The COVID-19 pandemics threw us several challenges. The attention to healthcare providing is a priority. The way we protect ourselves is closely linked to the way we protect those around us. I take care of elderly people. What should I do now? The attention and willingness we should have is not only towards our relatives, but also towards those around us. The care provided to an older person who lives alone, even when not a relative of ours is very important. The priority is to help elderly to organize themselves and to think differently. To ask for help is good and natural. Check the medication As caretaker, help verifying the medications they take daily and take note of the remaining packs, to know when they will need more. Remember that prescriptions can also be requested by phone consultation or video consultation. And when you have the opportunity, go to the pharmacy and leave the medication supply organized. Ask them to note what they eat, for 1 or 2 days With this record, you can realise the foods that will be necessary and the amounts. Estimate the needs for 7-10 days and try to leave the house supplied with enough fruit, vegetables, meat, fish, etc. If possible, take the shopping to the front door, keeping eye contact and showing affection, but observing a safe distance. If not possible, hire a home delivery service. Education for health Teach and reinforce frequently the need of social isolation, and explain that the virus remains active for several days on surfaces and persists in the air in more confined spaces. Insist that they must not get out of the house. Teach them that everything that is brought into the house should be cleaned and disinfected. If possible, deliver the products already cleaned or properly packaged to be easy to clean. Reinforce the need to wash the hands. Even when staying at home, they must wash their hands. Ask your kids to make videos for the elderly, it is a way of showing affection and maintaining bonds. Explain them the respiratory etiquette, send them photos of their grand-children coughing into the elbow, blowing their nose to paper tissues and throwing them in the garbage. These are the most didactical measures. They educate grand-parents and children in a recreational manner and reinforce affective bonds. Reinforce affection Call them daily. Ask how they are. If possible, create family groups, launch challenges and weekly tasks they can share. The sharing of a poem, a drawing, a music, are things that bond us and help the elderly to feel included. We have a lot to learn from them. And as caretaker of your children, what else can I do? Keep calm Affection, love, tenderness and calm are essential. Affection is the most important. Explain what is going on, resorting to the didactic material available in several platforms. Transmit safety and serenity. Explain what is COVID-19 Information is our most precious active. The didactical explanation of the ways of transmission and the types of the disease makes it easier for children to accept what is asked of them. Make videos with them explaining the washing of the hands, the respiratory etiquette, social distancing, and share them with the family. It’s a way of sharing, playing and learning, useful for everyone. We learn what we do. Have time for them Play with your kids, watch a movie, play a game. Do physical exercise together. Establish a weekly routine of a specific game, a board game for instance, once a week. That involves all the family and is a moment of sharing and affection. Share a book that you have read. Watch the game they are playing. Partake in your kids’ interests. Establish routines Maintain a schedule for going to bed, getting up and having meals. Take the opportunity to encourage their participation in house chores, teach them how to cook and deal with small duties. Give them tasks to complete. And how can I help myself? Besides observing all the rules already mentioned: Save some time for yourself; Organize your time so that the deliveries to the elderly are done once a week; Turn your time with your children into potential moments of joint exercise; Save time to watch a movie, meditate for 5-10 minutes a day or read a book; Find your time inside yourself; Don’t watch too much news, only enough to keep informed. Relax and be calm; To feel fear is natural. Seek the help of friends and family and talk. Even distant, we can be together. If you need help, the Hospital da Luz network professionals are there for you. We have video consultations available in more than 40 specialties and phone consultations with your attending doctor. You can count on us. The Team of Family and General Medicine of Hospital da Luz Setúbal Click here for more information and advice of Hospital da Luz about the novel coronavírus COVID-19 epidemic . The content published in the Health Guide is intended for the general public and is provided for informational and educational purposes only. It does not replace individual medical assessment, diagnosis, or personalized clinical advice from a qualified healthcare professional. The content is produced or reviewed by physicians and other healthcare professionals at Hospital da Luz and is based on the knowledge available at the time of publication or the most recent update, as indicated at the beginning of each item.
