The Caretaker

Roberta Dupont found herself as her husband's caretaker during the last ten years of his life. His last five years were spent in two long- term care facilities where Roberta spent four days out of every week making sure his needs were met, as well as becoming involved in the activities for other residents. This gave Roberta the chance to witness first hand the way in which the residents were treated. There were a few cases of extreme abuse that Roberta has included in "THE CARETAKER." Fortunately the number of good, caring people, outweigh the bad.

The long-term health care system in Canada needs to change. Action is desperately needed. Roberta details the history of abuse in our country's long-term health care system and details what she saw firsthand, revealing the scary truth: that Canadians are very much vulnerable to a neglectful system.

Being a caretaker for someone you love is painful. During this trying decade of unprecedented selfl essness, Roberta met many caretakers who were fi lled with anxiety, frustration, and depression. She learned that she needed to rely on her own personal strength to cope with being a caretaker. Through writing prose and poetry, and her love of art Roberta was able to close the door to the past, forget about the future and be only in the moment. The Caretaker includes the beautiful collection of prose and poetry composed during this time spent caring for her dying husband.