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1 2 3 Disaster Preparedness Guide for Caregivers
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Introduction
As a family caregiver, you are one of 53 million Americans caring for someone older, ill, or disabled. In many cases, you may be the only one attending to the daily needs of an elderly parent, disabled neighbor, or medically complex child. Those in your care depend on you for their safety and well-being—especially during emergencies. In recognition of your unparalleled dedication and commitment to those in your care, the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA.gov) and the Rosalynn Carter Institute for Caregivers (RCI) (rosalynncarter.org) have created this Disaster Preparedness Guide for Caregivers to help you navigate the unique challenges that may arise when disasters strike. Caregivers navigate complex systems and plan for the unexpected every day. In preparing for a disaster, you will use all this experience! You are already further along in your preparedness journey than you might think. This guide will help you learn about disaster preparedness and identify the needs of your care recipient and how they might change during a disaster. You may also have questions about preparedness or not even know the questions to ask. This guide will help answer these questions, share ways to connect with your community, and bolster your confidence as a caregiver during a disaster. Not all caregiving experiences are the same, and the information and resources in the guide reflect this. Before you start, think about your unique circumstances: Are you a caregiver who will prepare with your care recipient? Are you a caregiver with a support network to help prepare your care recipient? Are you a solo caregiver starting from scratch? This guide provides tailored information and resources to support you as a caregiver no matter your situation. 2
Step 1 | Identify Barriers And Risks
This step identifies common challenges you face as a family caregiver and strategies for overcoming them— either with your care recipient, with your support network, or as a solo caregiver. It will also enable you to understand the various obstacles you may face when getting your care recipient ready for a disaster—including mobility issues, limited resources, and medical needs. In this section, you will find ways to build resilience for yourself and those in your care.
Step 2 | Learn And Connect
This step guides y ou in establishing partnerships with emergency services and identifying community resources you will use to make your plan. You can learn and connect with your care recipient or with your support network. If you are a solo caregiver, now is the time to start making connections and finding support. Through these tips, you can strengthen your community ties and ensure support and resources are readily available when you need them.
Step 3 | Make A Plan
In this step, y ou will learn the essential aspects of preparedness and how to develop a comprehensive emergency plan, including building a disaster preparedness kit. Part of making a plan is empowering your care recipient in their disaster preparedness planning or engaging your support network. If you don’t have a support network, now is the time to start making those connections that will benefit you both today and during a disaster. 3
Step 1
Identify Barriers and Risks With Your Care Recipient With Your Support Network Solo Caregiver Consider your circumstances and find information and resources to meet your unique needs throughout the guide. As a family caregiver, you are used to handling the unexpected. You know that circumstances can change quickly and that plans need to adjust based on the needs of your care recipient—sometimes day-to-day and sometimes hour-by-hour. You have learned how to navigate complex systems to help your care recipient lead a fulfilling and meaningful life. All of your experience as a caregiver will help you prepare your care recipient for disasters and emergencies. Caregivers and their support networks have a window into the world of their care recipients. Yet often, it is easy to miss some specific barriers they may face. Understanding your care recipient’s unique risks is vital in personalizing a comprehensive disaster preparedness plan. Step 1 of this guide focuses on identifying barriers and risks, provides insights that will help you overcome challenges, and, most importantly, gives you the tools to build resilience for yourself and your care recipients.
With Your Care Recipient
- How do you best understand and respond to information?
- How do you communicate your needs to others? How does this change in stressful
or unfamiliar situations?
- What help do you require for personal care?
- What assistive technology do you use to meet your daily activity needs?
- Do you have the money to cover expenses such as relocation, extra medications,
or other associated costs you may encounter in a disaster?
- What helps you adjust to new or unfamiliar people and places?
- What methods of transportation do you rely on?
- How do you communicate pain or when you are subjected to extreme temperatures?
With Your Support Network
- How does my care recipient communicate their needs to others?
- Does my care recipient use assistive devices, interpreters for communication, or speak a language not
common in the community? Is my support network familiar with these communication needs and know how to address them?
- How do I inform first responders or emergency response personnel about the unique communication needs
of my care recipient? 4
- Does my care recipient use medical equipment that requires electricity?
- How does my care recipient report pain or indicate when they are subjected to extreme temperatures?
- Do members of my support team have a full understanding of the medication and equipment needs of the
person I am taking care of?
- Does the person I am caring for depend on other providers or medical services for extended care? Does my
support network know how to access this care?
- What is the role of my support network in helping my care recipient accomplish activities such as grocery
shopping and paying bills?
- What medications or assistive devices enable my care recipient to function independently? Does my support
network know how to use this technology or administer these medications?
- Does my care recipient engage in self-harming behaviors, and how can my support network help me identify
strategies to keep my care recipient safe?
Solo Caregiver
- Do I fully understand the medication and equipment needs of the person I am taking care of?
- What are the most pressing concerns I have when my care recipient is without their typical
level of supervision?
- What are my limitations as a solo caregiver?
- Do I know how to assist my care recipient with finding resources to meet expenses during or after a disaster?
- Do I know who provides medical care and how to access this care during a disaster?
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Step 2
Learn and Connect With Your Care Recipient With Your Support Network Solo Caregiver Consider your circumstances and find information and resources to meet your unique needs throughout the guide. Now that you have taken some time to assess the barriers, risks, and needs that your care recipient may face, step 2 will help you assess preparedness roles, learn about resources to meet these needs, and provide guidance on fostering a collaborative approach to preparedness. If you are a solo caregiver, now is the time to start building connections to create a support network that will allow you and your care recipient to be resilient in the face of barriers and risks you encounter.
Assess Preparedness Roles
With Your Care Recipient
Engaging your care recipient, if they are able to do so, is a crucial step in emergency preparedness. Below are some conversation starters to engage your care recipient in a discussion about preparedness activities.
- “I’d like to talk about disaster preparedness and what that means to me and you.”
- “When preparing for a disaster, I see my role as ________________. What do you see your role as?”
- “I would like to talk about our activities for disaster preparedness. Would you like to engage
in disaster preparedness activities?”
With Your Support Network
Engage your support network, along with involving your care recipient, to ensure that emergency preparedness planning becomes a team effort. Below are some conversation starters to engage your support network in a discussion about preparedness activities.
- “I would like to talk about disaster preparedness and how we can work together to ensure [name] is prepared
in the event of an emergency.”
- “As a close family member, friend, or medical provider of [name], could you provide any additional
considerations that I should be aware of as I help [name] get prepared?”
- “What resources of yours can I leverage to ensure myself and my care recipient are prepared?”
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Solo Caregiver
As a solo caregiver, it might be difficult to figure out where to start in preparing yourself and your care recipient for a disaster. Below are some questions you can ask yourself as a solo caregiver to get started in your preparedness journey.
- “What barriers to preparedness may I or my care recipient face?”
- “What additional help do I need to ensure that I and my care recipient are prepared?”
- “Are there additional ways I can get involved in emergency preparedness or get connected to emergency
management professionals?”
Disaster Preparedness Resources For Caregivers
While many resources are available to support your preparedness journey, knowing where to look to help you create your unique preparedness plan can be hard. While it can feel overwhelming, you might be further along than you think—all of the ways you navigate medical systems, maintain schedules, and meet the needs of your care recipient will help you as you plan for a disaster. Medications, prescription refills, medical care: For many caregivers and care recipients, the daily stress of prescription refills and managing medication schedules becomes even more urgent and complicated in a disaster situation. While there may not be an easy answer, there are programs and resources you can leverage in times of disaster. Learn about these resources before you need them, talk to your care recipient’s doctor and support network, and know that doing the work now will help alleviate stress should you ever need this information.
- Emergency prescription laws: Each state has
different laws that authorize pharmacies and pharmacists to refill prescriptions early in the event of a declared emergency. Familiarize yourself with the laws in your state by visiting: Healthcare Ready’s A Review of State Emergency Prescription Protocols (healthcareready. org/a-review-of-state-emergency-prescription-protocols/) and CDC’s A Prescription for Preparedness (blogs. cdc.gov/publichealthmatters/2019/09/prescription- preparedness/).
- Locate an open pharmacy or healthcare facility during and after a disaster: If