Paying Rosalynn Carter’s Legacy of Care Forward
On November 19, 2023, with her family by her side, Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter passed away peacefully in her home in Plains, Georgia. She was 96 years-old. The serenity that this peaceful scene invokes, gives no indication of her fearless advocacy for caregiving reform that spanned most of her lifetime.
Mrs. Carter’s Caregiving Legacy
Part of our personal mission in writing in this space is to enlighten our readers regarding the history and current challenges around caregiving in this country. Although we mention Rosalynn Carter in some of our other materials, we would be remiss not to take the time to pay full tribute to her unwavering dedication to the caregiving cause. Perhaps her most quoted statement regarding family caregiving is as follows:
“There are only four kinds of people in the world. Those who have been caregivers, those who are currently caregivers, those who will be caregivers, and those who will need caregivers.”
--- Rosalynn Carter
Her personal journey with the role of a caregiver began at the early age of 12 when her father was diagnosed with Leukemia. She experienced first-hand the conflicts and challenges involved in caring for a loved one. This helped fuel her commitment to advocating for family caregivers into her adulthood and through her entire life. In her positions as first lady, initially for the state of Georgia, then for the United States, Mrs. Carter worked hard and consistently to create what she termed “a more caring society.” (The Carter Center, November 24, 2023)
Mrs. Carter’s Impact on Legislation
You might be thinking, how does this impact me in my world? What does Rosalynn Carter’s caregiving work in the past have to do with the work being done around caregiving challenges today? Well, the short answer to that question is – a lot. For example, during her husband’s (President Jimmy Carter’s) administration, she served as chair of the President’s Commission on Mental Health, where she was successful in influencing the passage of legislation to improve mental health treatment and services in this country.
Likewise, as a result of her commitment to supporting family caregivers, in 1987 Mrs. Carter founded the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregivers (RCI). Major goals of RCI include promoting the resilience, strength and overall health of family caregivers by forging partnerships with other stakeholders to bring about needed change. Today RCI is not only still standing strong, but has been considered as a very important resource and representation for the 53 million caregivers that currently live in the United States.
For over 30 years, she convened mental health leaders to pursue positive, and systemic changes to strengthen mental health policies and services. While doing so, she helped to bring much needed attention to the segment of the U.S. population most in need of help. These individuals included those suffering from mental illnesses such as Alzheimer’s and dementia. Promoting better treatment for individuals coping with mental health issues remained a priority for her until her death. We know from the research that these individuals comprise a large portion of our care recipient population today, primarily among the elderly. In fact, just months before her death Mrs. Carter herself was diagnosed with dementia. Irony? Or perhaps a reminder that none of us are immune.
Paying It Forward
So what can we do to keep this invaluable work moving forward? How can we help continue Mrs. Carter’s legacy of promoting positive change for caregivers, care recipients and our communities overall to achieve her goal of a more caring society? The good news is that some of our policymakers have taken important steps forward by introducing key strategies to Congress to support family caregivers. (We will talk in more detail about these strategies in a future blog).
We must keep in mind, however, as noted by RCI findings, most often our health care system tends to focus on the person being cared for, while the caregiver remains in the background, unsupported and on their own. We need to adjust our perspectives to include attention to those providing the care by expanding resources to support caregiver health and wellness. Mrs. Carter herself brought attention to this issue in her testimony before the Senate Special Committee on Aging stating, “Our nation is in need of a fundamental shift in how it values and recognizes caregivers….”
Along those lines, it is well substantiated that working caregivers are not as healthy as non-caregiving employees. They experience more instances of chronic illnesses as well as health-related deaths than non-caregivers. Largely due to the reality of putting the care needs of their loved ones ahead of their own. Government, private employers and communities can work together to change this dynamic. A good start is by embracing initiatives to help provide working caregivers with the financial support, health/wellness resources, and job flexibility they need. While at the same time ensuring that their own care needs are not neglected. As Mrs. Carter so wisely pointed out, if we’re not caregivers now, we’ve either been one, will be one, or will need one. Family caregiving is a difficult dilemma that touches us all at some point. And we all can take the opportunity to be involved in the solutions.
To learn more about RCI and their valuable resources and advocacy activities, please go to their website: https://rosalynncarter.org
Until the next blog. Thank you for stopping by, reading, and for caring!
References:
Written Testimony of Former First Lady Rosalynn Carter Before the Senate Special Committee on Aging, 2011.
The Carter Center, Waging Peace, Fighting Disease, Building Hope, Revised November 24, 2023.
Rosalynn Carter Institute For Caregivers, Letter by Jennifer Olsen, CEO, November 30, 2022.
Honoring Rosalynn Carter’s Legacy by Prioritizing Caregivers, health.gov, Posted by Office of Disease Prevention and Health Promotion, January 4, 2024.