We have all had loved ones who were far from us but needed our help with various matters. Family members or relatives of an older person, who lives away from their family members, are considered long-distance caregivers.
This article aims to give you information about long-distance caregivers, how to become a long-distance caregiver, and several tips for performing better.
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Who is a long-distance caregiver?
A long-distance caregiver cares for an elderly friend, family, or parent from away. Regardless of gender, income, age, social standing, or employment, anybody can be a long-distance caregiver. However, you’re definitely a long-distance caregiver if you live an hour or more away from someone who requires your aid.
What can long-distance caregivers do?
There are various tasks and duties for long-distance caregivers. Some of their responsibilities include:
- Helping with financial issues, such as money management or paying bills.
- Hiring professional nurses or caregivers.
- Purchasing the required durable medical equipment.
- Finding assisted living facilities or nursing homes
- Supporting the patients and the elderly emotionally.
- Being an information coordinator. For example, they can research health problems, find medicines, take care of insurance, etc.
- Keeping family members and friends informed.
- Getting everything ready in case of an emergency
- Ensuring the safety of the elder’s house.
These caregivers must be alert because the needs of their patients or elders might change, so they should be able to adjust themselves to various situations.
How to become a long-distance caregiver?
To become a long-distance caregiver, you can gather the necessary information in the following ways:
- Ask the elder or their primary caregiver how you can help in different situations.
- Talk to friends or acquaintances with experience and see if they have any suggestions.
- Gather information about helpful local resources.
- Develop your understanding of elders’ health condition, stuff they need, and their medicine,
- Visit your patient or elder. These visitations allow you to get updated about the status of your patient. You can also check with the primary caregiver.
Many of us don’t know anything about being a caregiver, so it is good to educate ourselves and learn about the basics.
Eight helpful tips for long-distance caregivers
Being a long-distance caregiver can sometimes be challenging. Here are some tips that can help you manage your situations better:
Know what a long-distance caregiver does
It is recommended to learn about your family member or friend’s conditions, medicines, treatment, and resources that might come in handy by experienced caregivers. Understanding what’s going on, anticipating the course of illness, preventing crises, and managing healthcare can be made more accessible with the correct information. It also helps you understand doctors better. Obtain written permission from at least one family member to receive medical and financial information. It is best if one family member handles conversations with health care providers.
Keep all the vital information in one place for emergencies. The information provided includes data on medical care, social services, contact numbers, financial issues, and so on.
Plan your visits
When you visit a loved one, you may feel like there is too much to do in the limited time available. Talk to your family member or friend in advance and find out what they want, so you can get more done and spend more time with them. Also, if necessary, check with the primary caregiver to learn what they require, such as taking on some caregiving responsibilities while you are away. This may assist you in establishing clear and achievable objectives for your visit.
Activities to do when visiting
Make time for things that aren’t related to being a caregiver. For example:
- Plan a small gathering with old friends or other family members for your relative.
- Find a movie and watch it with your relative.
- Play cards.
- Play board games.
- Go for a ride.
- Go to public places together.
Everyone can benefit from spending a little time doing something relaxing and straightforward, and it creates more family memories.
Get in touch and keep in touch
Many families arrange conference calls with doctors, assisted living facility personnel, or nursing home staff so that many family members can join in a single conversation and learn about a relative’s health and progress. You can request occasional teleconferences with a nursing home’s staff if your patient or elder resides there. A social worker can help provide updates and assist with decision-making. You could also speak with a family member or a neighbor who can give you a more realistic perspective on the situation. This could be your other parent in some instances. A phone and email contact list is precious. It’s a direct way to keep everyone informed about your parents’ requirements.
Help the elders stay in contact
You can provide a way of communication to stay in touch with your family member. For example, you can install a private phone line for their room or buy a cell phone and teach them how to use it. These examples bring some peace of mind to relatives who have a family member in nursing homes. However, there is a chance that your aging relative might overwhelm you with calls or text messages.
Organize paperwork for the elders
Taking care of all the confusing paperwork is one way to help an elder as a long-distance caregiver. As an effective long-distance caregiver, it is your responsibility to gather a great deal of information and stay updated about the situation. To do this, you must have access to your relative’s personal, health, financial, and legal documents.
Putting all of this material together is a lot of work at first, especially if you are far from your aging relative. However, many caregiving tasks will become easier once you’ve collected all the required documents. You need to collect and maintain current information regarding:
- Your relative’s health and medical care
- Their finances
- Homeownership
- Legal matters
These types of information allow you to stay on top of things and respond more quickly in the event of a crisis.
When you first begin, concentrate on gathering the essentials and complete your information as you proceed. Discuss any missing documents with the older person and the primary caregiver and how you can assist in the organization of the records. Be sure that all financial matters, such as wills and life insurance policies, are in order. If someone has a power of attorney, that will also help (a legal document that designates a person to handle financial and property issues on the other’s behalf).
Sometimes, your family members might be hesitant to share personal information with you. You need to convince them and explain that not only are you not attempting to invade their privacy or take control of their personal lives, but you are attempting to gather what will be required in the event of an emergency. Assure them that their privacy will be respected, and then keep your word. If they remain uneasy, see if they would be willing to work with an attorney or another trustworthy family member or friend.
Learn additional caregiving tips
Going through some caregiving training is beneficial whether you are the primary caregiver or a long-distance caregiver. Like many other things in life, many of us do not come equipped with a wide range of caregiver skills. Training can teach you how to safely transfer someone from a bed to a chair, assist with bathing, prevent and treat bedsores, and provide basic first aid. You can find information about caregiving training online. In addition, you can take part in some nonprofit organizations focused on caregiving.
Find resources in your elder’s neighborhood
An excellent way to find resources in your relative’s neighborhood is to search the internet. To find out how you can get help, talk to a local library or senior center or contact the Area Agency on Aging.
Best caregivers near me in Las Vegas
Are you a long-distance caregiver and looking to hire caregivers in Lad Vegas? At Health and Care Professional Network, we have trained and skilled caregivers who can provide the care that your loved ones deserve. In addition, we have provided the best in-home care services to residents of Las Vegas for more than 15 years.
