How to be an empowered caregiver

by | Feb 18, 2014 | Health News & Views |

Holding Hands through Illness and Challenge

About a week ago, we hosted a #patientchat on caregiving. In case you missed it, Amy O’Connor @ModernMeds has produced an awesome Storify of the chat here. We were also very honored to be joined by our very special guest Goldi Erowele, pharmacist and co-founder of CareNovate Magazine.

Many empowered patients are not only empowered for themselves, but also for the people that they take care of. Many health advocacy organizations (ourselves among them) also need to recognize that many diseases are such that they do not only affect the patient, but also their caregiver(s) too.

There are many similarities between what makes a great empowered caregiver and an empowered patient, such as motivation, commitment, dedication, willingness to learn and educate oneself. Most importantly, it seems, many on the chat noted the need for strong support for caregivers and the importance of community to learn about what is needed for caregiving. A few resources highlighted included:

  • From @Modernmeds: Advocacy groups like @AmericanCancer & @AlzAssociation have great resources for caregivers
  • From @carenovatemag: We’re compiling a list of #caregiving tools, rosources, websites, solutions – http://bit.ly/1jAC7rn
  • From @carenovatemag: other groups with awesome resources for caregivers –  @NCOAging @EldercareLoc @AARPFamily @RedCross
  • From @drunkitty2000: Local municipalities may have rideshare programs for disabled & those needing to get to Dr. Ours does.

Thanks again for joining us for #patientchat and don’t forget to join us this Friday (Feb 21st) at 10am PST / 1pm PST for a chat on doctor-patient communication!

Image Credit: Camilla Saucedo on Dotspin

Emily Lu

Emily Lu

Co-founder at Intake.Me
As a medical student going into family medicine, Emily joined Intake.me to leverage technology to create a more patient-centered health care system. Emily is now a resident in the UCSF-SFGH Family and Community Medicine program. She is focused on developing a primary care system that uses technology to empower patients. Emily is passionate about underserved medicine, public health and quality improvement. She was selected to present an Ignite!Talk at Medx2015 on streamlining doctor visits.
Emily Lu

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