What Is the Single Most Important Step You Can Take as a Long-distance Caregiver and How Do You Implement It?
When you’re a long-distance family caregiver, you usually can’t just drop everything in your life when a crisis hits with your loved one. You need to have a backup plan that you can put into place when something does happen. Doing that means gathering a lot of information and updating it when your loved one’s situation changes.
Communicate Regularly with Your Loved One
The more openly and often you are able to communicate with your elderly loved one, the more accurately you can determine her needs and then make moves to meet them in the event something happens. You’ll also be able to gauge when you’re actually in need of implementing your emergency plan.
Communicate Regularly with Her Medical Team
Developing a strong relationship with your elderly loved one’s medical team keeps you informed about what is going on regularly with her health and her status. You’ll be aware of changes as soon as they happen and you can learn what cues to look for in an emergency. These may also be the folks contacting you in an actual emergency, so it’s important to get to know them well.
Get Eyes on the Situation
The one big drawback of being a long-distance caregiver is that you’re not able to see the situation for yourself daily. If there are other family members living close to your loved one, work with them to set up a plan for them to be your eyes and ears locally. Otherwise, an excellent option is to hire elderly care providers to provide companionship and help to your loved one and information to you.
Reassess Your Plan Often
As your loved one’s health and her needs change, you might need to reassess your emergency plan. Make it a point to do this regularly so that you’re not caught off guard at any point. The more updated your plan is, the easier it will be for you to implement it if you ever need to do so.
As you gain experience as a caregiver, even over a long distance, you’ll find more and more tools to add to your caregiving toolkit.
If you or an aging loved one are considering hiring elderly care in Windsor, NJ or the surrounding areas, please call Independence Home Care today at 609-208-1111 for more information.
