Caregiver Shadowing of a Sociology Student - Coursework Example

Caregiver shadowing and reflection Introduction Shadowing is a situation where to go to work with a professional in their field of study for a given period so as to get a real-life insight and a hands-on experience of what their discipline involves and how to impart classroom knowledge into real-life work. Being a sociology student, I decided it to shadow a care giver by the name Toni. The decision to shadow a caregiver was mainly influenced by the statistics which state that in the beginning of the 21st century, there over 35 million Americans were aged 65and above representing around 13 % of the total population (Administration on Aging (AoA) 4). It is also projected that by 2030, the senior population Americans will outnumber the population of those below the age of 18 thus making care giving an imperative profession in the contemporary world. I shadowed Toni from 29th March – 2nd May as she visited a few patient/clients homes for 2-4 hours every day. Below is a recount of my shadowing experience with Toni and a reflection of the whole experience. Visits to Helen Helen had recently has lost her sight and was slowly losing her other senses. Despite these short comings, she was still a sweet and adorable woman. On my first visit to Helens house, I was a little apprehensive since this was the first time of real-life care giving. Toni immediately became aware of this and eased the tension by introducing me to Helen and telling me that she was an adorable lady. Indeed, she was a delightful lady, she was very pleased that I had come to visit her and since she could not see me she asked if she could hold my hand. Every day after arriving, it would almost be dinner time so Toni would as Helen what she wanted prepared because her tastes are limited. She would mostly respond that wanted mashed potatoes and green beans which were her favorite. Toni would prepare what start preparing what Helen wanted and as the food got ready Toni would turn on the radio for Helen to listen. As she listened to the radio, we would take her dogs for short walks, feed them and groom them. When the food was ready we had to wait for it to get warm. As we waited, Toni would engage Helen in a casual chat asking her how she felt. She would complain about aches and pains and Toni would let her complain though she didn’t have a ready solution for her problems. I then realized that just listening to her makes her feel a little better. When the food was warm and ready to be served, Toni would serve it and help Helen eat since she could not see her food. Helen would start giving me tales of how jolly and active she was during her youthful days. She usually narrated some of her most memorable escapades in a bid to help me learn how to live through life and I would consequently ask few questions to become more involved in her tales. When she was done feeding Helen, Toni would serve her favorite dessert of raspberries with cream and honey, which she would always to share with me. Toni would always tell Helen how her day was and ask for advice from her. Helen always seemed enthused that Toni cares about her opinion. She would always give Toni her heartfelt advice which surprisingly was very informative and inspiring. As she shared her day’s experiences with Helen they would laugh together and sometimes even cry together. If Toni was angry with Helen she would use this opportunity to let it all out. I was surprised how well Helen could take criticism she never wanted to be treated like a child and that is why she always appreciated Toni for telling her when she had done something wrong. They would talk about it very cordially and promise to work on it. Toni would then warmed some water and give Helen a bath which she seemed to loath so much. She change her beddings do her laundry and dishes and listen to the radio while laughing at some jokes before she fell asleep. Every time before leaving, Toni would reassure Helen she loved her and she loved spending every moment with her and how she felt lucky to have the chance to care for them and this would always put a smile on her face. Visits to Betty The experience with Betty was entirely different from that with Helen. Unlike Helen, Betty had all her senses working properly. The special attention that Betty however needed pertained to her personality. Betty was in the early stages of dementia so she was very feisty and paranoiac. She also experienced episodes of amnesia, belligerence, loss of physical mobility, bewilderment and mood swings. As a corollary, taking care of Betty, as Toni confessed to me was a time consuming and very emotional process. My first encounter with Betty was rather dramatic. The moment we walked into her house, she become suspicious of me and started asking who I was and what I wanted from her. It I tried to explain myself but it only got worse to a point where she threatened to call the FBI if I did not leave. Toni asked me to give them a moment to talk where she calmed her down and explained that I was only there to help. She reluctantly let me in but always kept her eye on me. Betty was fairly energetic hence she was able to do most of her household chores by herself but Toni was always there to help her and give her some company. Toni would always take out Betty for a ride or a walk. She would ask her where she wanted to go and they would decide on the best place to visit on that day. Sometimes we would just take a walk round her home feeding the birds and that would be enough to brighten up her entire day. Toni would help prepare dinner and in some cases Betty would insist to help her do it. She would then clean her house and do her laundry. They would talk about how their day was then chat about anything and everything and the juiciest trending gossip about politics and neighbors while laughing together and sharing jokes. Sometimes they would watch the TV or a movie or play card games, dice games, or board games During their interaction, I noted that Toni would handle Betty’s aggressive episodes by trying to identify the cause of the aggressive behavior. After making sure Betty was not putting herself (or anyone else) in danger, Toni would shift the Betty’s attention to something else, while addressing her in a calm, reassuring manner. Sometimes Betty would become confused about time or place in such instances she would say things like “let us go home now”, “This is not where I live.”, “Who is that kid you are with? or “Why are we here?” Toni would handle such situations by to figuring out what was going to make Betty feel the safe at that time then come up with a therapeutic lie to help ease her perplexity. Betty’s also experienced few paranoiac episodes that were characterized with poor judgment or cognitive problems. She would for example make baseless accusations such as “you stole my dish washer” or “that kid is trying to kill me.” To help deal with these paranoiac episodes, Toni would first evaluate the extent of the issue being raised by Betty. She would mainly ask her to clarify what made her think that what she purported was happening then help her come up with a ‘solution’ for the problem. Toni would also help Betty take some anti psychotic medicines to help ease some of the conditions that were cause by her condition by reminding her to take them and going to the pharmacy to buy them for her. Just like with Helen, every time before leaving, Toni would always reassure Betty she loved her and she loved spending every moment with her and how she felt lucky to have the chance to care for them and this would also put a smile on Betty’s face. Reflections After shadowing Toni for 6 weeks it become evident to me that as Spilsbury et al (30) asserts, effective care giving all about paying close attention to even smallest of details, being aware of changes in behavior, trying to comprehend the individuals frequent irrational thinking and wishes. Every caregiver should be known that “care” takes account of ensuring the safety, hygiene, healthiness and the preferences of a vulnerable senior adult. Every day in care giving is different. Some of the tasks (such as laundry preparing dinner and cleaning the house) might recur daily but every day is different. At times there are doctor’s appointments, other times the old individual is just in the house, sometimes the old individual is mellow other times he/she is feisty and moody. As a corollary, caregivers should know that every care giving circumstance is different and he/she should investigate the circumstance before deciding on the most appropriate solution to handle it. Care giving as I realized should also focus on the continuously changing well-being both mental and physical of the elderly individual. Most of the aged individuals would want to be autonomous without having to depend on anyone but their aging process does not always allow independence. It is therefore the job of caregivers to help where they can while letting the elderly individuals be as independent as they can by allowing them to make decisions on things such as what to eat and the places they would like to visit (Nyden et al. 271). Through the shadowing process, I was able that in order to ensure the well-being of the elderly with physical issues (such as inability to move and see), a caretaker must become more involved in helping the aged individual conduct daily household chores. The feeling can be unnatural and the caregiver might fall into the trap of treating the aged individual like a child which is wrong. The elderly have their dignity and they are worthy of utmost respect from their caregivers (Strandberg et al. 48). I was able to learn that in order to ensure the well-being of the elderly with mental issues such as dementia; caregivers need to proficiently establish a sense of balance in the thoughts, feelings and emotions that accompany the process caring for the aged individual with the mental disorder. It is therefore imperative to comprehend what that individual is going through so as to provide the most appropriate care (Norman 461). Caring for old people with mental disorders can be very challenging in several occasions the caregiver may develop impatience, resentment and anger towards the aged individual then feel guilty for having those emotions. I also learned that it is important for the caregiver to always reassure the aged individual that he/she loves them and appreciates spending time with them and that they are not taking care of them is not a burden. Conclusion The whole six week shadowing Toni instilled to me the knowledge that care giving is about the small details and also about the moments spent with the aged individual. Caregivers should be keen on paying close attention to even smallest of details and they should always strive to make every moment spent with the aged individual memorable and one that can be cherished. It is also imperative to always make the aged individual feel they can be relied upon by asking their opinions or advice on certain aspects of life. Most importantly, it is crucial for the caregiver to always reassure the aged individual that he/she loves them and appreciates spending time with them so that the aged individual does not feel like he or she is only a burden to the caregiver. Works Cited AoA (Administration on Aging). Family caregiving fact sheet. May, 2001. Web Norman, Rachel. “Observations of the experiences of people with dementia on general hospital wards.” Journal of Research in Nursing 11 (5), 453–465. 2006. Print. Nyden, Kristoffer, Petersson, Martin, Nystrom, Maria. “Unsatisfied basic needs of older patients in emergency care environments - obstacles to an active role in decision making.” Journal of Clinical Nursing 12 (2), 268–274. 2003. Print. Spilsbury, Karen, Bridges, Jackies, Meyer, Julienne, Holman, C. “The little things count. Older adults experiences of A&E care.” Emergency Nurse 7 (6), 24–32. 1999. Print Strandberg, Gunilla, Astrom, Gunilla, Norberg, Astrid. “Struggling to be/show oneself worthy of care.” Scandinavian Journal of Caring Sciences 16, 43–51. 2002. Print. Read More