When I first became an OT working out in the field, I gained a first hand view of the many issues that caregivers had to deal with in elder care. I had many patients with dementia, heart disease, diabetes, lung disease, and other mental health issues. On a daily basis in my work, I saw how hard it was to address these multiple issues but was fortunate that after 8 hours of work, I could go home. That all changed when economics created a change in the caregiving environment.
My first job out of school was at a neurobehavioral unit right when the Silicon Valley had an exodus of care workers going yo tech jobs and as a result, the OT sometimes had to pick up the responsibilities of the nurse aides. There were times when I’d report to work at 5 am to get residents cleaned up and ready for breakfast. I was responsible for about 11 residents who needed brief and clothing changes to be up for breakfast.
Many of these residents were not the nice and sweet old folks you see in the movies. There were many times where I’d get spit at or cussed out. Sometimes they’d even swing a fist at us or even pull out a hand covered in BM from a brief. It was way dirty work that was not suited for the faint of heart. Trying to provide basic care was tough work and it was only the start of the day.
Once the morning routine was done, it was time for feeding them. I’d be pushing meal carts out and passing trays to the residents. Next it was supervising and feeding those who were unable to feed themselves. We had to watch them as some would steal their neighboring table mates’ meal if we were not paying attention. Some would dump food on the floor if they didn’t like it. Between supervising the meal and feeding them, I did have janitorial duties to prevent slips and falls in the dining room.
Following the breakfast, it was time to toilet residents and get them to the activities that I’d run until lunch time. The meal and toileting routine would be followed by them getting down for naps or another group for activities that I would run. Sometimes I would have to load residents into a wheelchair van and drive them to their appointments around the Bay Area in peak traffic.
There were days I’d work over 16 hours a day to cover the care needs of these folks. I’d work from early AM until they went to bed and this would go on for several weeks at a time. It was super hard work mentally and physically. There was no time for me to care for myself.
That job really taught me what it is like to be a caregiver. Long, hard, thankless days of work was grueling and took a toll on my own personal life. These days are unbelievably demanding that few who have been in this role can understand.
My roles have changed over the years and have given me many opportunities to learn about this vast sea of elder care issues. I hope that these blog posts can help caregivers navigate through their journey.
Creative Caring Works 