Relatives As Caretakers And EMS. The Perspective And Needs Of Significant Others When Dealing With Prehospital Care

Friday, October 14, 2022

9:45 AM – 10:45 AM EDT

Location: 224GH

Speaker(s)

Christoph Redelsteiner, PhD,PhDr MSW, MS; EMT-P

1.Academic Director Master of Social Work Pgm / 2.Emergency Health Services Program
University of Applied Sciences St. Pölten / Danube University Krems
Vienna, Wien

Description: Most EMS calls are into the private homes of patients. Especially with elderly and chronic patients, relatives and significant others are present which are the permanent primary caretakers of their “loved one”. Some of them are active 24x7, close to burnout and being patients themselves. However, without their engagement many families could not afford care and professional care living facilities would be overwhelmed.

The presenter will discuss the expectations family, society and EMS have in regard to these caretakers. How can they deal with their difficult role? What are their needs? How can prehospital providers acknowledge and empower them? Strategies to support family caretakers during calls are discussed and resources to assist these caregivers are listed. Different case reports show the high variation in skill and needs of family caretakers.
Signs and symptoms that could be indications of possible patient abuse during a structured assessment are explained.

Learning Objectives:

describe the results of role changes between partners or parents and children when one becomes caretaker of a relative
explain the rights of patients versus the rights of relatives when on scene of a call
develop an understanding for the challenges of family caretakers when caring for loved ones with dementia
apply basic strategies to acknowledge, empower and motivate family caretakers
integrate fundamental checks for signs of possible patient abuse in your patient assessment