer to help independent seniors. While many seniors live in a nursing home, many opt to stay at home and live independently. Volunteer to help them with household tasks, either by working with a local organization or directly contacting specific seniors you know. Household chores and heavy lifting can be particularly difficult for some seniors. Offer to perform basic home maintenance, such as cleaning out the gutters or making basic repairs to fixtures and appliances. Consider working with a program that delivers meals or provides in-home visits for elderly individuals in your area. This helps seniors who cannot access a home or who wish to live independently to still get the care they need.

Learn basic healthcare practices. Healthcare is a major part of senior care, and you can help improve the lives of the seniors with whom you live or work by learning about healthcare practices and policies. Get certified in senior first aid, CPR, and AED, or attend healthcare conferences to learn more about senior care. Check course listing at your local community centers or community colleges to see if senior first aid and emergency care classes are offered. Talk to a local senior center to find resources for learning about senior care. Try to learn about the physical, social, emotional, and mental health of the elderly in order to advocate effectively and address issues impacting seniors. If you receive extensive first aid training, consider signing up as a community first responder (specializing in elder care) with your local hospital. Attend seminars and workshops at healthcare events that are specifically focused on elder care.

Help get seniors online. One major daily challenge faced by seniors is that they are unable to locate or access certain services they need because they lack vital computer literacy. Work with seniors in your community to get internet in their homes, and train them on basic computer skills. Volunteer with a local group dedicated to providing senior technological literacy courses. You may also be able to volunteer as a guide or lab monitor at your local senior center or community center. Ask the seniors you work with, “What are you goals when you go online?” so that you can provide specific guidance. If, for example, their main motivation is to communicate with family, you do not need to confuse them by also teaching them to pay their bills online.

Generating Awareness in Your Community

Host community forums. Your local community center might serve as a good central location for area residents to gather and learn about the challenges of older adults. Many libraries also have meeting rooms that may be accessible for such gatherings. Invite the elderly to speak about their concerns. Hearing the details of an older adult's health concerns, transportation issues or financial difficulties might inspire compassion and solutions from local residents. Advertise the event to local senior care, health care, and other community activists and organization groups. Present the event as a chance to meet with seniors in the community in order to understand their needs. Increase attendance at your community events by providing transportation for older adults who might not be able to attend otherwise.

Create a blog. Use an online blogging or microblogging platform to develop content dedicated to the needs of the elderly. Older adults who are uncomfortable expressing their problems in person might be willing to submit them anonymously online. Inform the elderly about elder rights, local services and community activities that will help them to overcome loneliness, boredom and feelings of helplessness. Encourage elderly readers to share concerns and challenges that may be going unheard. Also work on content dedicated to individuals trying to help the elderly. Provide useful links to resources such as local advocacy groups, pages about what to do in cases of elder abuse, and volunteer organizations.

Find a community group. Join an organization dedicated to improving the lives of the elderly. Such organizations typically distribute information and articles about the legislative issues that affect the lives of older people. They may also work with elderly people directly to address the issues that matter to them. Find community groups by contacting local senior communities or AARP to get recommendations. Volunteer not only by attending meetings but by also distributing information in your neighborhood and around your community. Make time to participate in local events, as well.

Working Politically

Work for an advocacy organization. One of the best ways to advocate for the elderly is to volunteer with or work for an organization that promotes intergenerational communication and engages in legislative advocacy. The National Council on Aging is a good place to start looking for groups and resources to join. Work on a local level to promote or draft protective legislation that creates access to necessary services in your community. Host public awareness events that encourage the community to work to protect elderly citizens. Push for programs that connect older members of your community with resources that can help them medically, legally, and financially.

Write to legislative officials. Financial abuse of the elderly, inadequate healthcare,neglect and senior abuse, and lack of transportation services are important issues to bring to the attention of legislatures. Call or write your local and state representatives to let them know that the voting population wants to see more attention to care for the elderly. You may want to start a whole letter writing campaign to get more support behind the message. With proper permission and permits, set up a table at your local community center to help others draft and send in letters. Provide pre-written letters that individuals can read and sign, along with addressed and stamped envelopes and a collections box so that you can take the letters in all at once.

Lobby at local events. Advocate through peaceful protest and demonstrations at local political events. Work with national advocacy groups to get resources and develop a plan of action. Then, gather individuals to participate in your demonstration. Prepare materials in advance to distribute to the public advocating for senior issues. Include information in how people can get involved, such as writing to their congressional representative or voting on certain measures. Keep your protest structured and peaceful. The focus should be on the message, not on causing a public scene.

Getting Employed as an Elder Care Advocate

Pick a care area. There are many ways you may be able to advocate professionally for the elderly. People work as patient advocates between elders and medical professionals, caregivers, or as coordinators helping elderly individuals enroll in medical or government benefit programs. Understand that most forms of elder care will require some sort of training. Look into the requirements for the field of elder advocacy that interests you and see if it is feasible for you to accomplish with your schedule and personal finances. Talk to professionals in different fields of elder advocacy and ask them, "What kind of training did you need for this job? What did the training prepare you for and what did it not cover?"

Get your credentials. Once you have your field picked out, enroll in the courses or program necessary for you to get into your field. Check with local colleges, junior colleges, and community centers to see if they offer programs relevant to your field of interest. Enroll in a patient advocacy certification program to learn about medical programs relevant to seniors and the type of specialized care necessary for the elderly. Patient advocacy training will also teach you how to work with medical professionals to make sure patient needs are met.

Offer your services. Look for employment in under-served elderly communities near you. Talk to local hospitals or nursing homes to see if your services are needed, or look at working as an independent, third-party contractor. If possible, opt for employment within the elder care community. Third party contracting may be costly for elderly citizens, and may only be accessible for some. Consider non-traditional jobs such as those working with your local government or for a non-profit organization, as well as those directly within senior communities.