The Art of Being a Caretaker; The Right Way to Care

Whether you’re an aspiring caretaker or a practicing one, there are specific skills that you would need to improve on to make a profound and long-lasting impression in your charged one’s life.

To start your career off, it’s vital to know what duties and responsibilities such a role entail. As a caretaker, you will work in the client’s residence and look after daily life tasks such as bathing, doing laundry, administering and monitoring medicine, cooking, feeding, and cleaning. Usually partnered with a nurse or a doctor, caretakers tend to be hired by the patient’s family and can be part-time or live-in.

To be a champion caretaker, here are the top five skills that you should observe.

1. Empathy

Often, the individuals you’ll work with as a caretaker may suffer from a physical or mental ailment. Showing your client compassion and genuine kindness, and patience will go a long way in making your customer happy and content with your services. Showing kindness and compassion will not only make you a successful caretaker. Still, it will significantly reshape your outlook on the world as well – you’ll be grateful for your health and what you have.

2. Be Observant

Sometimes, your patient may not express their sentiments about their health or daily activities such as food. After you’ve spent some time with them, you’ll come to recognize and understand their non-verbal cues. With time you will learn to swiftly and accurately pick up on these cues, which in turn will improve your relationship with your guest. Keep a vigilant eye open during your working hours and see any change in their conditions.

3. Constantly Work to Improve Communication.

You must be a master of verbal and written communication. Communication skills will help you in your discussions with your charge’s family and loved ones. Part of your job will mean giving them updates and conferring about care treatments and such – they will want to be kept in the loop. Also, depending on your client’s condition, you may have to interact with medical professionals such as doctors, physicians, nurses, and such. Learning to articulate your message to any of these parties calmly goes a long way in improving the quality of care.

4. Time Management is an Indispensable Quality.

You’ll have to be a master at meticulously managing your own and your patient’s schedule. Ensuring that they eat as often as necessary, take their medicine regularly, and make it to appointments on time will be a significant part of your duties. Make a list of your tasks and plan your week. Set up reminders, either on your mobile device to ensure that nothing is missed – or better yet, set up your calendar digitally to receive automatic notifications – hence, nothing will ever be missed or out of place!

5. Constantly Work on Building Your Physical Strength.

As a caretaker, you’ll bathe your client and may have to lift them on your own to take them to the bathroom or washing room. Of course, this is dependent on their condition. The constant lifting will require exceptional core strength. Not only that, you might be doing their cleaning, vacuuming, going grocery shopping, and probably spending a lot of time on your feet. Remember to wear a comfy pair of shoes and clothes! A change of clothes wouldn’t hurt either, just in case. In this line of work, a sense of foresight wouldn’t either; it never hurts to be prepared. Now go forth and give the best quality of care you can possibly offer, strive to be better with each passing day.