They See Us; Our Work Just Overwhelms Them
We’re not invisible. They just can’t find or make the time for us.
I often hear family caregivers described as “invisible.”
I have wondered about this description. I am a strong presence in the doctor’s office, the Emergency Room, the hospital room and in my community as I cared for my mom and continue to care for my dad.
But I get the intent of the word “invisible.” I have felt ignored, overlooked and minimized.
Paurvi Bhatt, a colleague on Twitter, recently shared this research that helped explain why we often feel dismissed:
A study from 2018 examined and compared health care provider perceptions for integrating family caregivers into patient encounters and other processes of care by medical specialty. The results:
Overall, providers described a paradox, where caregivers are seen as contributing value to patient encounters until they need training, education, or support to provide care, at which point they become burdensome and require more time and resources than are typically available.
Before the pandemic, health care providers didn’t have time to help us. After the pandemic, with a staff shortage of health care providers at crisis level, we are more and more on our own. They see us; they just don’t have time to help and support us.
It’s too much for them.
The time squeeze can apply to others in our life who just don’t show up to help. They see us and all we do which can lead them to realize: “That responsibility will take too much from me.” Too much could be time, energy, money, heartache, patience and commitment.
Of course, the more the health care systems and family systems decide it’s just too much for them, we are left with more and more and more to do.
It’s too much for us, too.
We need to say, Enough.
It’s time for us to formalize support and help for family caregivers, the world’s largest health care company.
Join us for a conversation on Dec. 6 at 7 p.m. ET (6 p.m. CT, 4 p.m. PT) about how we join forces so that family caregivers have the support and help we deserve.