Monitoring Your Metabolism Metabolism is how we convert food into energy and use that energy to make the body function properly. That process is essentially a chemical one and occurs through a series of organs doing their part to mechanically break down the food and chemically decompose it into energy. If our organs don’t work […]
Monitoring Your Metabolism Read More »
CBC – Complete Blood Count A Complete Blood Count (CBC) is one of the most common tests ordered. The test’s purpose is to check the count of all the cells in your blood and identify how many are present. A CBC includes a count of the red blood cells, white blood cells, platelets, hemoglobin,
Understanding – CBC -Complete Blood Count Read More »
Virginia’s Uniform Power of Attorney Act §64.2-1600 Code of Virginia What is the Power of Attorney (POA)? A “Power of Attorney” (POA) means that you have designated someone to act as your agent if you cannot make decisions for yourself. Usually, a written legal document spells out the agent’s decision-making authority. Most general POAs
Understanding Legal Terms Related to Medical Decisions Read More »
Relieve Pressure on the Skin – Rotate Pressure Areas Lift and turn your family member away from areas where boney areas press the skin against the bed or other hard surfaces, previously receiving all the pressure based on their sitting. When helping them move, do not slide them because sliding causes friction, which may
Tips for Preventing Skin Breakdown Read More »
Hallucinations Hallucinations occur with mental and physical illnesses, often due to medications, low oxygen, or trauma. Therefore, don’t assume someone has a mental health condition if they start seeing something you don’t see or hearing voices you can’t hear. Waking up within an extended dream state or with hallucinations is one symptom that
Delusions Like hallucinations, delusions are difficult for both the caregiver and the family member to handle because they seem real. The person experiencing the delusion believes the story they tell about a situation. For example, if your family member tells you she had dinner last night in Paris with your dead Aunt who works
Buying Medical Equipment Helping someone who has trouble moving or helping themselves requires a lot of strength, flexibility, and energy. Many times, unexpected movements cause muscle strain or back injuries. Special transfer or moving equipment (often called durable medical equipment or DME) helps reduce the risk of these injuries, but the cost is high. Before
Medical Equipment Needs Read More »
Back Up Care Planning What happens if the primary caregiver is unavailable to provide care? Many caregivers have medical problems they neglect or develop over years of providing care to family members. Eventually, however, everyone becomes sick, and try as they might, they cannot come to work. The same is true of caregivers, even
Plan for Backup Coverage Read More »
Use Caution When Assessing Needs Caregivers enter their role with guarded expectations and mixed knowledge and skills. Assessing the needs of themselves or their family members is very foreign to them. Therefore, use caution in searching for information to avoid unreliable sources. When seeking information or training, seek reliable sources. Caregivers with no professional healthcare
Obtain Training From Reliable Sources Read More »
Ways to Cope with Sundowning As you review the videos presented below you will discover that how you cope with sundowning behavior and the way you prevent the behavior from happening is much the same. Furthermore, as is true with all medical or mental health conditions, what works for one family may not have the
Coping with Sundowning Read More »
Approaching Someone Who Is Angry When someone with dementia or a mental illness is angry, they may not think clearly. Therefore, it is essential to use caution when approaching if they show signs of aggression. In addition, their actions may be unpredictable. Even close relatives may not recognize you and believe you are a
Approaching Someone Who’s Angry Read More »
To Help Someone Who Is Depressed, You Need to Be Able to Recognize the Signs of Depression Sometimes a person gradually slips into depression without realizing how low they have sunk. As their motivation to rise above the sadness is waning, you notice changes in their appearance and behaviors. If you notice some
Helping Someone With Depression Read More »
