A Note From Carol
Dear Friends,
As the founder of Minding Our Elders, I'm experiencing
some exciting times. Some nursing homes are buying
"Minding Our Elders: Caregivers Share Their Personal
Stories" in bulk, to give to participants in support
groups and for the families who place loved ones in
their facilities. Obviously, that makes me happy, and
hopefully it is helping some caregivers feel less alone.
What many people don't realize is that we remain
caregivers even after our loved ones enter nursing
homes. They need our attention, our visits and our
advocacy. Family caregiving doesn't stop at the
nursing home door - we just have more help.
An article I want to call special attention to, in this
newsletter, is "Communicating with Hospice Patients
and Families." You'll find some excellent information
that can help you discuss hospice as an option for a
loved one or a friend's loved one. It pays to be
informed.
Speaking of informed - check out the Healthcare '08
article. The link will take you to HealthCentral's grid,
where you can find where you fit with presidential
candidates on healthcare issues. It's fun and
informational.
Take care of yourselves, my friends. The welfare of
those we love depends on it.
Carol
Quick Links...
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Hello!
Caregiving expert Carol Bradley Bursack, Author,
speaker and columnist, presents a collection of
articles, stories, news and research for you to
browse. Please check the blog and Web site links for
more information and feel free to email Carol at
carol@mindingourelders.com to chat or ask
questions. Thanks for reading.
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Why "Role Reversal" and Other Catch Phrases Can Skew a Caregiver's Thinking
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You had to take away the car keys. It was quite a
battle, and he's still mad. You have to remind her to
use the bathroom often, or she'll have an accident,
and she's embarrassed. You had to cut up the credit
card that was being used aimlessly and often. Are
these people you are guiding your children or
teenagers? No, they are your parents.
Does this mean you are now "parenting your
parents?" Is this what they mean by "role reversal?
Well, yes and no.
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Communicating with Hospice Patients and Families
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One of the greatest dilemmas is simply educating
both families and professionals about what hospice
care is. Even if we are simply trying to give them basic
information, it's sometimes like "selling snowballs in
a blizzard"; very few people want to talk about death
and dying until they really need to do so.
But yet, one of the most common phrases I hear once
a family has experienced hospice is, "We wish we had
known about hospice sooner. I think something in
that phrase signals what is really a normal grief
reaction. It's very typical for families, after a loved
one's death, to wonder in hindsight what could have
been different about the experience; in many ways,
that's a way for them to begin processing the loss.
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Staph Infections: How To Control Their Spread in Nursing Homes
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According to a new study, Methicillin-resistant
Staphylococcus aureus (MRSA), a strain of staph
infection, is becoming a major source of illness
acquired in nursing homes. Little is known about how
to prevent its spread among nursing home residents
because most studies have been done in hospital
settings.
MRSA spreads easily and antibiotics like penicillin are
ineffective against it. Elders in nursing home settings
are vulnerable because MRSA infection is acquired
more easily by elderly people and it is carried and
spread quickly by skin contact.
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Healthcare '08 PoliGraph
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Click on the link below and chart where you fit with the
candidates on healthcare questions. It's a game, but a
serious one.
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