It can be very difficult and stressful for the caregiver when the Care recipient (cr) is in the hospital all of your focus and energy…

Try: It can be very difficult and stressful for the caregiver when the Care recipient (cr) is in the hospital all of your focus and energy is devoted to the cr cr’s healing and building strength to make the transition from the hospital to the home however when the cr is discharged from the hospital there are additional challenges that you may have to deal with one of the significant issues that you may face is dealing with the lists of instructions and information that are accumulated and presented upon discharge the volume of information and number of details that you must keep straight can be quite substantial making sense out of all of the necessary and vital aspects of this information can be mind boggling to say the least however failure to follow the discharge instructions could actually slow or hinder the cr cr’s recovery and may ultimately require readmission to the hospital adopting the suggestions below may help reduce some of the stress and strain of trying to keep everything in place so that the business at hand which is the recovery process can be accomplished quickly and efficiently always keep an updated personal health file for the cr including any previous or current medical conditions a list of medications that are currently being taken and a list of allergies take this file to the hospital so that the correct information can be passed on to the doctors and staff ask for a list of medications that the cr is on while in the hospital what symptoms they treat and any potential side- effects make sure you fully understand what the cr’s medical conditions are not just the symptoms find out what specific services the cr will need upon discharge will the cr need oxygen wound care a home nurse physical or occupational therapy who is responsible for putting these services in place and coordinating the care ask the hospital staff for the name and number of the contact person responsible for the care in addition to yourself make arrangements for a friend or family member to be present upon discharge to listen to the instructions it may also help to have a tape recorder with provide you with help in updating the cr’s health information file or to review the instructions after you get home being adequately informed and keeping all of this information up to date will greatly reduce any confusion that may accompany the transition from hospital to home information references

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Categories: Caregiver Needs&Support, Communication, Emotional Psychological, Medical Physical

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Keywords: Discharge planning discharge planner social worker home health care

*This information is listed as a Fact Sheet and is not explicitly medically licensed

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