Last year, my husband asked me to help him arrange a baptism ceremony at our home. Though baptized as a child, he wanted to supplement his childhood understanding with a reaffirmation of adult faith.
Baptizing Someone Immobile Read More »
Factors Influencing Emotional Acceptance What are the many factors that influence the emotional acceptance of a caregiver to their new role? Among those influences is whatever caused them to become a caregiver in the first place. Emotions have a powerful influence on how an individual perceives their environment and their circumstances. They shape a
What Factors Influence Emotional Acceptance? Read More »
Care Agreements Are a Good Idea Ensuring everyone expects the same outcomes is a good idea whenever you ask someone to work for you. Assuming everyone interprets comments the same can lead to big misunderstandings. Therefore, writing up a care agreement is a good idea if you hire someone to care for a family member,
The Care Recipient Always Has Final Decision-Making Authority Provided Competency Is Present Determining who has authority and the right to final decision-making is often unclear. The person receiving care always maintains final decision-making authority over his care, as long as he remains competent. However, other family members may want to have a say in the
Determining Who Has Authority Read More »
Daily, the news carries reports of another state entering Phase One of returning to normal following the massive shutdown of the country to protect the vulnerable population from the Coronavirus. At this point, I think most, if not all, states have reopened markets that are not high-risk.
Now That You’re out of Quarantine, Don’t forget those Left behind Read More »
Caregivers never take a break because though they may not be physically present, mentally, they do not let go of their responsibilities. Relaxation is extremely difficult for a lifetime family caregiver because being “on” and ready to respond in an instant is a part of their innermost being. They do not have an off switch.
A Lifetime of Family Caregiving Read More »
The Importance of Understanding Lab Values Why is understanding lab values an important skill for a caregiver? After all, the doctor reads the lab work and tracks what is going on with your family member. Why not trust them to handle that part of the care alone? Advantages of Knowing Lab Values Understanding lab work
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Vital Signs Each time you call a doctor to report a concern about your family member’s health, expect a question about their blood pressure, breathing, or temperature. Vital signs tell the doctor much about what’s happening inside the patient’s body, where the eyes can’t see. The five primary vital signs combined paint a picture of
Understanding Healthcare as an Advocate When you take on the role of caregiver, you become responsible for your family member’s daily care duties, but you also become their advocate. Understanding Healthcare is essential to working within the medical environment and getting anything done. Healthcare systems are complex. A strict reporting line of leadership exists, and
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Mental and Physical Effects of Caregiving Research by organizations such as the Centers for Medical Services (CMS), Centers for Disease Control (CDC), National Alliance for Caregiving (NAC), and the American Association of Retired People (AARP) shows the significant and long-term impact of caregiving. Based on their research, caregivers who provide continuous care for long periods
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Tube Feedings for Eating Disorders (Focus on Pediatrics) If you are the parent of a child struggling to eat and not gaining weight, your physician may have warned that the next step to prevent malnutrition is to insert a gastric tube for tube feedings. When tube feedings begin, a family caregiver learns to insert
Tube Feedings for Eating Disorders Read More »
Safe Medication Management Managing medication is all about knowing what, how, and when is the best way to take a medicine to have the best outcome. In addition, it’s important to understand why you’re taking medicine and what you should expect to happen when you take it. For example, many medications can act like poisons
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