What Is A Caregiver?
A caregiver takes care of someone unable to care for themselves. A person may lack the ability to take care of themselves for various reasons such as an injury, illness, or any sort of disability. A caregiver’s duties include everything a person needs to get around with their day.
They vary according to the needs of the person being taken care of. For example, suppose a caregiver is in charge of caring for a person with paralysis. In that case, their duties range from cooking to cleaning to maintaining medications to taking care of every little detail of that person’s life.
Caregivers can be hired according to a person’s needs and requirements, including the duration of care needed per day. This means you can hire a caregiver for any amount of time you entail. 12-24 hours caregivers are also available and can be hired.
4 Types of Caregivers
There are various types of caregivers according to their job descriptions. They include family caregivers:
- Professional caregivers
- Independent caregivers
- Volunteer caregivers
- Informal caregivers
- Private duty caregivers.
Caregiver: Do’s And Don’ts
Caregiving is a well-appreciated and well-paid job. Many people worldwide rely on the care provided by caregivers to run their everyday lives. Caregiving sounds like a very calm and joyful task. However, in reality, caregivers go through many struggles to maintain a healthy living standard for their patients.
A caregiver’s job is not a particular job written on paper next to some rules. It is very hectic and requires great understanding toward the patient. Moreover, a caregiver must check all their patients’ needs and take care of themselves. This is why having a clear goal and an aim is important before anyone applies for this job.
Who Needs The Help Of Caregivers?
We may think that the job of a caregiver is exaggerated. Who needs them anyway? Can’t people provide care to their loved ones on their own? The answer is simple. Some people find it challenging to maintain their daily lives while taking care of a loved one in need side by side.
Similarly, The people who need the help of caregivers are the people who cannot take care of their daily needs on their own. This may include the elderly suffering from a disease or a disorder, children with a disability, or adults recovering from a recent accident or injury. In short, anyone in need can require the assistance of a caregiver.
How Can A Caregiver Help An Elderly Patient?
Elderly patients have a lot to keep up with in their everyday routine. As we grow older, our bodies weaken, and our memories start fading. Eventually, it might become impossible for an elderly patient to remember to take medications on time. Or they may need assistance in basic tasks such as cleaning and/or bathing etc. In this case, a caregiver can provide the following services to an elderly patient:
- Assistance regarding hygienic tasks
- Preparation of meals
- Feeding if required
- General household tasks
- Taking care of proper medications’
- Keeping the vital signs in check
- Running necessary errands
These are the basic needs that a caregiver may have to fulfill. However, further requirements may increase or decrease according to the patient’s situation.
Things To Remember While Caregiving
When hiring a caregiver, they must have the following qualities,
- The caregiver should have an incredible sense of responsibility. No one wants an irresponsible person to look after their loved ones.
- The caregiver should be loyal to their work and their duties. Honesty is very important in this line of work. Furthermore, lying about the tasks being done when they are not can lead to severe issues in the patient’s life.
- The caregiver should be a trained professional with behavior that visibly depicts that. It includes remaining respectful, maintaining personal hygiene, and using appropriate language.
- The caregiver should have optimistic traits with a positive attitude towards the patient. This includes being compassionate and empathetic with the patient.
Things To Avoid While Caregiving
While maintaining the good qualities in oneself, there are also some things that a caregiver should avoid at all costs.
- Caregivers are not medical professionals. They should avoid providing any medical assistance to their patients on their own. Moreover, prescribing medications should also be avoided.
- Caregivers should not be judgmental towards their patients. The patients need a friendly environment to relax and rely on the caregiver, not a toxic one.
- Caregivers should avoid any interference in the personal family matters of their patients.
- Caregivers are advised never to hold any information back from the medical professionals of their patients. It can only worsen their patient’s situation.
How to Be a Caregiver With No Experience?
Being a caregiver comes with its challenges. Undoubtedly, it is a very stressful and emotional job and can deeply affect your mental health. For some people, this job can be a lot to deal with, but for others taking care of people gives them hope and a sense of peace.
However, being a good caregiver can be extremely difficult because every person has a breaking point. When the workload becomes too much, or a patient is not being corporative, caregivers often forget how to remain a good caregiver. This is why a caregiver should have the following qualities to succeed in their line of work,
Remain Respectful:
The person being taken care of must be treated with respect and kindness. Respect is key to building a strong relationship, which a caregiver must keep in mind. However, building your boundaries is also necessary and tolerating disrespect is greatly discouraged.
Remain Calm and Empathetic:
When a person is struggling with basic daily tasks in their life, they are inclined toward becoming grumpy. Under such circumstances, you must remain calm and listen closely to your patient’s words. Sometimes, all a person needs is someone to talk to with the certainty of remaining confidential.
Be Patient:
Being patient is very important in this line of work. Some patients find it very difficult to acknowledge the idea of a person taking care of them. They can put out unnecessary tantrums and behaviors which must be dealt with patiently to progress.
Observe Every Detail:
Observing every detail plays a significant role in understanding the thought process of your patient. Once you master that, the patient feels a stronger sense of understanding and becomes easier to deal with.
Be a Friend:
When people struggle with issues in their lives, all they need is a friend, not a dictator. They need someone to rely on as a friend more than a caregiver.
Take Care of Yourself:
In the journey of caring for another person, you must not forget to take care of yourself. A person can only care for another person if they have good physical and mental health.
Why Do People Hire Caregivers?
People tend to hire caregivers to provide better care to their loved ones in need. If a person is struggling to perform basic daily tasks and you don’t have the time to pay attention to every detail of their needs and requirements due to work or other reasons, you can hire a caregiver.
A person can hire a male or female caregiver in Islamabad for any age group of people undergoing any type of disease, disability, or disorder. Most people hire caregivers for their disabled or senior loved ones.
Sometimes, a person cannot stay at home the entire day and can’t leave their loved one unattended either. Therefore, hiring a caregiver can be an operative option in such stressful conditions.
