What You Can Do for
Patients |
Stay Connected
- Send cards
- Telephone
- Leave a note or send an email
- Send photographs
- Leave messages even though he/she may not feel up to returning your call
- Be regular with your contact
Share Humor
- Send a cartoon
- Tell a joke
- Watch a funny movie with him/her
- Laugh
Lend or Buy
- an answering machine
- reading lamp
- CD player or IPOD with comfortable headphones
- music CDs
- magazines
- wedge pillow
- egg carton mattress
- soft, snuggly fleece blanket
- juicer
- remote control
- hats, scarves, or other comfortable head coverings
- gas card to help with trips for treatment
Keep Him/Her Company
- visit (call first)
- sit with him/her
- go for a walk/car ride
- drive or sit with him/her on chemotherapy day
- watch a video
- read
- let him/her know what you are willing to do and when
- pray
- give hugs
- don't feel bad if he/she doesn't want to talk or visit
Provide Comfort
- Create a convenience basket with books, magazines, writing materials, tissues, snacks, bells, water bottles, makeup pouches, a light shawl or blanket
- Bring him/her a stuffed animal or favorite stone
- Bring a favorite food to the hospital for him/her
- Pick some flowers from the garden to bring into the house
- Bring little gifts that brighten his/her day
Assist with Personal Tasks
- Arrange appointments
- Arrange appointments for a manicure, pedicure, facial, or massage
- Update list of cards and gifts
- Help in writing his/her thank-you notes
- Address thank-you envelopes
- Draft a thank you letter for him/her to sign
- Be the key person on a phone tree to keep others updated
Ease Household Tasks
- Bring me a meal, cookies, snacks, fresh produce from your garden
- Empty the wastebaskets, the dishwasher, the dryer
- Fold the laundry
- Clean a bathroom
- Vacuum the house or mop the floors
- Mow the lawn
- Wash or vacuum the car
- Arrange for the necessary daily maintenance chores to be done
Think about His/Her Caretaker
- Ask how they are
- Give them some time away by caring for him/her
- Take them out for dinner or a night on the town
- Give them a call and ask how they are doing
- Arrange for them to get a massage, a facial, etc.
Think about His/Her Children
- Ask how they are doing
- Take them to school or activities
- Invite them for sleepovers
- Be a listening ear
- Rent them video games or movies
Give Him/Her Situational Support
- Take him/her to church, to synagogue
- Take him/her to the beach, to a park, to a lake
- Take him/her for a picnic, for a massage
- Take him/her to the doctor, to the drug store, to the grocery store
For questions, call 919-843-0680. |
