How do you prepare to care for the person who has always cared for you?
That is the question Noblesville resident Tom Coverdale was faced with as a senior in college at Indiana University after his mother, Mary Ann Coverdale, was diagnosed with early onset Alzheimer’s disease.
A former IU basketball star who was named Indiana Mr. Basketball in 1998, Coverdale has made it his mission to help spread the word on Alzheimer’s awareness and adult caregiving since his mom died in 2010.
Last month, Coverdale spoke at the Anthem Blue Cross and Blue Shield Interfaith Summit in downtown Indianapolis. Lynn Scott, president of Anthem’s Medicaid health plan, said in its eighth year, the summit brought together ministers, community leaders and nonprofits from across the state.
“This year’s theme of the conference was caregiving and acts of love,” Scott said. “The group that was in attendance is a group that can spread the word. Community organizations participated in the event, sharing information and personal stories about caregiving.”
Coverdale said he was honored to address the attendees at the Anthem Interfaith Summit.
“This event aimed to unite leaders and stakeholders to discuss essential information and support systems for caregivers to improve (their) quality of life,” Coverdale said. “Given my journey caring for my mother during her battle with Alzheimer’s, I was honored to address the crowd and share my story.”
Scott said it was important to have Coverdale at the summit because he is considered a “hometown hero.”
“I think the combination of having Tom there along with the compelling nature of his story as a young man going through that with his mom and family was very touching,” Scott said. “He has a touching story that he conveyed to an audience that was quite diverse regarding backgrounds and organizations they represented. My understanding is everybody walked away, taking a little something.”
Coverdale said his family started meeting with professionals about what to expect when it was discovered that his mother had early onset Alzheimer’s. He said he wanted to do something special for her his senior year at IU, so he wrote her a letter saying he would point to her before the jump ball of every game.
“Before each game, I would point to my mother,” Coverdale said. “As the season progressed, my father would have to remind her what was going on, but what I remember most is from the first few games where she was excitedly pointing back at me. That is the way I always want to remember her.”
Coverdale said he is proud to speak about his experiences as a caregiver for his mother because his family could not have gotten through it alone. He said he was “greatly heartened” to see all the Indiana leaders and professionals at the Anthem Interfaith Summit working to spread awareness.
“There are many programs available to assist caregivers and their loved ones, but these programs are of no use if no one knows about them,” Coverdale said.
One program Coverdale wants to make Indiana residents aware of is the Indiana Pathways for Aging program that launched this year, which helps low-income Hoosiers receive long-term care at their own homes.
“I think it’s going to give people a better resource of where to go,” Coverdale said. “There are different resources when you get into that program that will tell you where to go when you need certain things, plus the organization is being proactive in the care that they can give caregivers. There are so many more things we can do in this state, just from resources that we talked about at the summit, that I think they are looking into to make the overall experience better than what I had and what it has been in the past.”
In the program, Anthem partners with the state to deliver services for people who are eligible for Medicaid based on age, blindness, disability, etc., according to Scott.
“It is particularly intended to care for people aged 60 and above. Not only are we providing medical insurance, but the PathWays for Aging program also takes care of the person by bringing essential services to them, whether they need a ramp in their home, transportation to receive their medical care or access to healthy food,” Scott said. “The Interfaith Summits aims to bring all that together to connect those dots in terms of the participants and what they do with the community.”
Coverdale stays involved with the Alzheimer’s Association and shares his family’s story at speaking engagements. He also is a strong advocate for programs offered throughout the community.
“While my mom passed away in 2010, I hope her memory may be a blessing to all those going through similar situations,” Coverdale said. “The ultimate goal is to have memories you can remember forever with your loved ones, no matter what they are going through. With great partners like Anthem and initiatives like the PathWays for Aging program, I hope Hoosier caregivers will continue to gain more resources and opportunities than ever to make these lasting memories.”
For more, visit providers.anthem.com/indiana-provider/patient-care/pathways-aging.
Asking for help
Tom Coverdale said it is important for caregivers to ask for help.
“Do not be afraid to ask for help because everybody needs that. When you’re taking care of a life besides your own that’s an adult, you need help,” Coverdale said. “You need breaks, and it is just as important for family members to take care of the caregiver. We have what one could describe as a family of ‘alpha males’ with my two older brothers and father, and oftentimes the hardest thing for proud men to do is ask for help.”
Lynn Scott, president of Anthem’s Medicaid health plan said she has also gone through her own caregiving journey and stresses the importance of self-care while caring for someone else.
“It was an intense 12 to 18 months for me with probably not a lot of self-care and not a lot of sleep,” Scott said. “Throughout my career, it is important for me, as I carry all of that experience, to make things right. My job now is hard work, but it’s work with purpose.”