As a caregiver, your role can be a bit of a guessing game at times. Certain situations might be awkward and you may fret over whether you are stepping on toes or are being aggressive enough. Effective communication between you, the person in your care and medical care providers is extremely important. You are the link between the two, and your role is vital. It requires the ability to see two sides of a situation, an acute attention to detail and the sensitivity to not only recognize physical symptoms, but to evaluate emotional well-being too.

Be Active

Remember, you are not just an observer; you are part of the action. The person in your care may be too exhausted, in too much pain or too sick at times to make a decision - and that's when you need to go to bat for them by choosing the best option or calling the doctor when needed. Go to all the doctor's appointments even if the person in your care doesn't want you to. Retaining information while battling a disease can be difficult; having a caregiver to keep up with the information at appointments is invaluable.

Keep Records

Keeping a daily log of symptoms and experiences is the best way to accurately describe specific problems to the doctor. Specifics are what the doctor needs to hear in order to help. Providing information such as "X medicine was given with Y Food and the result was upset stomach," or "for five consecutive days, pain was intolerable at 1 p.m." can help the doctor understand what treatment is working and what is not. Writing everything down will help you identify patterns more clearly, because let's face it: remembering small details from three days ago can be challenging.

Clear It Up

Doctors can use language that is often foreign to most of us. Writing down the comments from doctors, nurses and therapists gives you the ability to mull over the information later and to look up unfamiliar terms for full comprehension. This also allows you to formulate questions in advance of the next appointment - saving everyone time and ensuring understanding between all parties. In this day and age, it is important to self educate as much as possible to make the most of your time with the doctor and minimize the need for tedious explanations.

Speak Up

Making sure the person in your care stays as comfortable as possible means you might need to speak up and force the doctor to take action. Don't be afraid to speak clearly and directly to communicate the person's experience and needs. Keep in mind that you are all on the same side and want what's best for the patient; stay calm, but remember that being a strong advocate for the person in your care is an important part of your role. Sometimes the opposite is the case, as the person in your care might not always be the best patient. Resisting treatment or ignoring the doctor's advice might make you want to pull your hair out, but this is the time in which your direct communication skills are crucial. The ultimate goal is for the patient to get better, or to have the best quality of life. You may feel two-faced having a side bar with the doctor and strategizing over how you will get the patient to follow recommendations, but taking both sides is part of your role in achieving that ultimate goal.

Be Open

Sometimes anxiety and depression can interfere with treatment. Discussing these types of issues with the patient or doctor can be a very difficult and sensitive subject. Taking the open approach with the patient and explaining that people need help dealing with these situations can often put the patient at ease before contacting the doctor. Bad news can also be a sensitive topic; however, by agreeing with both parties to discuss it openly, you and the patient can make the most of the time that is left. Being able to openly communicate about wishes, hopes, fears and how you can help may be easier said than done, but it is the most important conversation that can transpire between a patient and caregiver.

No one ever said being a caregiver is easy. It's a tough role, but it can be managed when there's clear and effective communication between all parties involved.

Carrie Robertson
Research & Community Education

Chicago Skilled Nursing
Chicago Senior Living