Being a caregiver for someone seriously ill is a challenging and time-consuming. For the caregiver who is new, absorbing the new responsibility into the already hectic life of a caregiver can be overwhelming. This article offers some organizing tips that reduce the amount of time and effort needed to accomplish the essential tasks, and helps to reduce your stress .
Communication
As a caregiver I realized that communicating with friends and family members for updates was an overwhelming task. Sharing the same information several times can be time-consuming. If you want to share information with a wider, yet interested audience think about creating a blog or e-mail to send out updates one time instead of repeatedly. Responses to blog comments or e-mail responses can occur at a time that is convenient for the caregiver instead of each time the phone rings. Gaining control over the needed communication reduces the stress and anxiety associated with multiple interruptions throughout your day. I discovered that using blogs for communication can also help reduce issues with misinterpreting information when it goes from one person to the next. E-mails or blogs serve to be your "single source" of truth.
Medical History
A patient who is seriously ill often needs frequent visits to doctors, specialists, and hospitals. One of the most frequently asked questions from health professionals was about medication taken by the patient. Secondary in frequency were inquiries about other health professionals such as insurance prescriptions, surgeries, pharmacy visits and allergic reactions. Inputting this information in an organized location, whether in writing or electronically ensures that you have all the relevant information readily available in case of need. If maintained, it helps to reduce medical mistakes. The task of recollecting information in a hospital or during an emergency can be difficult. It often leads to omission of crucial details or sharing incorrect details. Another benefit is a reduced stress level on the caretaker.
Medication List
A seriously ill patient often requires multiple medication. Again, if you record all medications to one place together with a schedule for dosing, you can avoid mistakes with medication. Additionally, it allows you to take on the responsibility of distributing medications to other people when required, giving you the freedom to share that workload and focus on other tasks. If the list is maintained the medication list will allow an easy way to recall the information when requested by health care professionals or emergency personnel.
Medicine Information
When taking many medications, the chance of side effects increases dramatically. Pharmacies offer medicine information sheets when they are dispensing medicines. The information on medicine is also available through the Internet. The fact that you can keep all the information about medicines in one location enables you to find quickly the information you require, should you suspect that someone you take care of has an issue with medications. With a serious illness you find that a variety of doctors prescribe medications. The list helps you keep all doctors informed so that you can avoid problems from the onset. If a side effect occurs, doctors usually have other medicine options.
Calendar
The person who is seriously ill often requires numerous health care appointments. I suggest using a calendar to track every appointment. It is not a big deal whether it is an electronic or paper version. Having the calendar available minimizes the problems with scheduling too many appointments in one day, or creating multiple appointments.
None of the tips I share are revolutionary, however each of these little organizing tips will add to a larger sum over time. Our minds are powerful, but often overwhelmed when trying to tackle too many subjects at once or try to keep track of too many things. Untangling the mind from details lets you focus on the important issues or other tasks. Freeing the mind of the details can also help reduce the anxiety you experience Elderly when you are responsible for caring for your loved ones.
Suddenly a Caregiver
A family's experiences and lessons learned to help you navigate the daunting task of becoming a family caregiver.