Taking over the care of a loved one, whether that’s due to convenience or profession is always going to be tough but commendable. It’s not easy seeing the ones we love in any sort of pain or suffering. Fortunately, that suffering can be relieved in some way by the actions that you take, as well as by having a clear and executable plan. There will be many things to consider when taking over the care of a loved one, but here are four broad issues to plan for and a few ideas on how to make those plans.

Providing a Safe Environment

 

Depending on what condition or illness your loved one has, there’s likely to be a degree of equipment required to help in the care for them. Also, one of the most necessary requirements, particularly for those with physical impairments, is space and clear routes from anywhere in the home to the bathroom facilities. As such, you should get ahead on this and work to clear as much room as possible as well as de-clutter the space.

 

Obviously, your loved one is probably not going to want you to dispose of any belongings without clearing it with them first, and there shouldn’t be a need to remove anything of sentimental value unless it’s in a precarious position or just too obstructive. Nor is it necessary to throw anything away. Instead, go online, and contact a company like Solomon and Sons to remove the furniture and put it into storage. This removal, relocation, and storage company can be found at ssrelocation.com, and will help clear the necessary space within the home for your loved one to be at their most comfortable. Whilst Solomon and Sons are highly rated, they are based in Fort Lauderdale, so this is mainly applicable to Florida residents. However, storage sites are available across the United States to take in large items of homeware for a temporary or long-term period, until the next step of treatment is organized.

Providing the Best Medication Choices

 

There’s no doubt that with any illness, there’s a multitude of medications and treatments that must be taken on a daily basis to keep the quality of life good and the likelihood of recovery strong. Of course, the cost of medication is not always cheap, and sourcing them can sometimes be very difficult if the patient has mobility issues at the time. In order to implement some savings on medicines, put forward the suggestion of obtaining a prescription savings card through America’s Pharmacy.

 

America’s Pharmacy provides coupons and vouchers for various medications to patients all over the United States. Regardless of if their clientele are using Medicare, or have the required health insurance to cover their expenses, America’s Pharmacy provides the necessary treatment at discounted rates, meaning that your money goes further when attaining medications. Also, they have a section of their website dedicated to the medication necessary for animals, so if you’re not only caring for a human loved one but their pet as well, you can rely on your savings card regardless. The card itself is free, and they have a prescription savings app available to download to your smartphone meaning that you, as the carer, have input into ensuring the medication is delivered correctly and administered safely.

Prepare for emergency events.

 

Once again, this will largely depend on the condition or illness of the loved one you’re providing care for, but to have training in the face of an emergency will be a big help to both your confidence in care and to the person you’re caring for. If an emergency arises, and the patient was to fall ill, or worse—go into cardiac arrest, the last thing anyone would want to do is freeze in panic. It’s a no-brainer that the consequences of inaction would be dire. You can, of course, rely on the emergency services, but the time between calling 9-1-1 and the paramedics’ arrival is critical, and too much is left to the chance of open roads and lack of obstacles for them to arrive in time.

 

It will help you both immensely to have training in what to do, should an emergency occur. CPR and life-saving techniques are rarely the same in real life as they are in the movies. In fact, so much confusion surrounds how to perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation, that 30% of Brits who were asked said they wouldn’t even attempt it if they had to. If you’re caught up in an emergency situation with the person you are caring for, you need to attempt it 100% of the time.

 

To help out, the American Healthcare Academy is providing online CPR for healthcare providers and students in a bid to keep them ahead of the ever-evolving process of first aid. It would be highly recommended that you check out their website, and attend one of CPR Care’s online seminars just in case you’re faced with a situation like a cardiac arrest. Although, having this knowledge wouldn’t only be good for the care environment that you provide, but just in case an emergency arises any time elsewhere.

 

Prepare for the inevitable.

 

If your loved one is extremely ill, and the prognosis is that their condition is terminal, then there are consequences that must be considered. Cold as it may sound, your care will be for a finite amount of time and will only be focused on ensuring that your loved one is comfortable. There’s also the money aspect too. At the end of the day, if you’re providing care around the clock to someone else, you won’t be receiving any income with the exception of what is included in benefits. You need to eat and pay your way too. You can’t expect your loved one to be making a wage if they’re incapacitated, nor would they want their final days to be spent working.

 

The other possibility is that they might need care that’s too advanced for you to provide, or they require something that’s beyond your abilities, such as access to an attorney to get their affairs in order or drugs that are not available via the pharmacy. As a suggestion, to ensure that their care is paid for, and that there is no worry for them or you about money, advise them to get a viatical from American Life Fund insurers.

 

Viatical settlements are the surrendering of a terminally ill person’s life insurance for a lump sum of cash that can be spent however they see fit. That could be on something like a funeral, or a vacation to tick off the bucket list, or for end-of-life care. In any situation, a good amount of money could help both you and your loved one.