Trust is a Two-Way Street! Help the Caregiver to Help your Parents
A caregiver’s job is not easy as it requires a lot of patience, expertise, and compassion. Mr Brett H. Lewis once said that “Doctors diagnose, nurses heal, and caregivers make sense of it all”. On top of taking care of their personal lives, they take care of your parents with love, affection and kindness. Whether it is giving your parents their medicines on time or giving them the emotional support they need, caregivers go the extra mile to do their job with honesty and dedication.
It is true indeed that to develop a healthy relationship with your parent’s caregiver, there must be a presence of mutual trust, understanding and effort. While caregivers do their job, it is our responsibility as their employer to establish a healthy & welcoming environment for them to work in.
Why is it essential to cooperate with the caregiver?
As said before, the job of a caregiver is a challenging one. While they provide our parents with the best possible assistance and care, we can do our bit in making their work environment a stress-free one. It is crucial to cooperate with the caregiver to establish a healthy interpersonal relationship with them. When you and the caregiver cooperate, it strengthens the communication and allows you to get a better and more explicit stance on your parents’ well-being. Better communication enforces better work results.
How can you help the caregiver?
The caregivers don’t ask for much, and you can help them work better with simple steps which go a long way:
- Establishing mutual respect: When your Caregiver treats you with dignity and respect, you must reward them by extending the same. It speaks volumes about the ambience you’re setting up for them to work in. A simple essence of respect can make them feel more liberal and comfortable while working, strengthening their performance scale.
- Extending emotional support in times of need: Similar to your parents, caregivers need emotional support at times too. Simple gestures like ‘you’re doing great’, ‘If you need a break, you can take it’, ‘why don’t you relax for some time?’, can make them feel less pressurized during working hours. It is perfectly fine if you wish to maintain a professional connection with your caregiver. It is always good to regularly ask about their mental and physical health to make sure that the person taking care of your parents is okay.
- Respecting boundaries: We all expect people to maintain personal boundaries. Caregivers need personal space too, and it is our responsibility to take care of the fact that they have at while working.
- Understanding personal problems and emergencies: Sometimes, personal emergencies and unavoidable circumstances can prevent the caregiver from coming to work. In this case, you can extend your support by telling them that it is okay to take a day off. This support can make them feel a little relaxed and even content with their job.
- Taking and giving regular feedbacks: Once a week, you can sit down with the caregiver and provide them with feedback about their work. This will make them feel valued and make improvisations in their work if necessary. A positive direction can help them make amends in their job and work on results. While you are at it, you should also take feedback from them to make their work a little easier. You can start the conversation by asking, ‘How can I contribute to making your work here easier?’ or ‘What changes would you like from my side?’. This helps in building mutual coordination and trust between you and the caregiver.
- Appreciating their work: Saying phrases like, ‘I am thankful for the work you do for my parents’, ‘You are doing great, keep up with the good work!’, ‘My parents seem much healthier and happy since you got here’ etc, can keep the caregiver motivated and encourage them to do better.
- Confronting them about their mistakes in a healthy way: Humans make mistakes, and it is time we normalize it. If your caregiver makes a mistake, make them realize it subtly while being gentle. We all go through something we don’t talk about, and sometimes we make mistakes. Telling them, ‘It is okay, don’t feel guilty or pressured! You can work on it’, is a gentle way of confrontation.
The Bottom Line: Caregiving is a learning process, and it is vital to establish a positive connection with the caregiver. If you are looking for senior care services and senior living consultant, contact Senior Care Genie for more details.
