Tips and Tools for in home helpers

[soonerwife]

I am looking for some ideas for binders or any tools that I can use to organize for the aid, nurses, and volunteers that will be coming into my home to help out.

I am typically a very organized person but for some reason, I can't figure out what will work the best.

A folder for each group seems helpful but what do you keep inside?

I would like to keep track of stats when the nurse comes.

I would like to have a way to jot down things that need to be taken care of when aids and volunteers come.

I need a daily guide for what I should be taking care of so I am not letting things slip. I found a bill yesterday that was a week overdue... Ugh! I never do stuff like that.

Any examples or pictures you all could share would be great.

 

[affected]

I used a plastic sleeve folder.

I broke things down really simply eg 1 page on how to make his breakfast with a photo. Now this was because at the time he was eating a range of stewed fruits over a soft cereal. Sounds simple but some people would dump stuff in a bowl then stir vigorously til it was a grey mush. Amazing how giving a few directions of what range of fruits may be in the fridge stewed and how it would look, and any staff member could put his breakfast together!

As things changed, I could just replace each page.

I did photos of what the bathroom looked like when set up for his shower, then what it looked like when it was all finished and cleaned up.

I had drawers that rolled around the house with all his bits and bobs in, and I did photos of what was in each drawer.

The communication book was just a note book - start entry with a date, then put your entry on the next line and leave at least one blank line before starting an entry. That's how we used to write nursing notes in the days of pen and ink.

You can used 2 coloured pens - red pen to write notes everyone needs to read or instructions, blue or black for just noting things about the shift? Everyone to read back to their last visit, or the past few days in the book while having a candy from the jar on arrival, and to make their own entry while having a candy as they prepare to leave.

Then I had a section at the back for peg feeds (Chris was notorious for refusing as many feeds as he could) so I knew what he had consumed.

You could do an obs section too for record BP or any obs needed.

For bills etc - put a reminder in your phone calendar maybe?

 

[Narrowminded]

Sooner - don't forget a page on how to work TV remotes and the like, or ceiling fans, computer. That is something that is easliy forgotten as we just assume everyone should "know" that. I also have a page printed up with channel numbers. I'm huge on page protectors, because the do protect the page and you don't need to keep reprinting, plus the ability to use a dry erase on the page if need be.

I need to write up a new page for Brian's computer, had an issue with that yesterday.

Hope these ideas help.

Hugs,

sue

 

[affected]

Yep I found you can't give too many instructions!

Actually, even if you have done this work before, can you imagine walking into the homes of 10 or 15 different people every week and remembering all the little different things about each person and the location of everything in each home?

The staff that came here regularly exclaimed how helpful my folder was and Chris called it 'his manual'.

I had a page on how to use his stove-top coffee maker as most of the staff that came here had never used one. Step by step with photos of it taken apart to clean and put back together in stages.

And yeah in the plastic sleeves, anyone could grab the folder anywhere and it was easy to keep clean, and then to replace a page when needed.

Also I built it up over time. I started with the obvious pages, but as staff came I figured out what was not obvious to them or what was asked about and it became a new page quickly

A note on where powerpoints are located is a good one too

 

[soonerwife]

I bought binders, a notebook, sheet protectors, dry erase pens, tabs, and a planner for myself. Hopefully this will get me started.

 

[affected]

You bought candy too and a jar to put em in?

Never underestimate the power of sucking up to the workers!

 

[soonerwife]

I forgot until I had already checked out... I will order to have it delivered tomorrow.

It's done now... Plenty of candy!