Written by EniOluwa Ojewunmi
Main Points
- Caregivers provide care to people who cannot take care of themselves.
- Caregivers in Nigeria are important to the healthcare system.
- Caregivers perform many functions in the healthcare system.
In every healthcare system, many people hold the glorified positions that everybody celebrates and recognises, but others do the dirty work, so to speak. One of such people is a caregiver. They work in hospitals, care homes, or private residences to ensure that the patients they care for live life in the best state of health and care they can.
Who is a Caregiver?
So, after all this fuss, who are they?
A caregiver refers to someone who cares for people who are unable to care for themselves due to disability or illness, or advanced age. They may come in the form of family, friends, or healthcare professionals. There are two types of Caregivers:
Primary Caregivers
These may be family, friends, or neighbours. They are people who provide care, but the essential thing about them is that they are not medically trained professionals. They are often seen in home services, for example, a child taking care of elderly parents, a parent taking care of a sick child, and so on. These could also be extended to a hired caregiver providing care to a patient in a home setting.
Primary Healthcaregivers
These refer to medically trained professionals such as Doctors, Nurses, and other trained healthcare professionals. They render care in healthcare facilities such as hospitals, care facilities, and Nursing homes.
What are the duties of a Caregiver?
Caregivers might vary in their duties depending on the client, but the most important duty of a caregiver is to provide care for the patients and improve their quality of life. In care homes, the duties of the caregiver would involve making the beds, feeding the patients who cannot feed themselves, bathing, ensuring that all medications are taken at the right time and in the right dosage, taking vitals such as blood pressure, blood sugar, and finally, overall overseeing the care of the residents.
In a private residence, home caregivers may also undertake the additional tasks of cooking meals, doing the laundry, going to get groceries, and cleaning the residence.
However, at this juncture, it is important to know that caregivers are not housemaids as some Nigerians may view them. While in some cases, they undertake some duties of the househelp, they are not housemaids, nor are they to be used as such.
How do Caregivers Improve the Overall Healthcare System in Nigeria?
Caregivers are important to the healthcare system in a variety of ways. Let us explore these ways together.
They can Provide More Personalised Care to the Patients
While doctors and nurses also provide care, the unfortunate reality is that many times, they are overwhelmed with the sheer number of patients to attend to, so they may not be able to take as much time as they can with each patient.
An unfortunate reality in Nigeria is that the ratio of doctors to patients is too low. A report by the World Health Organisation put it at 0.4 doctors per 1000 people. An article in The Lancet put this ratio at 1:9083. The ideal ratio is 1:600. So, this means that doctors in Nigeria are already overburdened.
Caregivers, on the other hand, are often more in number than the doctors, and they are not as spread thin. Thus, they can take more time with each patient. Caregivers are also more involved in the day-to-day life of the patients in their care.
They look after the cleaning, feeding, and exercising of the patients in their care, and so they may notice problems easily. This enables them to cater to the more specialised needs of their patients. For example, some patients cannot do anything for themselves, so they rely on their caregivers for even the basic needs such as feeding and bathing.
They Extend the Reach of Healthcare Services
A lot of caregivers provide home services, and some even work as live-in caregivers. This enables people to receive top-notch healthcare from the comfort of their homes. Getting doctors to provide home service may not come cheap, and not all home services are as cheap yet reliable as DoctorOnTap.
Furthermore, caregivers provide round-the-clock care for their patients. As earlier mentioned, some live with the patients and as such are easily accessible at any time of the day.
They Ease the Healthcare Burden on Families
In families that have a sick, disabled, or elderly member, having the time to provide the round-the-clock care they may need may not be easy for several reasons. In Nigerian and African settings, some would want their elderly family members to still live with them as opposed to putting them in a care home. While some may be willing to take care of the family members themselves, they may not have the proper training to do so.
A caregiver would take that burden off their shoulders. Employing the services of a caregiver would work out well for everyone. The patient would receive quality care while the family gets to live their lives. In cases of elderly patients who would require companionship, the caregiver can provide that while the family members go to work or school.
They Reduce the Workload of Doctors
If doctors had to also attend to the less clinical needs of the patients, like feeding, cleaning, making the beds, and others, they would be extremely overwhelmed. The healthcare system of Nigeria would grind to a halt. The already overwhelmed doctors would not be able to handle the volume of work they would have to do.
Caregivers attend to those needs so the doctors can do their jobs as freely as possible. They also make it easier for the doctors to do their jobs by providing information when it is needed. This way, the doctors can make decisions quickly based on the information provided.
Wrap Up
Caregivers perform important roles in the healthcare system in Nigeria. Everyone benefits when they do their jobs properly. Without them, the healthcare system would grind to a halt.
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is a Caregiver?
A caregiver is someone responsible for caring for people who cannot care for themselves.
Where can I get a Caregiver?
If you require a caregiver, you can get well-trained and reliable caregivers through DoctorOnTap for prices that won’t rip a hole in your pocket.
What are the Qualities of a Good Caregiver?
Every good caregiver must possess basic medical knowledge, compassion and empathy, attention to detail, as well as reliability and adaptability.
References
- National Cancer Institute. NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms. https://www.cancer.gov/publications/dictionaries/cancer-terms/def/caregiver
- World Health Organisation. Physicians per 1,000 People, Nigeria. https://data.worldbank.org/indicator/SH.MED.PHYS.ZS?locations=NG
- A Call for Reform In Nigeria’s Medical Doctors’ Work Hours. The Lancet. https://www.thelancet.com/journals/lancet/article/PIIS0140-6736(23)02558-8/fulltext