Stroke Recovery Support at Home in Kingsland, GA

Hospitals with an emergency department near Kingsland: Southeast Georgia Health System -- Camden Campus in Saint Marys (17 mi); Baptist Medical Center - Nassau in Fernandina Beach (23 mi); Shands Jacksonville in Jacksonville (34 mi). With stroke signs, call 911 rather than driving.

311 Kingsland residents 65 or older have difficulty dressing or bathing (14%; 7.6% in Camden County), and 553 have serious difficulty walking: the two kinds of help most often needed in the weeks after a stroke.

At the Georgia median aide wage of $14.07 an hour, 20 hours of help a week comes to about $1,219 a month in wages, which is 25% of the $4,929 monthly median income of Kingsland households headed by someone 65 or older. Private rates are agreed directly with the caregiver, so yours may be higher or lower. Georgia's state rate is lower than the federal one, so employers covered by the Fair Labor Standards Act pay at least the federal $7.25 an hour (U.S. Department of Labor).

Hiring directly, you agree the rate with the caregiver and usually become the household employer (U.S. Department of Labor rules). Some families qualify for programs that pay for care at home; see Medicaid programs for family caregivers: who can be paid, and the rules in 12 states.