Coordinating Parent Care

Caring for parents requires organization and focus.  You’ve added parent care tasks to your already busy life.  How can you streamline your caregiving?

Top parent care challenges are:

• Organizing important information
• Keeping family and friends informed
• Getting help with day-to-day caregiving tasks

Solutions to streamline caring for parents

Create a notebook to store all your parent care information.
Your notebook should include these 10 elder care basics:

1. Copies of your parent’s health care directive
2. Names, addresses and specialties of all his doctors
3. Copies of insurance cards
4. Your parent’s medical history
5. List of prescriptions, over the counter medications and herbal supplements
6. Roster of elder care agencies and service providers
7. Master calendar for appointments and activities
8. Notes about how your parent is feeling and symptoms you notice
9. Notes of the doctors’ instructions
10. To Do list to help you delegate caregiving tasks.

Regularly communicate with family and friends

Hold regular telephone meetings via a conference calling service or send regular emails or letters to your family members keeping them up to date.  The updates and meetings are a time to ask for help with caregiving and delegate responsibilities.  Even family members who live far away can participate if you identify tasks that can be done remotely.

Use a web based caregiving coordination tool.

Lotsa Helping Hands is an example of a  free web based tool.  It’s place to store information and communicate your parent care status and needs. Information is shared via a confidential webpage that you manage. Family and friends can stay informed and volunteer to help.

Here are some features of Lotsa Helping Hands:

A calendar for your parent’s appointments and activities

Friends and family can electronically volunteer for appointments and activities

A place to post reports of your parent’s status

A message board for caregiving team members to share information

Photo gallery and well wishes sections to encourage you and your parent

A vital information section where sensitive parent care information can be securely stored

Being organized keeps your caregiving on track. On-line caregiving tools are one way to stay organized and communicate with family and friends.

How do you stay organized while caregiving?  We’d love to hear your tips.

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­­–Janice Wallace