Advice for Caregivers Living in a Digital World

For those providing care to a person with special needs,technology can be an effective way to keep up with the daily demands ofcaregiving.

Besides all of the information caregivers can receivethrough online resources, caregivers can also use sites like Facebook orCaringBridges to help “coordinate care and mobilize support from schedulingtransportation to meals.”

Caregivers can also use computer files or the cloud tosafely store communications with professionals, medication spreadsheets, and signsor symptoms of a disease.

Aside from all the benefits, caregivers must be careful notto reveal too many personal details of a loved one on social media.  Many people now have a digital legacy, whichcaregivers should try to preserve.

See ProfessorNaomi Cahn & Rev. Amy Ziettlow, Caregivingin a Digital World, Special Needs Alliance, May 24, 2013.

Special thanks to Naomi Cahn (JohnTheodore Fey Research Professor of Law, George Washington University School ofLaw) for bringing this article to my attention.