Where to Watch Care (2000)

Summary

Let's face it. We're all aging. With good habits, we may stay healthy and independent for a long time. But in the end, most of us will need some help. What will it look like? Who will provide it? How will it feel? Care delves deep into the world of home elder care through the eyes of both paid caregivers and their clients. Costa Rican, Vilma cares for Dee, a former career-woman, whose only family lives 3,000 miles away. Delores tends to Miss Nina, a stroke survivor with a spicy tongue. In a rural area, Laurie cajoles Larry to do his exercises while he waits for a lung transplant. Larry's wife Tiff says, 'this is the hardest job in the world'. Yet despite spending long hours caring for others, these compassionate women earn barely enough to put food on the table for own familes. Laurie can't pay her rent. Dolores winds up in a women's shelter. And their clients are struggling, too. Paying for long term care quickly eats up a life savings. Through these stories Care reveals the beauty and intimacy of care, as well as the challenges and frustrations faced by elders, their families and care workers. It also reveals the beginning of a movement grappling with how we can better care for our elders, and those who care for them, as our country ages.