Caregiver Information and Tips (C.I.T.s)

A guideline to help patients and caregivers decide when to call hospice for emergencies.

Your loved one may have a difficult time fighting off infection. You will need to take extra care to prevent passing infections to or from the person you care for.

If you are, or will be, providing care to someone in the home, it is important to make the home as safe as possible. Find out what you can do to assure the home is a safe place to provide care.

Here are important tips for patients and their caregiver for the safe administration of medications.

Recognize and help manage common end of life symptoms.

Pressure ulcers, also known as bedsores, are painful and difficult to treat. Discover all you need to know about risks, prevention, and treatment of pressure ulcers.

Information on risk factors associated with the development of pressure ulcers, also known as bedsores.

Tips to help you prevent the development of pressure sores on your loved one.

Tips to help caregivers recognize the early stages of a pressure ulcer.

Tips for preventing and treating pain in pressure ulcers.

Instructions on how to change a person in bed. How to reposition a person in bed including how to change a diaper and changing sheets.

A step-by-step guide to help you position a person in bed.

Tips to help you safely lift someone you are caring for.

How do you know when it's time to hire a caregiver? Signs that you may be ready to hire help.

Information about the different types of hired caregivers and tips for hiring a caregiver.

A comparison of hiring a private caregiver and a caregiver from an agency. Tips to help patients and families choose the best choice for them.

Caring for a an ailing family member is an act of love; it's fulfilling and rewarding, but it can also be expensive, exhausting, and just plain hard! Sometimes you just can't do it alone. If you're even considering hiring help, you've come to the right place for answers to your questions.

Caregivers face a variety of physical, emotional, and socio-economic strains that can cause caregiver stress and, if not properly relieved, lead to caregiver burn-out.

Meditation is just one way for caregivers to recharge and refuel their caring center.

Respite care provides temporary relief for caregivers.

Tips to help you find resources for respite care.

Where to find resources and support for caregivers.

Travel tips for palliative care and hospice patients with a serious illness, including air travel.

Tips for traveling with oxygen by car, bus, airplane, or cruise line.

Readers share their experience with flu symptoms.

Early recognition of flu symptoms can help you better treat the illness.

An article by Vicki Rackner, MD, about.com's guide to Senior Living, about tips to keeping hope alive when caring for a loved one.

When hiring a caregiver, there are specific questions you should ask potential caregiver agencies.

Readers share why they want to be a hospice volunteer.

National Family Caregiver Support Program

Online version of Today's Caregiver Magazine. Also offers informational resources for the caregiver.