no job/no unemployment/debts/dependents/ can one beat the panic? Can one really help an OLDER family member in this position?

My sister is a single mother of a sixteen year old boy- She's over sixty- MS in health sciences from a radical/hippy-like college on the west coast- for the last many, many years, she's gotten by being an independent contract- an excellent researcher and speaker- on stress management, humor in the workplace and diversity in the work place. Brilliant/poor judgment.
Years ago, my parents used to tell her she should get some kind of steady employment, even part-time with health benefits and even a small retirement, but she kept insisting that she earns more as a consultant than she could as an employee.
The economic downturn affected agencies and companies that hired her regularly- no budget- the need but no budget for her talents. She got badly injured by a car runing over her two years ago and rather than planning for a future, did nothing to promote herself- Also, when she was earning good money, she spent it fixing her kitchens and baths. She recently had a good contract fall apart- unwisely she made plane reservations before having signed a contract because she had worked many times for this municipality somewhere in Texas, and had nothing else lined up. My son and I have given her over a thousand dollars, a mere nothing when she has no equity in her house and no savings.
So- I give her what I can- enourage her by telling her that with all the time she spends sending out resumes for $12.00 per hour pt jobs and keeps sending speaking proposals, the odds are greatly in her favor. I go on line and send her links for jobs, and I will continue to send her gas money for the week. I tell her not to be proud to reach out to social services- She may not have paid into unemployment but she has worked hard and has never been dependent upon government help. Also, I send her 20.00 every couple of weeks for manicures to boost her confidence, and congratulate every effort, If 130,000 troops weren't just sent to Afganistan, maybe the government can assure even those behind mortgage payments- that they will be able to eat, keep their houses and pay for utilites. She would gladly lend her talents if she could meet her basic needs,