Resources and Support Groups
Learning how to cope with a disease or the disease of a loved one and sharing tips on care can be extremely helpful to those whose lives are affected by chronic disease. The following websites provide information about diseases, and most offer links to area support groups that are open to new membership.
Resources
http://www.webmd.com/healthy-aging/default.htm
Web MD has a wealth of information on diseases, management, and healthy aging.
http://www.cdc.gov/aging/info.htm
The CDC provides health information for seniors, including chronic and infectious disease and immunization information.
http://www.longtermcare.gov/LTC/Main_Site/index.aspx
This website offers three sections: understanding long-term care, planning for long-term care, and paying for long-term care. Created by the Department of Health and Human Services, it offers interactive tools for people who are trying to calculate the cost of care.
http://nihseniorhealth.gov/listoftopics.html
The National Institutes of Health website is a senior-friendly site, with options for increasing the text size, changing contrast, and offering reading services for those with impaired vision. An alphabetized list of common problems among the elderly includes a vast amount of information.
http://www.ahrq.gov/consumer/
The Agency for Healthcare Research and Quality offers consumers information on various diseases, including clinical practice guidelines. If you want to see if your provider is following best practice guidelines or just be able to discuss your illness or disease, this site can be helpful. There are also videos, including one on “Tips for Taking Medicines Safely.”
www.medicare.gov/AssistancePrograms/home.asp
If you need help with prescription drug assistance, this is the site for you.
www.medicare.gov
Medicare offers a rich website that covers most areas of government –funded healthcare, from home health to hospice, including quality information. There is also information on HIPAA, the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. This is a vast website.
http://www.financinglongtermcare.umn.edu/
The University of Minnesota has helpful information on long term care financing.
http://www.samhsa.gov
This government website offers guidance for senior adults or families with substance abuse problems.
www.aoa.dhhs.gov
The Administrator on Aging, operated by the Department of Health and Human Services, provides articles on multiple topics of interest to older Americans. One good resource is a checklist for disaster preparation, complete with suggestions on what to include in a disaster supplies kit.
www.dhr.georgia.gov
This link to Georgia’s Department of Human Resources takes you to lists of all health facilities and provides links to quality reports.
www.dch.georgia.gov
This link to Georgia’s Department of Community Health offers consumers information about Medicaid benefits, as well as other programs funded through the department.
www.rosalynncarter.org
This link to The Rosalynn Carter Institute is an excellent resource for family caregivers.
www.caregiver.org
Family Caregiver Alliance is another good resource for family caregivers.
www.caregiving.org
National Alliance for Caregiving is a helpful resource for caregivers.
www.nfcacares.org
National Family Caregivers Association also has useful information for family caregivers.
http://www.mealcall.org/meals-on-wheels/ga/index.htm
This link provides a list of Senior Center meal programs available.
www.hospicefoundation.org
The Georgia Hospice and Palliative Care Organization is a beneficial resource for information on hospice programs.
http://aging.dhr.georgia.gov
Georgia’s Department of Human Resource’s website provides information for each region’s Area Agency on Aging.
Support Groups and Information
Alzheimer’s Disease: Not only does the Alzheimer’s Association provide a great website with resources at www.alz.org, it offers a 24-hour helpline at 1-800-272-3900.
Arthritis: The Arthritis Foundation, www.arthritis.org, offers education and information, as well as links to local arthritis resources.
Cancer: The American Cancer Society, www.cancer.org, provides information on all major types of cancer, as well as links to area support groups.
Dementia, Other Than Alzheimer’s: A good starting point for information on vascular dementia and other non-Alzheimer’s dementia is www.helpguide.org. Much information on the www.alz.org is also helpful for symptom management. Alzheimer’s support groups may also be a good resource for those helping care for people with dementia.
Diabetes: The American Diabetes Association, www.diabetes.org, offers comprehensive information on diabetes, as well as links to local support groups.
Drug and Alcohol Abuse: Drug and alcohol abuse among elderly persons is more common than once thought. While nearly every community has an Alcoholics Anonymous group and other organizations like Al-Anon, the government website, www.samhsa.gov, is a great place to start looking for information. Go to www.alcoholics-anonymous.org for information about how to find an AA meeting. Family members or friends coping with the effects of an alcoholic can find local meetings at www.al-anon.org.
Heart Disease: The American Heart Association, www.americanheart.org,
offers an excellent website with many links to educational materials, as well support groups for heart-related disease.
Huntington’s disease: The Huntington’s Disease Society of America’s website, www.hdsa.org, provides links to support groups and information.
Hypertension: The American Heart Association, www.americanheart.org, is a good source for consumers for information on hypertension.
Kidney Disease: The Kidney Foundation, www.kidney.org provides expansive information on kidney disease, support groups, and on-line newsletters.
Lung Disease: The American Lung Association, www.lungusa.org, has a very user-friendly site that provides education as well as links to the Georgia lung organization and supports.
Lupus: The Lupus Foundation of America, www.lupus.org, has an easy-to-use website with links to local resources.
Mental Health: The National Alliance for the Mentally Ill, www.nami.org, is a good place to start looking for information on various mental health issues and local resources, including a listing of local support groups in Georgia.
Osteoporosis: Although there are no osteoporosis support groups in Georgia, the National Osteoporosis Foundation, www.nof.org, has information on how to start a support group, as well as other helpful educational materials.
Parkinson’s Disease: The National Parkinson Foundation has excellent resources on Parkinson’s Disease and comprehensive lists of support groups. Go to www.parkinson.org for information.
Peripheral Vascular Disease: The American Heart Association, www.americanheart.org, is a good consumer-oriented resource for information on PVD.
Polio: Post-Polio Health International (PHI), www.post-polio.org, provides information to people who are suffering “late effects” of polio.
Stroke: Go to www.strokeassociation.org for information on strokes and addresses for area stroke support groups. The Stroke Association is a division of the American Heart Association.