Synopses & Reviews
As the American population grows older and the nation's health care crisis deepens, more and more of us are called upon to care for ailing parents, spouses, siblings, other relatives, and close friends. As any layperson who has ever had to make legal or financial decisions for an elderly parent or nurse a contemporary through the painful progress of a terminal disease can attest, this is not a road best traveled alone.
If someone you love is very sick or dying, you don't want to learn the hard way how to provide the physical and emotional comfort your "patient" so urgently needs. There are countless volumes on specific diseases available full of useful but coldly clinical information. And there are shelves stacked with guides to the spiritual aspects of sickness and death. But The Complete Bedside Companion is the first book to offer warmth and personal guidance while providing -- or telling you where to find -- the practical advice you need to know to care for an ailing loved one.
Drawing on the experiences of dozens of ordinary people who have eared for relatives and friends ill or dying from complications of cancer, Alzheimer's disease, heart disease, stroke, emphysema, diabetes, AIDS, and other serious conditions -- along with the practical wisdom of distinguished medical, legal, financial, and psychological experts -- this sound, compassionate guide provides field-tested, down-to-earth, nuts-and-bolts advice on every aspect of caring for the sick, including
- Working with the system, not against it
- Managing symptoms like nausea or pain
- Exploring alternative therapies
- Doing battle with insurance companies
- Maintaining cash flow and coping with bills
- Maneuvering through family tensions
No matter what their circumstances -- whether they have a network of support or are flying solo, whether they are caregiving at home, in the hospital, in the hospice, or in the nursing home -- the "everyday angels" who perform the invaluable, demanding, and ultimately rewarding task of tending to those who cannot tend to themselves will here find answers to their questions, practical advice encouragement, and affirmation for their loving care.
Synopsis
As the American population grows older and the nation's health care crisis deepens, more and more of us are called upon to care for ailing parents, spouses, siblings, other relatives, and close friends. As any layperson who has ever had to make legal or financial decisions for an elderly parent or nurse a contemporary through the painful progress of a terminal disease can attest, this is not a road best traveled alone.
If someone you love is very sick or dying, you don't want to learn the hard way how to provide the physical and emotional comfort your "patient" so urgently needs. There are countless volumes on specific diseases available full of useful but coldly clinical information. And there are shelves stacked with guides to the spiritual aspects of sickness and death. But The Complete Bedside Companion is the first book to offer warmth and personal guidance while providing -- or telling you where to find -- the practical advice you need to know to care for an ailing loved one.
Drawing on the experiences of dozens of ordinary people who have eared for relatives and friends ill or dying from complications of cancer, Alzheimer's disease, heart disease, stroke, emphysema, diabetes, AIDS, and other serious conditions -- along with the practical wisdom of distinguished medical, legal, financial, and psychological experts -- this sound, compassionate guide provides field-tested, down-to-earth, nuts-and-bolts advice on every aspect of caring for the sick, including
- Working with the system, not against it
- Managing symptoms like nausea or pain
- Exploring alternative therapies
- Doing battle with insurance companies
- Maintaining cash flow and coping with bills
- Maneuvering through family tensions
No matter what their circumstances -- whether they have a network of support or are flying solo, whether they are caregiving at home, in the hospital, in the hospice, or in the nursing home -- the "everyday angels" who perform the invaluable, demanding, and ultimately rewarding task of tending to those who cannot tend to themselves will here find answers to their questions, practical advice encouragement, and affirmation for their loving care.
About the Author
One of America's most respected consumer advocates for the sick, Rodger McFarlane currently directs collaborative research between the American Association of Health Plans and Lotus (IBM), evaluating experimental medical treatments on behalf of customers of the managed care industry. He is the former Executive Director of two of America's most successful and influential AIDS service groups, Gay Men's Health Crisis (GMHC) and Broadway Cares/Equity Fights AIDS. Rodger has personally cared for many sick and dying family members and friends over the past twenty-five years.