Stable housing, access to healthy food, and the ability to pay for life’s necessities are all foundational to our capacity to thrive. Caregivers, like many others in our country, can experience periods of hardship that threaten this foundation through no fault of their own. That’s why Intermountain created the Caregiver Assistance Fund (currently only available for Canyons and Desert region caregivers).
The Caregiver Assistance Fund is powered by caregivers who are in a financial position to donate to support caregivers who find themselves in need of some extra help. It was created to help caregivers like Kim (not her real name).
Kim has been working with patients as a front-line caregiver for 10 years. When she was diagnosed with COVID-19, she was already vaccinated and thought she would be back to work in a few weeks. Kim wouldn’t return to work for seven months. She’d developed COVID pneumonia.
Kim spent a week in the hospital and was discharged with an oxygen tank to recover at home. She had a strong support system of family and friends, short-term disability benefits, and a savings safety net to cover three months. However, her co-pays, CT scans, and medication costs depleted her savings before she was able to start working again.
When she was finally able to come back to work, she read about the Caregiver Assistance Fund. She decided to apply for rental assistance to get her through until her next full paycheck. After reviewing her situation, the Fund provided not only help paying rent, but also help with groceries and her car payment.
“I was overwhelmed by their generosity and humbled they were offering me that much assistance,” Kim says. “The Caregiver Assistance Program was there for me in my time of need, and I’m so grateful and appreciative to all the donors.”
Caregivers who, like Kim, are facing issues paying for food, housing, transportation, or bills can apply for help from the Caregiver Assistance Fund. Caregivers who wish to donate are invited to add to the fund using the 2021 “I’m In!” campaign page.