As a caregiver, knowing what to do and when to do tells it all if you are a good caregiver or not.
The sole responsibility of a caregiver is the client and every other thing is secondary.
Avoiding distractions is very important other wise,you will fail as a caregiver.
It is important to firstly highlight the important duties of caregivers before mentioning the causes of distraction.
The duties of caregivers varies with the clients so caregivers should not limit there duties only to the outlined.
1. Introduction: Introduce yourself to your client and gain his or her trust or else thing may not work between you and the client.
2. Assessment: The first thing to do as a caregiver is to assess the patient you are assigned to.
Irrespective of the initial assessment by the homecare company, as a caregiver you need to assess the nursing and medical needs of the patient.E.g assess the immediate environment of the client, assess the prescribed medication,asses for decubitus, e.t.c .
3. Draw Care Plan: Draw care plan for your client as this will go a long way in determining how to identify his or her challenges and solve them accordingly, with this you are sure of achieving your target goal.
4. Assist with activities of daily living: For everything your client could do before and unable to do any longer, you must be able to assist or do for your client as a caregiver in Homecare setting.e.g oral care, physical care,feeding,lifting from a point to another,serving meds e.t.c
5. Companionship: The most difficult part of becoming a senior citizen is loneliness and as a caregiver your major role aside the routine care is to be a good companion to your client.No matter how hectic your duty is, do not forget to still engage your patients in conversation.
6.Vital signs and medication: This is also very important as a caregiver,take vital signs appropriately at due time and document.
As vital signs are signs of life, any deviation from normal should be reported to the appropriate quarters.
Also, as a caregiver, it is very important to pay close attention when dishing and serving prescribed medication which must be done at appropriate time.Dont forget that anything not documented is not done therefore document your vital signs and medications served.
7. Light meal preparation: Your role as a caregiver is to provide total care for your client.As your client is unable to do what he or she used to do,cooking also becomes a problem,therefore you are to help with preparation of meal.
8. Running light errands: Grocery shopping,getting medicine at pharmacy stores,getting news papers e.t.c are also appreciated role of a caregiver.
9. Housekeeping: The immediate environment of the client should be well kept as you cannot promote wellness in an unhealthy and dirty environment.
10. Making your patient feel comfortable at all time: If you can not try to achieve this as a caregiver, your client may not see any reason why you are there,therefore, if your client uses adult diaper,make sure it’s checked often and changed before he or she starts feeling discomfort.
If your client is confined to bed,make sure you turn your patient time to time to make him or her feel comfortable.
These are few of the role of the caregivers you can get lot more in our E-book for caregivers.
Now that you have been reminded few of the roles and duties that awaits you at your client’s location as a caregiver, it’s is time to discuss what makes the caregiver job difficult.
I will refer to the first part as “Distractions”.
Yes! Distraction.
Sources of Distractions
1. Getting involved in family issues: Every family has one problem or the other and getting involved in family grudges or misunderstanding is likely to cost you your job.
The siblings or the wives in cases where there are more than a wife when having family issues will want you to take side, failure to understand that the lesser the interference the better might lead to finding yourself in trouble, therefore avoid family drama.
2. Use of phone on duty: Due to the social media madness where you cannot do without going to Facebook,Instagram, Twitter, WhatsApp e.t.c caregivers still find a way to snap pictures and post on social media while on duty, irrespective of training and instruction given by the company.
As a professional caregiver, if you are truly one,you are not expected to use your phone.
3. Gossiping: As funny as this may sound,it will be wise for you to pay attention to this point.
You live in the client’s house and you sees and hears lot of things and you want to tell someone.
Well, those things you saw and heard are none of your business. Don’t be distracted with petty things, stay focused and maintain high standard performance.
There are lot more which can be found in our book.
Other Factors that makes the job difficult are:
1. Poorly trained caregiver will definitely struggle on the job which makes what is supposed to be easy very difficult.
2. Carer with attitudinal problem: Irrespective of the training given and how good a caregiver might be,with attitude issues,the caregiver will have a difficult time on the job.
3. Disregarding houses rules:Most homes have their do’s and dont’s and disregarding this might make life difficult as a caregiver.
4. Disrespecting the client: As a caregiver, it is unacceptable to disrespect your client,when you do that you are definitely going to have a rough time on the job,that is if there is any job left for you to do.
5. Lack of in-depth knowledge of the clients health challenges: If you don’t have better understanding of the clients condition how do you want to appropriately care for them? So you really need to be updated about the clients medical conditions in full detail.
6. Laziness: Some caregivers are lazy and pretends a lot to cover it up.My advice is if you are not molded to be a caregiver don’t be.
You must possess the qualities of a good caregiver and being lazy is not one of them.
7.Poor Documentation: If you can not properly document what you have done or what transpired during your shift,then you have just invited problems.Remember I earlier said what is not documented is not done in caregiving business.
8. Lack of confidence: If you don’t have confidence as a caregiver you will surely loose the respect of your client and his or her relatives.
9. Feeling too relaxed on the job: As simple as this sounds, some caregivers have lost their jobs for this reason.You have been at the same location for so long and you begin to slow down on what you used to do and do things when it pleases you.The moment your client notice drop in your performance and energy,there will definitely be a problem and might asked that you be replaced.
10. Feeding: won’t say much.Just have beverages and snacks in your bag pack.
Our E book will be out soon and you will find more.
This article is courtesy Bluegate Homecare.
For your homecare nursing services in Nigeria.
Contact:
Bluegate Homecare
51, Jubril Martins Street,
Surulere,
Lagos,
Nigeria.
+2347060851423 or +2348025752474
bluegatehomecare@gmail.com