Generally a chronic illness is an illness that will last three months or possibly longer. It may just surprise you that about 7 of every 10 deaths inside the US results from chronic related illnesses. With the growth in health care prices, there is a rising trend for more people to use family oriented chronic care strategies in their home when caring for family and loved ones.
There are no real steady fast rules that apply to these home care situations. There are some tips that everyone should follow to make things a little more easier in the long term. One of the biggest reasons people pursue this is because they still wish to remain close to their family and realize even family members who may have medical issues still have a lot to offer their family.
One of the important items that could be done is to maintain positive open communications. It is important that they see you are only there to help make their life better. Let them see they can speak to you regarding concerns they may have. Often this type of illnesses could cause extreme personality changes and memory loss, show patience as work through this.
If they see a doctor often take an active part in their appointments. Nobody likes seeing a doctor alone, including family members that have a terminal illness. By going to them, you not only give them a ride there and back but could fill prescriptions or remember important things to bring along. You may also have relevant information which the patient could have forgotten. When the visit is over you could help schedule their follow up appointment so it will not be missed.
Most of the people who have long term illness will generally require ongoing treatment with various pills and medicines. It is important to become as knowledgeable as possible about these to keep your loved ones safe. Take some time to learn what everything does and what the possible food or drug interactions may be.
As boring as it could sound try taking some college classes. Many colleges have specifically targeted classes to assist people who take care of any family members in their home. You should learn first aid or CPR or even how to bathe and dress people. These classes are generally quite short and yes, worth every dime they cost.
Try encouraging them to keep a journal to write about anything happening to them and how they are feeling. This may seem foolish at first but may really help to fine tune the medical treatment and help pin-point treatment areas the doctor may be missing. It does not need to be elaborate, only a simple journal which they take a few moments each day to write in.
You are there to help solve their problems not create new ones for them. Many times it will take a while to regain a loved ones trust but it is important if you plan to help them with long term chronic care. It will be tough, but do not give up.
There are no real steady fast rules that apply to these home care situations. There are some tips that everyone should follow to make things a little more easier in the long term. One of the biggest reasons people pursue this is because they still wish to remain close to their family and realize even family members who may have medical issues still have a lot to offer their family.
One of the important items that could be done is to maintain positive open communications. It is important that they see you are only there to help make their life better. Let them see they can speak to you regarding concerns they may have. Often this type of illnesses could cause extreme personality changes and memory loss, show patience as work through this.
If they see a doctor often take an active part in their appointments. Nobody likes seeing a doctor alone, including family members that have a terminal illness. By going to them, you not only give them a ride there and back but could fill prescriptions or remember important things to bring along. You may also have relevant information which the patient could have forgotten. When the visit is over you could help schedule their follow up appointment so it will not be missed.
Most of the people who have long term illness will generally require ongoing treatment with various pills and medicines. It is important to become as knowledgeable as possible about these to keep your loved ones safe. Take some time to learn what everything does and what the possible food or drug interactions may be.
As boring as it could sound try taking some college classes. Many colleges have specifically targeted classes to assist people who take care of any family members in their home. You should learn first aid or CPR or even how to bathe and dress people. These classes are generally quite short and yes, worth every dime they cost.
Try encouraging them to keep a journal to write about anything happening to them and how they are feeling. This may seem foolish at first but may really help to fine tune the medical treatment and help pin-point treatment areas the doctor may be missing. It does not need to be elaborate, only a simple journal which they take a few moments each day to write in.
You are there to help solve their problems not create new ones for them. Many times it will take a while to regain a loved ones trust but it is important if you plan to help them with long term chronic care. It will be tough, but do not give up.
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