Family - Tips for Caregivers
Family Caregiver Tips
Here you can find advice to help you in the demanding challenge of providing care for a family member. There are an estimated 18 million family caregivers nationwide -- so you are not alone.
O = Optimism
P = Planning
E = Expert information
A Caregiver's Bill of Rights.
I have the right --
To take care of myself: This is not an act of selfishness. It will give me the capability of taking better care of my relative.
To seek help from others even though my relative may object. I recognize the limits of my own endurance and strength.
To take pride in what I am accomplishing and to applaud the courage it has sometimes taken to meet the needs of my relative.
To protect my individuality and my right to make a life for myself that will sustain me in the time when my relative no longer needs my full-time help.
Excerpted from "A Caregiver's Bill of Rights," Caregiving: Helping An Aging Loved One, Jo Horne, AARP Books, 1985.
Caring for Fractured Hip
Here are some ideas to help care for someone with a fractured hip:
Tips courtesy of Visiting Nurse Association, Evansville, Indiana. The VNA names Theresa L. Pantanella, OTR, Today's Caregiver magazine and Web site as their source.
The Indiana Association for Home & Hospice Care wants to help you. We believe the Internet is an excellent place to exchange information about caring for people we love. We hope the tips you see here are useful. We hope, as well, that you will contribute some of your experiences at some time. If you are a family caregiver or a health care or social services professional with caregiving advice, click here to send us your tips.
Here you can find advice to help you in the demanding challenge of providing care for a family member. There are an estimated 18 million family caregivers nationwide -- so you are not alone.
- Try not to dwell on the negative, believe in yourself, be good to yourself and the most important: Take very good care of yourself!
- Falls are a major reason for people losing their personal independence. Many nursing home admissions result from falls in the home.
- Get rid of all throw rugs.
- Stairs should be in good repair. They should have handrails. They should be well lit.
- Remove clutter and move furniture a little farther apart to make it easier to walk around.
- Keep a journal. Make an informal record of day-to-day happenings. Write down questions and concerns as they come to you. This will make it much easier to communicate.
- Always encourage your loved one to do everything he or she is safely capable of doing. It is important that your loved one feel as independent as possible.
- Ask your pharmacist for pre-fill syringes for diabetic patients who need help.
- If you do not have a hospital bed, you can elevate a patient's head or feet by placing a folded blanket between the mattress and box springs.
- Use sound monitors typically used for babies to monitor a loved one from another room in the house or even short distances outside.
- Portable phones add another dimension of safety for a elderly family member. Not only do they make it easy to contact help, but they also make it unnecessary to rush to the phone and risk injury.
- To help a loved one who has trouble walking, allow the person to hold the back of your arm at the elbow. This gives the person more control over movement and direction.
- There are four important keys to solving caregiving problems. Just think of the word cope.
O = Optimism
P = Planning
E = Expert information
A Caregiver's Bill of Rights.
I have the right --
To take care of myself: This is not an act of selfishness. It will give me the capability of taking better care of my relative.
To seek help from others even though my relative may object. I recognize the limits of my own endurance and strength.
To take pride in what I am accomplishing and to applaud the courage it has sometimes taken to meet the needs of my relative.
To protect my individuality and my right to make a life for myself that will sustain me in the time when my relative no longer needs my full-time help.
Excerpted from "A Caregiver's Bill of Rights," Caregiving: Helping An Aging Loved One, Jo Horne, AARP Books, 1985.
Caring for Fractured Hip
Here are some ideas to help care for someone with a fractured hip:
- Obtain a reacher- this simple device is great for many tasks.
- Help with footwear. Buy a long-handled show horn. Get shoes that don't need to be tied.
- Bath accessories. Get a long-handled bath sponge, a hand-held shower head, and a bath seat.
- Make the home safe. Secure loose cords and rugs. Remove clutter from floors.
- Cordless telephone. An excellent way to reduce walking. Helpful in emergencies.
- Chair with armrests. Armrests provide extra support when the person moves to a standing position.
Tips courtesy of Visiting Nurse Association, Evansville, Indiana. The VNA names Theresa L. Pantanella, OTR, Today's Caregiver magazine and Web site as their source.
The Indiana Association for Home & Hospice Care wants to help you. We believe the Internet is an excellent place to exchange information about caring for people we love. We hope the tips you see here are useful. We hope, as well, that you will contribute some of your experiences at some time. If you are a family caregiver or a health care or social services professional with caregiving advice, click here to send us your tips.