Avoiding the Ageing Parent Trap, Second Edition: An expert's guide to navigating elder care, finance and the law

(Paperback)

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An invaluable guide.
Noel Whittaker, International bestselling author and finance writer
Informative, inspiring, insightful this is the essential family guide to navigating elder care and preparing for ageing parents.
Winner of the 2021 Australasian Journal on Ageing (AJA) Book Award.
Informative and insightful, this is the essential family guide to preparing for ageing parents.
This is a book that forces us to confront what most of us avoid - planning for our ageing parents. Our natural inclination is to wait and see what might happen. But when it does happen or starts to unfold, most families are unprepared, and the results can be devastating.
Poor decisions, disputes with siblings and partners and the destruction of relationships can be the aftermath. Author Brian Herd should know, recognised as one of Australias leading experts in the areas of elder law, and aged care for over 35 years, he has dealt with the fallout from these failures in families.
Avoiding the Ageing Parent Trap is packed full of practical strategies for dealing with family dynamics and managing financial and legal affairs, the overriding goal, is to forewarn and forearm you about your familys future.
This book is your go-to resource for:
Information and practical case studies to support families in their legal, financial, and healthcare decision-making.
Easy to read and commonsense advice from a leading elder care lawyer, with hands-on experience and examples to demonstrate what to expect, and even better, how to plan and prepare.
Help navigating the best outcomes for aging parents, from estate planning to Centrelink, residential aged care, wills, and financial pitfalls to avoid.
Brian outlines practical strategies for dealing with family dynamics and avoiding the pitfalls. He recounts numerous hair-raising examples of bad family planning and even better, what to expect, and how to plan and prepare.
About the Author
Brian is a passionate lawyer, working in the frontier of elder law, or law relating to older people and their families, involving the new dynamic emerging in families disputes and dysfunction brought on by ageing parents.
An award-winning author, and public speaker Brian is recognised as one of Australias leading experts in the areas of elder law, retirement, disability and aged care where he continues to win awards as a leading elder lawyer.he has been involved in countless family experiences, some which are truly eye-opening. He has many stories and practical advice to share and is a regular columnist and presenter on the topic of planning for ageing.
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Praise for the Book
"a no-holds-barred, frank call to action for both parents and children to confront the well-trodden but often unpredictable course of our life's journey - particularly towards the end, or as Brian would say, 'our celestial transfer'."- Age Discrimination Commissioner Kay Patterson
When I read Brians wise words, I felt like Alice in Wonderland gazing in amazement at the litany of rabbit holes and traps for young (and old) travellers in the strange and complicated world of ageing and aged care. I now appreciate the plethora of potential pitfalls that my family and friends face and will encourage them to act now!
Dr Greg Timbrell, Higher Education Advisory, Queensland University of Technology

This insight-inducing book delves into recesses of our future lives that many of us should recognise in order to avoid Pitfalls and perilous progressions are artfully described in an entertaining yet very serious guidebook on life as the adult child parenting parents. Avoid reading this at your peril or approach this aspect of your future armed with the great wisdom Brian Herd offers to educate you. Your choice, now or later.
Dr Anthony French FRACP, Geriatrician, Brisbane
An engaging and insightful read Brian unapologetically calls a spade a spade; not afraid to delve into complex issues and emotions that (on occasion) can make you cringe. He presents real-life, and often confronting scenarios while offering the kind of sage advice that comes only from years of experience, practice and self-reflection. Brian expertly navigates a challenging and ever changing landscape with ease and aplomb.
Joanna Lezanski, Relationships Australia

Whether you are an ageing parent or the child of ageing parents, this is the essential workbook to understand estate planning from Retirement villages and residential aged care, family carers, Centrelink, Wills and Enduring Power of Attorneys, the disintegration of family relationships, to the financial pitfalls to avoid. Brian has tackled a subject about which very little has been written, in an entertaining and informative work, crafted from his experience as an elder lawyer, in which he uses true life stories to illustrate the conundrum that faces families of ageing parents. It is both engaging and frighteningly realistic.
Jon Attenborough, former Managing Director, Simon & Schuster Australia

Author Bio

Brian is a passionate lawyer, working in the frontier of elder law, or law relating to older people and their families, involving the new dynamic emerging in families disputes and dysfunction brought on by ageing parents. He was exposed to the simmering issues some 35 years ago in his first visit to a nursing home. Confronted by an imploding family of five daughters, a hapless mother and some of the language of aged care he discovered a new calling - change management for families and their ageing parents. Since then, as a lawyer, he has been involved in countless. family experiences, some which are truly eye-opening. He has many stories and practical advice to share and is a regular columnist and presenter on the topic of planning for ageing. Brian is an award-winning author, and public speaker and is recognised as one of Australias leading experts in the areas of elder law, retirement, disability and aged care where he continues to win awards as a leading elder lawyer. For several years, Brian has been named one of Australias best lawyers in retirement villages and senior living law, and health and aged-care law. Including 2022 Solicitor of the Year (Large Firm) at the Queensland Law Society Excellence in Law Awards 2022.