Caregiving can be stressful for both the caregiver and the person receiving care. One way to reduce stress is to build a caregiver plan.
What is a caregiver plan?
A caregiver plan is what it sounds like—a plan that outlines the care that someone needs, including nonmedical or social needs. It specifies what care is needed, when it is needed, where it will be provided, and who will provide it.
A caregiver plan will be a summary of an individual’s health, including treatment, medicine, and health care team. It also organizes caregiving and creates a schedule of who will be responsible for what and when.
Building a caregiver plan is a collaborative process that requires communication, openness, and flexibility.
Daily caregiver plan vs. emergency caregiver plan
A caregiver plan can be made for someone who requires any level of care—ranging from people that require daily care to only occasional help with errands or around the house.
A caregiver plan can also be created for those that do not yet need care since it can be beneficial to plan ahead and have a plan in place in case of an emergency.
It is ideal to create a plan before it is needed since it is easier to deal with when they aren’t also facing serious health challenges or an emergency.
It gives them a chance to discuss their wishes, find resources, and organize any necessary information.
Benefits of a caregiver plan
Someone may need care because of illness, disability, or other health-related challenges, such as those that are often associated with aging. A caregiver plan helps ensure that they can stay as independent and comfortable as possible while still receiving any care that they need and remaining safe.
Having a caregiver plan helps to make sure that the caregiver or caregivers and the person receiving care are on the same page.
It clearly communities the needs and preferences of the person receiving care, which gives them some control and ensures their needs can be met.
It helps organize care by having all the information in one place and by determining scheduling and responsibility. This can help with transitions.
A caregiver plan helps caregivers by ensuring they have support and clearer expectations. It can help them schedule time for themselves and their health so that they can stay healthy and avoid caregiver burnout.
Having clear expectations can reduce stress and misunderstanding for everyone involved. It can lead to a better relationship between the caregiver and the person receiving care and, ultimately, better care.
How to make a caregiver plan
Let’s look at the 10 steps for building a caregiver plan.
1. Start a conversation
The first thing to do is for people to talk to their loved ones. This can be a difficult conversation to have. No matter the stage people are at, it can be difficult to plan for the future or face that they may need help.
It is important that family and friends involve the person who will be receiving care as much as possible. Approach the situation with a team mentality and the mindset that you are being prepared.
Acknowledge everyone’s feelings and concerns.
Focus on the positives that will come from having a clear caregiver plan and how it allows the person receiving care to have control over the situation and make their preferences clear.
Learn more tips about How to Talk to Elderly Parents About Accepting Help.
2. Assess health and care needs
Once everyone is on board, it is time to evaluate their health and any care needs that they may have.
Medical review
Look at their medical history and current diagnoses and conditions. Evaluate their vision and hearing, any medication devices, and medications.
Don’t forget to also consider their mental health.
Consider what medical care or appointments they need and if they need help managing their medications.
If there are any questions about their health, consult with their healthcare team.
Activities of daily living
The biggest area to consider is what assistance they need with their activities of daily living (ADLs) and instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs), which are the skills required to live independently.
ADLs and IADLs include:
- Cooking and eating
- Moving around
- Going to the bathroom
- Bathing
- Grooming
- Dressing
- Laundry
- Housework
- Transportation
- Running errands
- Paying their bills
If someone needs assistance doing any of these things, that needs to be noted down, and it needs to be determined who will help with these activities and when.
Home care agencies offer personal care, which helps with their activities of daily living.
Learn more about Activities of Daily Living (ADLs): Checklist and Examples.
Emotional and social
Social isolation is a serious problem for seniors.
See if they need care to help them attend events with friends or to get out of the house.
Learn more about How to Make Friends as a Senior (Tips to Meet & Make Friends).
Consider if they could benefit from companionship care where a professional caregiver can talk with them, read or watch movies, play games, or engage in their other favorite hobbies with them.
3. Assess safety
It is also important to assess the safety of the person’s home to determine that it is free from fall hazards and ensure they can call for help and know what to do in an emergency.
4. Understand legal and financial considerations
Review any legal considerations, such as an advanced directive to specify what level of care they want and their end-of-life wishes and a healthcare proxy to make medical decisions for them if they are unable to.
It is a good idea to make a will. Some people may want to name a power of attorney.
They should also review their financial situation, including retirement, savings, and insurance coverage, to understand what they can pay for care.
It is a good idea to have a contract for a family caregiver so that any financial compensation is clear and there aren’t disputes among family later.
5. Determine the level of care needed
Now that everyone has a better understanding of their needs and what they need assistance with, the next step is to decide how much care is needed and when it will be given.
6. Determine caregivers
Once you know the care needed, it is time to determine who will be the caregivers.
Look at who is available and willing to provide care, including family and friends, community resources such as adult day centers, and professional caregivers such as home care providers.
Consider what is covered by insurance and what they can afford.
It is important to note that there can be more than one caregiver. It can be both family and friends and a professional caregiver.
Backup options
It is also a good idea to decide on backup options in case the primary caregiver(s) is unable to provide care at some point.
Getting set up with a home care agency to be able to receive respite care (when someone else temporarily takes over primary caregiving responsibility) will allow everyone the peace of mind to know that their needs will be covered even if the caregiver(s) need a break or have an emergency.
7. Create a plan for communication
Determine how the person receiving care and the caregiver(s) will communicate and how the different caregivers or health care teams will communicate with each other.
It can be helpful to designate a point person for the contact.
8. Schedule care
Now it is time to implement the plan, create a schedule and identify who will provide care, when, and where.
9. Organize information
Now that you know all the information, organize it into the caregiver plan, including:
- Personal information and caregiving preferences
- Health conditions
- Medicines, dosages, and when and how given
- Allergies
- Healthcare providers’ contact info
- Insurance
- List of tasks that the individual needs assistance with
- Schedule of when and where the care will take place
- Caregivers contact info
- Emergency contacts and plan
To help you organize information and write your caregiver plan, look at the CDC’s or AARP’s templates.
10. Review regularly
It is important to regularly review to reevaluate the individual’s needs and how the care is working.
Do this at least yearly, or if there are any problems with the care, the individual’s health and care needs change, or if the caregiver faces problems or burnout.
Reviewing the plan allows for any adjustments that are needed to be made.
Hire Pacific Angels Home Care for Caregiving in California
Pacific Angels Home Care offers home care for people surrounding Monterey, Santa Cruz, and Aptos.
Our kind and well-trained caregivers can help with medication management and their activities of daily living, including moving around, going to the bathroom, bathing, and grooming.
We also provide companionship care and safe transportation.
We tailor our services to each individual’s needs and can be incorporated into your care plan as much as needed or only for respite care.
Call us today at (831) 708-2876 or reach us online to learn more about how we can become a part of your caregiver plan.
