Taking care of elderly family members can become the greatest challenge of your life. The experience brings the best out of you because you will go through so much struggle and happiness — all at the same time. Sometimes it will come to the point that you’d be on the verge of breaking down; but, these acts of weakness can turn into acts of bravery the moment you look into it in a different angle.
When the time comes that you must have to provide your care to a family member that badly needs it, you should know what to prepare. Hence, listed below are the things that you need to ready in becoming a family caregiver.
List and contact numbers of the patient’s doctors
You will be a caregiver, not an established medical worker — like nurses and doctors. Instill in your mind that you need to be knowledgeable on the medical connections that your family member has. It is for both, the caregiver and patient, of your benefit. Hence, you need to have a list of your family member’s past and current doctors and their respective contact numbers. In that way, you can communicate with them easily and raise some queries regarding the condition of the person that you are taking care. It is also a good way of being proactive and alert when situations becomes too much for you to handle.
Copy of the patient’s prescriptions and diagnoses
This is the most important thing to prepare before you actually begin your caregiving journey. Like how doctors and nurses check the recent medical charts of their patients to conduct an accurate diagnosis and provide relevant care, you also need to know you family member’s medical history. This is needed in order to give the best care that he needs and intake the essential medications that can heal or ease his situation. You need to thoroughly go through the records so that you will understand his situation better and make him consume the accurate meds for him. Keep a copy of the records because nobody knows if it will become handy in the future.
Record of the patient’s insurance policies and/or bank accounts
Life and medical insurance is truly important. You cannot appreciate their values when you’re alive and kicking. But the moment you feel weak and vulnerable, insurances become a great source of financial aid. Since you are the appointed caregiver, you must know the insurance policies that this particular relative has — as well as their bank accounts, but the accounts are not necessary. When time comes that they’ll need further assistance, the insurance can cover their needs and save them from the increasing medical bill.
Task scheduler or planner
The task scheduler is for your benefit. You have to prepare this one in order to have a seamless and error-free task. Before you embark on your caregiving journey, you might want to list your primary duties and note the medicines, check-ups, and other important things about your patient. In that way, you will be able to execute your task perfectly, not compromise the health of your family member, and still have time for yourself despite it all. You can also indicate the time for that particular task in order for you to manage your time properly.
Stronger immunity and longer patience
Caregiving is fun but it is not for the faint of heart. There will be a lot of challenges along the way. To be a caregiver, you must be equipped with enough knowledge, skill, and compassion. You should also have a good well- being that can survive the rocky journey. Since you need to provide the best care possible, you need to have a stronger immune system. It cannot be avoided that the tasks becomes heavier as time goes by, hence you need to maintain your health. You also need to have a longer patience. This will not only create a good effect on your caregiving journey but also to your personal growth. When times get rough, it is possible that you get into petty fights and arguments with your family member. Having a longer patience will make you become the bigger picture and understand what he is going through.
The Damsel’s Files 