by Carol Leish, MA
On August 18, 2022, Ventura County’s Area Agency on Aging hosted one of their monthly seminars through Zoom reflecting upon Brain Health & Wellness. Today’s seminar, Caregiver Resources, focused on what is offered within Ventura County to assist caregivers.
Moderator, Maureen Hodge, LCSW, High Risk Program Manager for Care Connections (Community Memorial Health System), said that, “Caregivers are the backbone of our community.”
Blair Barker, Care Services Director at the Camarillo Health Care District said that, “Over 20% of the population here in Ventura County are caregivers. Most are women. And, many are caregivers for older adults. 36% of caregivers within the county say that being a caregiver is at least slightly stressful for them.”
“Senior Concerns in Thousand Oaks offers many services for caregivers,” according to Martha Shapiro, Director of Programs. “Our caregiver support groups help caregivers to get rid of their feeling of being alone. With others they realize that tears are permitted and humor is encouraged.
“Besides offering support groups,” Shapiro said, “we also offer legal and financial aid for free. We have an Adult Day Care Center on site. We mainly serve the east county: Thousand Oaks, Simi Valley, and Westlake. We are here to help people throughout Ventura County.” For further information from Senior Concerns, contact Martha Shapiro at: (805) 497-0189 or, [email protected].
“The Camarillo Health Care District serves Camarillo, unincorporated Camarillo, and Somis, along with other cities within Ventura County that request help,” according to, Barker. “We also offer support groups for caregivers. We have a resource library to help out people. The legal and financial aid that we offer helps caregivers with assistance of doing a Durable Power of Attorney; Advanced Health Care Directive, and Estate Planning. We also offer screening of caregivers for depression & caregivers well-being.” For further information from the Camarillo Health Care District, contact Blair Barker at: (805) 388-1952 or, [email protected].
“The Ventura County Area Agency on Aging (VC AAA) offers, TCARE (Tailored Caregiver Assistance & Referral),” according to, Haleh Hashemzadeh, Clinical Program Operations Manager. “We also offer a variety of support for caregivers who are helping people who are older or who are disabled. Assessing the caregivers’ needs enables us to better assist them” For more information from the VC AAA, contact Haleh Hashemzadeh at: (805) 477-7300 or, [email protected].
Dementia Friendly Ventura County will be presenting: ‘Living Well, Caring Well’ on September 7th, 2022 from 10am-12pm at the Camarillo Healthcare District which is located at 3639 E. Las Posas Rd. in Camarillo. The event, which will be a one-stop shop for people living with dementia-related disease and their caregivers will be in back of building F. Important local resources will be displayed, along with the opportunity to speak to industry professionals in person. You’ll be able to learn about services provided at various places: Adult Day Centers; Adult Protective Services; Alzheimer’s Association; Financial Resources; Health Insurance Counseling & Advocacy; Legal/Advanced Planning; Long Term Care Ombudsman; and, Public Benefit Programs (Medi-CAL & Cal Fresh).
For more information about the upcoming Living Well, Caring Well event, call: (800) 272-3900 or look at the Dementia Friendly Ventura County website at: vcaaa.org/dfvc.
