Let's Hope Obama Really Cares

A recent New York Times Editorial, "Caring for the Caregivers", concisely states why I'm so passionate about this topic.

Home health aides are vital to the health and well-being of many families in the US, and must be treated with care themselves. The work they do is difficult, tiring, and frustrating; and at the end of the day, the pay is often inadequate or unjustly withheld by unscrupulous home health agencies who hire undocumented workers.

Family members who provide home care for aging parents or other relatives represent another valuable resource that must be nurtured - not squandered. Family caregivers are by far the most cost effective means of dealing with a major health care problem in this country, but they can easily find themselves suffering from burn-out in this stress-prone situation. These people need our support and Congress and the Obama Administration must find a way to provide funding to help sustain the health of these caregivers. Some funds are available to pay for respite care, but I would bet very few family caregivers would have any idea how to apply for such assistance.

Let's hope that the health care reforms planned by the Obama Administration will recognize the value and support the needs of the family caregiver.

Who needs High-Tech?

When it comes to managing a bunch of pills every day... Simpler is better! There were some high-tech dispensing devices shown at CES, but "One size never fits all". When you consider the complexity and cost of those high-tech dispensing devices, y ou really can't beat the old stand-by 7-day pill boxes - especially when used with some kind of automated pill reminders.

A "low-tech" system is all most people need to manage even the most complicated drug regimen. This pill box-reminder combination comes in all "flavors" and sizes now, and they work very well together - no batteries or electricity needed.

For the automated medication reminders, take a look at OnTimeRx. Please... Try before You Buy - Free trials of all software and services let each caregiver decide if these reminders will help.

I'm the pharmacist and developer of OnTimeRx software and reminder services. OnTimeRx has been available since 2000 for Palm and PocketPC, and a version for Windows XP or Vista can be used as a stand-alone program or as a desktop interface with the hand held devices.

Microsoft selected OnTimeRx-Windows for their HP/Vista "SeniorPC" systems available through enablemart.com because OTRx-Win works great as a stand-alone reminder program for home-bound patients or it can be installed and used on a computer at work. All caregivers should know about these reminder tools and give them a try, just to see how helpful this kind of computer technology can be.

From my own experiences with hospice, I know that being a caregiver or home health aide can be very stressful. It makes a major difference when you're well-organized. So why not let computers remember all of these things and help everyone to stay on track and !?