Eldercare 911: The Caregiver's Complete Handbook for Making Decisions SYNOPSIS
Directed especially towards women, who often shoulder the burden of caring for elderly parents, this book delivers practical information on all aspects of elder caregiving and shares the insights of real people coping with caring for elderly parents. Readers can access the information by looking for quick answers to specific questions, or they can read more of the book to find prevention strategies and get an overview of caregiving issues. There is advice on knowing when parents need help, long-distance caregiving, medical and financial issues, and choosing a living situation. Beerman is president of an eldercare management consulting service; Rappaport-Musson is a Certified Senior Advisor. Annotation c. Book News, Inc.,Portland, OR
FROM THE CRITICS
Publishers Weekly
Beerman and Rappaport-Musson, eldercare specialists, offer a comprehensive guide to caregiving issues, calmly presenting information readers may not have even considered. For example, the first chapter addresses how to deal directly with one's parents, what to do if the parents don't want help and how to determine if parents, in fact, need help. The authors include sample dialogues, which will be particularly helpful with parents who refuse to acknowledge they need help. The section on long-distance caregiving is also quite useful-the authors advise readers to call ahead of time to schedule appointments with everyone connected to family care, from physicians to caregivers to support agencies. They also advise having a portable folder with key contact numbers so people will have essential information at their fingertips. This excellent, comprehensive guidebook offers information on nursing homes, hospice care and home heath professionals. (Sept.) Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.
Library Journal
Discovering that older parents need assistance because of physical illness or frailty can seem like an emergency situation to the adult children who must arrange for their care. This handy guide covers a variety of caregiving situations, including those common to other caregiving books locating services, managing medications, understanding benefits, choosing a nursing home, coping with memory loss, and hiring and handling in-home help. But social worker Beerman and Rappaport-Musson, a certified senior adviser, address important topics not often covered elsewhere making the decision to become a caregiver (or deciding not to); helping a parent who refuses help; recognizing signs of elder abuse, neglect, and exploitation; and recognizing drug or alcohol abuse. Writing primarily for women, who shoulder most caregiving responsibilities, the authors offer much supportive advice as well as anecdotes from other caregivers showing how to counteract the physical and emotional toll that caregiving responsibilities can exact. The concise chapters can be read as needed. Unfortunately, the scanty resource list includes only major government and disease-specific web sites, and readers looking for in-depth details on specific disorders, caregiving skills, or benefit programs will need to consult Linda Colvin Rhodes's The Complete Idiot's Guide to Caring for Aging Parents, American Medical Association Guide to Home Caregiving, or Consumer Reports Guide to Health Services for Seniors. Nevertheless, this is a good addition to larger senior health collections. Karen McNally Bensing, Benjamin Rose Lib., Cleveland Copyright 2002 Cahners Business Information.