New Book: “A Guide for Caregiving: What’s Next? Planning for Safety, Quality, and Compassionate Care for Your Loved One and Yourself!” By Tina Marrelli
A blend of stressful and complex feelings can be triggered when someone becomes a caregiver. There is no doubt that the role can be a difficult one. Best-selling and prolific author Tina Marrelli compassionately took on this complex topic after her sweet 96-year-old father-in-law moved in with Tina and her husband for three years. He then went to heaven with hospice care in their home. Tina has written 12 books for professional caregivers, such as nurses and managers in health care, she realized that families, friends and other caregivers need their own book. This Guide is the result of that work.
Caregivers are not alone, below are the words of two other caregivers; one a family member and the second a nurse and caregiver.
“Worry, doubt, confusion, depression, anger, and feelings of being overwhelmed was what I felt when I realized I was the ‘Caregiver’. “This [guide] has transformed me into a confident caregiver knowing I could find the answer to most all situations I faced as a caregiver to a loved one and friend. It also made me realize the importance of taking care of myself. I would recommend … to any professional or any person that finds them self in the caregiver position. It is a valuable tool.” – MLL, Venice, Florida, Caregiver
“This is terrific! Not only as a nurse, but also as a family caregiver, I can truly appreciate Tina’s insightful guidance… a source of much -needed insight when I cared for my mother-in-law whose multiple medical conditions were compounded by dementia. …also much needed direction ten years ago when caring for my mother in her home after suffering a stroke that left her paralyzed on her left side, on tube feedings, and bedridden. Today, as I care for a family member with diabetes and dementia and I help a dear friend who requires 14 prescription medications and a special diet to maintain medical stability, I can rely on this Guide for answers to the many issues that I face.” – Mary St. Pierre, RN, BSN, MGA, former V.P. for Regulatory Affairs, National Association for Home Care & Hospice, Home Care and Hospice Consultant
Here is the first book to help you, the clinician, help your patients and families better understand the complexity of the health care system. Chronic conditions and other information is addressed in a manner that can be taught to your patients and patient families, as well as used in “teach-back” and other educational ways. This Guide can help put the clinicians, patient and family caregiver(s) on the same page and is written by well-known home care and hospice author Tina Marrelli. Tina sought to help care truly become “person-centered” and this Guide is a compassionate and common-sense view of health care.
The Guide is written in a conversational manner for “lay” caregivers and is divided into two parts. The first part covers the administrative activities that helps one become an effective caregiver to their loved one, friend or the “caregivee”. Included are the caregiving role, skills needed, the care team in health care and the settings for care, advocacy, safety, infection control and prevention and much, much more! The second part is structured as conversational information about specific health problems which are organized alphabetically for ease of finding specific information. Some of the topics addressed include Alzheimer’s disease and dementia, care of the bedbound person, cancer care, diabetes care, older adult care, end-of-life, palliative and hospice care, medication management, and others.
In addition, there are many resources about where to find more information on given topics. Many books and resources address only one condition or health problem, but most people do not have just one problem. Like the old saying goes, the “hip bone’s connected to the thigh bone”- some conditions are interrelated. Marrelli writes “As healthcare has become more specialized and complex, sometimes it seems we have lost that holistic view of one person and their unique needs and wishes”. This Guide seeks to make health care understandable and help family, friends and other caregivers be valued and recognized as the expert on their loved one or “caregivee”.
Tina M. Marrelli, RN, MSN, MA, FAAN
Tina attended the Duke University School of Nursing where she received her undergraduate degree in nursing. She also has master’s degrees in health administration and in nursing. Tina has worked in hospitals, nursing homes, and in public health. She has practiced as a visiting nurse and managed in home care and hospice.
Tina Marrelli, RN, MSN, FAAN is the author of numerous books, including Home Care Nursing: Surviving in an Ever-Changing Care Environment, the Handbook of Home Health Standards: Quality, Documentation and Reimbursement, the Nurse Manager’s Survival Guide (4th edition in press), and Hospice and Palliative Care Handbook: Quality, Compliance and Reimbursement (3rd edition in revision).
Tina is the Chief Clinical Officer for Innovative Caregiving Solutions, LLC an innovative technology company. Finally, caregiving and caregivers (loved ones, friends, partners, etc.) are being recognized for their important contributions, knowledge, and roles. Tina can be contacted at info@e-caregiving.com