Many
things have changed for family
caregivers in the past 25 years, but
one thing has remained constant—the
enthusiasm, creativity and
leadership Former First Lady
Rosalynn Carter provides to the
ongoing efforts to improve the lives
of family caregivers. Mrs. Carter is
president of the board of the
Rosalynn Carter Institute for Human
Development, which was established
in her honor in 1987 and is
presently celebrating its 25th
anniversary. The institute’s mission
includes promoting the mental health
and well-being of individuals,
families, and professional
caregivers; promulgating effective
caregiving practices; building
public awareness of caregiving
needs; and advancing public and
social policies that enhance caring
communities.
Mrs. Carter spoke with
Editor-in-Chief Gary Barg about her
life as a family caregiver and the
ongoing work of the Rosalynn Carter
Institute.
Gary Barg:
Congratulations on the 25th
Anniversary of the Rosalynn Carter
Institute.
Rosalynn Carter:
Yes, it’s exciting.
Gary Barg: It’s a
milestone, especially in caregiving.
When we started in the mid nineties,
you were one of the few lights out
there talking about the caregivers
and their needs.
Rosalynn Carter: I
think we were one of the very first.
When we started, we had the idea and
then I called a lot of
organizations, 36 or 37, like the
American Cancer Society, Lung
Association—the different diseases;
but also the American Nurses
Association, American Medical
Association and other professionals.
Nobody was working on it, but they
all said we needed it.
Gary Barg: Could
you talk a little bit about the
goals of the Rosalynn Carter
Institute?
Rosalynn Carter:
Our main goal is to reduce the
burden and depression among
caregivers, and try to help them
have some quality of life. What we
want them to do is to take care of
themselves; because if caregivers
don’t take care of themselves, the
quality of the caregiving is
diminished. But also, besides that,
we work on policy efforts. We have
programs across the country. We work
with different organizations and
world corporations.
