A growing number of Suncoast families depend on grandparents as full-time caregivers, and a new episode of Aging Untold lays out the emotional and financial reality of that role. Time, money, and energy all get stretched. Gerontologist Sam Cradduck offers the simplest advice: give yourself grace. Aging expert Amy O’Rourke adds a concrete first step, establishing legal guardianship so schools, doctors, and agencies have the documentation they need.
The program also examines nurse burnout through Oregon’s staffing crisis. The problem isn’t a lack of licensed nurses. It’s the workplace conditions pushing experienced caregivers away from the bedside. Two frontline caregivers, Heather Sweeney and therapist Amy Ponteri, launched Helping Healthcare Heal to give colleagues in high-intensity settings peer support from people who understand the job firsthand.
The episode closes with Nathan Longo, a Vermont retiree who turned accordion repair and performance into a 30-hour-a-week second act. He’s quick to say he’s better at fixing the instruments than playing them, which makes the story even better. Do you know a grandparent raising grandchildren here on the Suncoast? What support would make the biggest difference for them?
