Purdue News
Purdue News
November 14, 1997
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- In the blink of an eye they join legions of others who've had farming accidents, but these farm operators and their spouses feel alone and unprepared when it happens to them.
Resources and assistive devices are increasingly more available to the farmer so he or she can keep farming after a disabling accident, but the spouse caregiver historically has been overlooked. Yet it's the spouse -- 97 percent of the time the woman -- who has to pick up the farming responsibilities as well as keep things running at home and care for her disabled partner.
Barry Delks, director of Breaking New Ground Resource Center at Purdue University that offers resources nationwide to farmers and ranchers with disabilities, said that when he visited these farmers to see how the center could help them, he noticed the strain on other family members. One woman, he said, was under so much stress that her hair began to fall out.
"On farm visits I see symptoms of physical stress," Delks said. "We're doing a lot for the farmer who's been injured; we can get him a lift to get back on the tractor. But the whole family is impacted. I began to wonder, through AgrAbility, what can we do?"
AgrAbility is a USDA-funded program in 19 states that provides education, assistance and support to farmers and ranchers with disabilities.
"I take a book with me on farm visits that shows equipment modifications, and when the farmers see it they're encouraged," Delks said. "But there's no such tool for the entire family."
So Breaking New Ground set about developing materials to encourage the caregivers. The result is a brochure, video and guidebook. The theme is "To Everything There Is a Season...," with sections such as When the Storm Strikes, A Season of Rest, After the Storm, Hanging in There Come Rain or Shine, Changing Seasons, and Spring Is in the Air.
"The publication features nine families and their stories," Delks said. "Each section talks about how to deal with a given situation and has activities for the family to do together."
Topics include asking for assistance, commitment to marriage, communication, children and changing roles.
"Caregivers traditionally don't care for themselves," Delks said. "They stick with their caregiving role to the point of burnout, so Chapter 2 is Caring for the Caregiver." It talks about the importance of diet, exercise and making time for yourself; the therapeutic effects of music; and hints to prevent stress.
Carol Huelsenbeck of Kendallville, Ind. , said it's important to take care of yourself, as well as to have a sense of humor and to be thankful for what you have rather than to dwell on what you lost. Her husband, Martin, was run over by a gravity bed wagon full of corn. He sustained a multitude of serious injuries and was on a ventilator for four weeks and kidney dialysis for three. He had nine surgeries and spent four months in the hospital. The Huelsenbecks are one of the families featured in the caregiver materials.
Carol said she thinks the "For Everything There Is a Season..." materials will help reality set in for families of farm-accident victims.
"The hospital is a protected environment," she said. "You're hesitant about how to handle yourself in your community and your neighborhood.
"I never thought of myself as a caregiver until I read other stories, then I thought 'Wow, that's me.' I think it will help the families realize they're not alone."
And that's a perfect reason for the materials, according to Debbie Bell of Hagerstown, Ind. , who with her husband, Ed, also has a chapter in the guidebook. Ed suffered a permanent spinal cord injury in a shooting while the couple was engaged.
"It's an excellent idea for caregivers," Debbie said. "It's a resource they can grab onto. When I was in that situation, there wasn't anything. It's like a support system -- real people and real stories."
The support of family and friends was important to the Bells, Debbie said in their chapter, which emphasizes asking for assistance.
And support is key to all caregivers and their families, Delks said.
"Many don't realize there are others out there in the same boat and where to find resources," he said. "The families in the video said they wished they'd had access to such a video after rehabilitation."
In fact, the need for these caregiver resources is so great that, before Delks could even get them finished and distributed, they received an innovator award from the National Council on Aging.
His current projects are to get "To Everything There Is a Season..." into the hands of folks who can benefit from it and to expand a resource directory for farmers with disabilities that lists -- for networking purposes -- name, state, disability, and what assistance the farmer or rancher can offer others in the same situation. The updated directory also will list caregiver information.
For more information, contact Delks at the Breaking New Ground Resource Center, (765) 494-1221.
Source: Barry Delks, (765) 494-1221; e-mail, delks@ecn.purdue.edu
Writer: Andrea McCann, (765) 494-8406; e-mail, mccann@aes.purdue.edu
Purdue News Service: (765) 494-2096; e-mail, purduenews@purdue.edu
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