Being a caregiver for someone severely ill can be a difficult and time-consuming work. For the caregiver who is new, taking on this new responsibility in an already busy life can be overwhelming. This article provides some organizational tips that reduce the time and effort to perform the necessary tasks and serves to reduce your stress .
Communication
As a caregiver I realized that communicating with family and friends to update information was a daunting task. Sharing the same information repeatedly times is time-consuming. If you want to share information with a larger but curious group of people you could consider starting a blog or e-mail to provide updates once instead of multiple times. Responses to blog comments or e-mail messages can be made at a time that is convenient for the caregiver rather than each when a phone rings. Gaining control over the needed communications reduces anxiety and stress that comes with multiple interruptions throughout your day. I found that using a blog for communication has also helped to reduce the problems related to the misinterpretation of information as it is passed from one person to the next. E-mail or the blog serves to be the "single source" of truth.
Medical History
A patient who is seriously ill often needs frequent visits to doctors, specialists and hospitals. A common and frequent question from health professionals was about medications that the patient takes. Secondary in frequency were questions regarding other health providers and insurance companies, pharmacies, past surgeries, and allergies. Inputting this information in one place, either manually or electronically, will ensure that you have all of the details readily available when needed. When maintained, this helps to reduce medical errors. Trying to recall information at the hospital or in an emergency can be difficult and often results in the omission of vital information or sharing incorrect information. A side benefit is a reduced stress level of the person caring for.
Medication List
A person who is severely ill frequently requires a variety of medication. Again, if you record all medications to a single location along with a dosing schedule you can avoid mistakes with medication. Additionally, it allows you to take on the responsibility of distributing medications to other people when required and allows you to share that workload and focus on other tasks. If maintained the medication list will allow an easy recall of the information required by health professionals or emergency personnel.
Medicine Information
When you take multiple medications, the potential of side effects increases dramatically. Pharmacies will provide information on medicines when they are dispensing medicines. Medicine information is also available through the Internet. The fact that you can keep all the information about medicines in one place enables you to find quickly the information you require, if you suspect the one you care for has problems with medication. If you suffer from a serious illness you realize that many doctors are prescribing medications. This list will help you keep all doctors informed to help avoid issues at the beginning. If an adverse reaction does happen, doctors often have alternatives to medication.
Calendar
The patient who is severely ill usually requires numerous health care appointments. I suggest using a calendar to track each appointment. It does not really matter whether it is an electronic or paper version. A calendar that is available reduces the difficulties of planning too much on one day or creating overlapping appointments.
None Elderly of the tips I provide are revolutionary but each of these small organizational tips add up over time. Our minds are incredible but often overwhelmed when we try to address too many topics at one time or try to remember too many things. Freeing the mind from the details allows you to focus on the truly important subjects or other activities. Eliminating the mind from the details can help ease the stress that comes with taking care for your loved one.
Suddenly a Caregiver
Sharing a family's experience and lessons learned to guide you navigate the daunting obligation of becoming a family caregiver.