At the
National Alliance
for Caregiving's Lotsa Helping Hands website, visitors may create their
own caregiving site to coordinate support needed for the caregiver and care
recipient.
Most of us have experienced the crisis of a friend or loved one
suddenly unable to function as they had for their family or themselves.
Perhaps it's a debilitating illness, or post-surgery rehabilitation
necessitating weeks or months of bed rest.
In many instances of long-term family caregiving or caring for an
aging loved one, those affected must also cope with finding support for
meal preparation, grocery shopping, transportation for themselves and
their dependent family members.
But it is often difficult for patients and family caregivers to ask
for help. And if help is offered, managing that help can be a
significant part-time job: coordinating family, friends, neighbors,
colleagues, and church or synagogue members who do not all know each
other can be complex and time-consuming, with endless phone tag and
forgotten commitments.
Private Group Calendar for Sharing Caregiver TasksLotsa Helping Hands is a free caregiving coordination web service
that provides a private, group calendar where tasks for which a caregiver
needs assistance can be posted. Family and friends may visit the site and
sign up online for a task.
The website generates a summary report showing
who has volunteered for which tasks and which tasks remain unassigned. The
site tracks each task and notification and reminder emails are sent to the
appropriate parties.
To sign up for a free Lotsa Helping Hands account or
to learn more, please visit the National
Alliance for Caregiving's Lotsa Helping Hands website.
Vaica Medical
has developed a programmable pill box for
those taking a complicated regiment of pills. The Smart Pillbox contains
a grid of boxes for a week with four scheduled times a day. The unit plugs into the phone
line and is programmed by a provider to call the patient and notify
which compartment holds the right pills for that day and time.