Communication is often one of the toughest areas of senior care. On the surface, it seems like a trivial thing. But if you spend a moment thinking about it, communication is really one of the biggest areas of concern when it comes to most difficulties that people have. This communication issue can be between you and your parent that is receiving care, between you and their caregiver or another member of the care team. Or, in many cases, this gap in communication may take place between your loved one’s doctor and their caregiver. Unfortunately, new data shows that this latter situation is the case far more often than it should be.
A study from the University of Colorado looked at the communication between doctors and home health aides that have been assigned to help seniors that have recently been released from the hospital. What they found was that communication was severely lacking, and that this often resulted in hospital readmissions.
Communication issues can be small, such as a discrepancy over what temperature a room should be kept at for ideal comfort. These issues can also be much bigger, though. For example, there might be a mix up over which medications should be taken. This can be a huge issue, and could even be life threatening in some cases.
The need for good communication when helping an older loved one with their senior care is obvious. If you have an in-home caregiver that is working with your mom or dad, they might not know exactly what you know when it comes to your parent’s health. Most of the time, the responsibility will lay with you to bridge the gap between doctor and caregiver. This means that you will need to be diligent about staying updated with which medications are required and any other recommendations that the doctor passes on. Information that may come in handy during an emergency situation will also be helpful.
Many families find that it is helpful to keep all of this information printed out and stored in a single location so that the caregiver has access to everything that they will need to provide excellent care. In addition to this, any changes or updates should be discussed verbally so that you know that the caregiver that’s helping your mom or dad out is aware of the information. And, just to cover all of the bases, be sure that you speak to an administrator within the caregiving service that employs them regarding your parent’s medical needs. This information will all be covered when you first meet to set up care, but changes should be made known as they occur for the benefit of your loved one.
Communication between humans is never perfect, but by taking the responsibility ourselves and ensuring that everything that needs to be known is known by everyone who takes part in the care process, we can help our parents have a better experience while they are receiving any type of senior care, not just in-home care.
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