Clinical Center encourages caregivers to also take care of themselves

Episode # 78
Uploaded: November 22, 2011
Running Time: 02:49

CROWN: From the National Institutes of Health in Bethesda, Maryland, this is CLINICAL CENTER RADIO.

Family caregivers – they’re the people who maintain home responsibilities while at the bedside of their loved ones. In some cases, they drive their loved ones to and from medical appointments, help coordinate their care, and even administer medications.  It’s a big job. And, according to the National Alliance for Caregiving, more than 65 million people in the U.S. serve as unpaid family caregivers. On Nov. 8, the Clinical Center recognized these essential members of the clinical research team with NIH’s 2nd annual Family Caregiver Day, reminding them to take time for themselves, too. Clinical Nurse Scientist Margaret Bevans, co-organizer of NIH Family Caregiver Day says:

BEVANS: Every day at the Clinical Center we have families and caregivers who are here who have needs. We need to understand their experience at our agency. [We] need to understand what they’re feeling and what resources are out there.

CROWN: Activities included an informational fair & expo where representatives from throughout the Clinical Center, as well as local and national caregiver organizations, reached out to attendees with their resources – from recreational to nutritional, as well as social and mental health. The day also included a campus nature walk and several stress-reducing activities, including interactive sessions on mind-body techniques, seated massage, walking meditation using a guided labyrinth, and relaxation chair sessions.

The take-home message for caregivers: it’s important to R.E.S.T, which stands for:

• Relax
• Eat healthy and stay active
• Sleep, and
• Take care of yourself.

Recreation therapy specialist Renee Stubbs explains:

STUBBS: They worry so much. It is their loved ones life, many times, that is on the line. That takes a lot out of a person. I encourage them to do things that are self-sustaining and self-caring; relaxation. Make sure you’re eating properly. Make sure you’re getting enough rest and sleep. Like I tell my caregivers, there’s a  whole team of people supporting the patient. And what I can do for you is make sure there is someone supporting you and that you are supporting yourself.

CROWN:  For more resources and research for Clinical Center caregivers, visit http://clinicalcenter.nih.gov/wecare. From America's Clinical Research Hospital, this has been CLINICAL CENTER RADIO. In Bethesda, Maryland, I'm Ellen Crown, at the National Institutes of Health, an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services.

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