Top 5 Tips: Managing a Loved One’s Care

Of the many caregiving tasks that may be on your list, managing someone’s care is an important and sometimes complex one. This is especially true if your loved one has multiple doctors, therapies, medications and a variety of people—neighbors, family members, etc.—that you feel responsible for communicating with on a regular basis.

Here are some helpful tips:

1. Create a care notebook.
   Having important care information all in one place—such as a 3-ring binder, notebook or folder—will help you stay organized and will help ensure that you have the information needed whether for a scheduled doctor’s appointment or an unexpected medical emergency.  You may want to include a current list of your loved one’s medications (both prescribed and over-the-counter), a list of their diagnoses, a list of provider names and phone numbers as well as a copy of important legal documents such as a Living Will and Healthcare Power of Attorney.If you prefer to track this information online, you can use a free app—such as CareZone—to store this information all in one place.
2. Learn about your loved one’s condition.
   Educating yourself about your loved one’s condition will help you better understand and be prepared for the ways in which the condition(s) may impact your loved one.
3. Build a village.
   Caregiving is too big of a job for just one person. Most likely, there are untapped resources around you that could be tremendously beneficial throughout your caregiving experience.  Can a friend run an errand for you? Can a neighbor sit with your loved one so that you can go for a walk? It’s natural for it to feel difficult to ask for help. However, having a support system – or village – around you is one way that you can take care of yourself and will be key to your endurance in your caregiving role. You can learn more about how to build your support team here.
4. Have an important conversation.
   Talking about aging and possible healthcare scenarios can make us feel uncomfortable, but it is one of the most important conversations to be had. Knowing your options and making your wishes known to others—and knowing your loved one’s healthcare wishes—will help you best support someone as their disease progresses.  Advance directives are legal documents that provide instructions and guidance for healthcare-related decisions in the event that an individual becomes unable to communicate their wishes. You can learn more about these documents and access state-specific forms here.
5. Use a communication tool.
   Keeping family members, neighbors and friends up-to-date about your loved one’s condition can be a big undertaking. Several free online communication tools are available that can help you communicate a message to a lot of people in your community or caregiving network all at once, helping you avoid the need for numerous phone calls and texts.
   Examples:
   • Lotsa Helping Hands: This free website provides an easy way to organize help for people in need. It allows an individual to create a care “community,” use the care calendar to assign meal deliveries and coordinate rides to appointments.  The caregiver can send out updates and receive emotional support from the “community” care team members.
   • CaringBridge: This free website offers tools that allow individuals to communicate to a group of people all at once, request help with specific caregiving tasks and build emotional support for the caregiver and the one receiving care.