Cindy and Chip Knapp often wake up in the morning still mind-numbingly tired, but they continue to press on. Their son, Ben Knapp suffered a cardiac event 10 years ago that permanently affected his motor functions and vision. Like many families in Delaware, the Knapps are finding that workforce shortages in the home health care industry have made it much more difficult to secure dependable at-home services.
- I am a caregiver, more so for elderly. However, I have been recently thinking of going to fast food or something because the pay is so much better.— Kasey Kay Santiago
- Pediatric home care nurse here. Ironically, I just resigned to stay home to care for my father. That is another problem: No home care benefit for Medicare clients. — Holly Webb
- We were fortunate enough to have three of us to take care of my dad, or I would probably have done the same thing. Nurses are being sucked dry. We can’t possibly fill all the holes in the schedules. — Diane Schepens
- Good and compassionate people are hard to find. — Howard Gaines III
- Yes, my grandmother cared for my grandfather at home till he died, close to 20 years, without much help. Someone once a week overnight, so she could sleep that one night. — Holly Overmyer
- A lot of good being able-bodied does when one can’t even financially take care of their own able-bodied self on those wages. But people keep thinking the living-wage issue is not my problem until it is — when you can’t find care for your loved ones and burn your own candles at both ends. Something’s gotta give. — Jennifer Parker
