Last week I began a series, What do Caregivers need to manage health?, about Caregivers and Health Information Technology (HIT). Due to technical difficulties, my subscribers did not receive an email of this post. Find last week’s post here.
I listed 15 needs of people at the center of care including:
- Control of their life
- Connection to others – not alone
Social media and this blog help me keep control of my life and connect to others. As a student of health and of the teams, communities and organizations involved with health I study myself and my experience first. If that isn’t the definition of self-centered, I don’t know what is. This blog, using the WordPress platform, is my primary means of communicating and reflecting. I did have some help setting the blog up, but the platform is intuitive and the forums and help lines are useful. Other less intense, free blog platforms include (there are many):
Some people gain control by keeping a journal to record their health journey experiences: Where you started, what you dealt with, how you felt, who you met, what worked, what didn’t. Try Day One Journaling.
I use social media Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. Twitter can be like drinking dirty water from a fire hose if you’re not careful. I control my Twitter experience finding the hash-tags (#) that connect me to communities that interest me such as #caregivers, #ptexp (patient experience) #epatient, #s4pm (Society for Participatory Medicine), #bcsm (breast cancer social media), #healthliteracy. See what I mean?
Caregivers spend a bulk of their time with logistics – lists, appointments, connections. Among many caregiver assisting apps are:
- Balance (for Alzheimer’s caregivers)
- Caregiver’s Touch
- CareZone
Caregivers skirt the edges of control. We juggle family, self, job, community, plus caregiving. Technology can be great, but you need the time to invest. The best technology is often only possible when it is too easy for words or you can delegate it to someone else on the team and reap its benefits.
What works for you?
