Experts say 95 percent of Americans 65 and older live by themselves or with their families, and about 15 percent of them need a moderate to high level of care. Eighty percent of that care is provided by family, friends and neighbors. But caring for seniors is often a struggle in this era of dual-career, mobile families. Sometimes, seniors wind up caring for other seniors. Other times, seniors without nearby family members get no care at all.
Some families manage by sharing responsibilities with siblings or hiring help.
But caregivers are often forced to change their jobs, their homes, their lives. Gaines works a second-shift job so that she can watch Johnson while McQueen works. A home health aide helps out 10 hours a week. The sisters felt they had to do all they could. But it hasn't been easy.