Caring for a loved one with dementia can be overwhelming and isolating. Never was that more true than during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Eileen Poiley understands that challenge well, having dedicated more than 35 years to educating caregivers at the USF Health Byrd Alzheimer’s Center. When the world stopped, she knew this important work could not.

Poiley launched the Alzheimer’s Caregivers Podcast in May 2021 to offer practical guidance to caregivers where and when they need it. As the show posts its 100^th episode this month, this resource has helped more than 7,000 unique listeners around the world with downloads from six continents.

Eileen Poiley.

“Some caregivers are at the end of their ropes, and they don’t know what to do,” Poiley said. “We help caregivers deal with the challenges from a non-medication perspective, as there are a lot of behaviors that medication can’t change.”

The podcast features 30-minute episodes on a wide range of topics affecting families dealing with Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, including understanding short-term memory loss, managing the challenges of daily life, reducing safety risks, frequently asked questions and more.

Podcast producer Scott Huetteman, whose mother has Alzheimer’s disease, encouraged Eileen to create the podcast after hearing one of her presentations in person.

“There are a lot of ways to get information out, and the challenge with caregivers is that there is so much they need to know,” Huetteman said. “The podcast is a great way caregivers can listen to episodes any time of the day or night at their convenience.”

Poiley agrees that caregivers need a large volume of information, but that comprehensive books that cover a wide range of topics aren’t typically useful for caregivers. The podcast format allows them to pick the topic they need at the right moment.

Eileen Poiley.

One caregiver who has listened to all 100 episodes—several many times—said he was in a dire situation looking for help as he cared for his family member. She was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s five years before he reached out for support beyond medical care.

“I wish that I could reconstruct the morning I discovered the Institute,” said the caregiver, who asked to remain anonymous. “I had been looking through articles I had collected in a file over the previous five years, as her needs were getting well past what I could provide. Things were getting really emotionally intense for both of us.”

The Pinellas County caregiver became hopeful upon discovering the nearby virtual Alzheimer’s support programs at USF, along with the podcast series, through a Google search.

“It was like Eileen was here in the home, how she described what we were going through at the time,” said the caregiver. “She was spot on, and I could implement what I was learning and see almost immediate results.”

“My loved one and I are now both much calmer, in a better place, all because I listened to the podcasts. Eileen identified behaviors to watch for, explained them, and gave me strategies for how to respond and how to cope.”

Alzheimer’s disease is the 7^th leading cause of death in the United States, and one in three seniors dies with dementia.

To support Alzheimer’s caregiver education at USF Health, give online at usf.to/caregivers or contact Dan Minor at danielminor@usf.edu.

Story by Davina Gould, USF Foundation.

Bridgette Dreher, (left), a USF senior studying theater design, reads from How the Grinch Stole Christmas, while her fellow students act out a scene, playing the Whos down in Whoville. The students put on a holiday performance for a family caregivers support group at the USF Health Byrd Alzheimer’s Institute.

The caregivers who attended their long-standing monthly support group at the USF Health Byrd Alzheimer’s Institute Thursday were treated to some much needed holiday respite.

A group of students from the USF School of Theatre and Dance visited and performed several light-hearted holiday songs and a couple of readings.  During the theatrical interpretation of Dr. Suess’ How the Grinch Stole Christmas, student actor Joseph Montalto, who played the Grinch, elicited smiles and laughter from the audience with his creative use of chairs that doubled as a sleigh and a chimney.

“It is very stressful to care for a loved one with Alzheimer’s disease,” said Eileen Poiley, director of education at the Byrd Alzheimer’s Institute.  “This is amplified during the holidays when the extra demands on a caregiver’s time and energy can be overwhelming… The emotional stress is often the hardest – when you see your loved one decline and not be able to participate in all the holiday activities like he or she did in the past.”

USF theater student Joseph Montalto amused the audience with his portrayal of the Grinch. Here he improvises stealing the “Who’s feast” using a plateful of holiday snacks put out for the caregivers.

The 15 caregivers at Thursday’s support group, facilitated by Poiley, were the spouses or adult children of patients living with Alzheimer’s – some for several years and others for more than a decade.

“Many of them can’t go out and leave their loved ones home alone for something they might like to do, like attending a party or a night at the theatre,” Poiley said.  “So, bringing this entertainment to the support group is our holiday gift to them.”

The theatre group performs “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer.”

Poiley worked with Amanda Clark, marketing director for the School of Theatre and Dance, to arrange the impromptu performance.  Earlier this year, she had collaborated with Clark on a USF production of Body Stories, which included the story of a daughter who flew from New York to Tampa to visit her mother, who has Alzheimer’s disease and is cared for at home by a live-in caregiver.  Poiley consulted with the cast to help create a realistic portrayal of a family affected by the memory-robbing disease.

Nearly 1 million people in Florida are caregivers to an Alzheimer’s patient, and many report high levels of stress and consequent health complications, the national Alzheimer’s Association says in its annual report.

The holiday entertainment provided some light moments for those who care for parents or spouses with Alzheimer’s disease.

Poiley has written a tip sheet to help caregivers cope with the holidays: See Enjoying the Holidays: Tips for Alzheimer’s Family Caregivers.

For more information on the caregiver support groups offered by the USF Health Byrd Alzheimer’s Institute, please visit: http://health.usf.edu/byrd/supportgroups.htm

Clockwise from left: Amanda Clark, marketing director of USF School of Theatre and Dance; theater students Ryan Bernier, Joseph Montalto, Bridgette Dreher and Raechelle Egan; with Eileen Poiley, director of education at the USF Health Byrd Alzheimer’s Institute.

–         Photos by Eric Younghans, USF Health Communications