If someone you care about is struggling with their health and preparing to seek medical attention, naturally you will want to help. However, it is important to first step back and look at life from your loved one’s perspective. They will likely welcome your help, especially if they live on their own, but they will want to keep the process of receiving medical attention as simple as possible.
As a result, rushing in and trying to take control of the situation will cause confusion and even appear patronizing, even if you had the best of intentions. Instead, reach out to your loved ones in a relaxed and caring manner, asking them what they need help with.
Even if they don’t think they need help, it is worth considering the different challenges they need to overcome in order to receive the right medical attention, and whether you can assist them with it.
Here’s how to help a loved one receive medical attention:
Make life easier for them by helping to organize the best transportation
One of the most awkward elements of receiving medical attention is the journey between the house and the hospital. This is especially true if the medical attention needed is located in a facility across the other side of the country – or even on another continent.
If you know this to be the case, offer to help organize suitable transportation, such as air medical transport. This will take a great deal of stress off the shoulders of your loved one, and allow them to focus on recovering their health instead.
Learn more about the condition they are dealing with
If you want to help a loved one receive medical attention, you need to know more about the condition they are dealing with. The importance here is to be tactful. Health problems are extremely personal, so don’t bombard them with quick-fire questioning.
Instead, ask your friend or family member whether they would like to discuss their condition with you further. If they say yes, be as practical as possible. While it is important to offer sympathy, they will want helpful solutions, not pity.
Once you understand what they are dealing with, learn more about it in your own time and work out whether there is anything useful you can do to help them with it.
Keep them company throughout
If all else fails, make sure to show them love and support while they seek medical attention. Spending time in hospitals far away from home is a disconcerting prospect for anybody, so help keep their spirits up with regular visits (if allowed), and positive news from the outside world.
You could also offer to take care of jobs around the house in their absence. Perhaps their flowers need watering in the backyard, their car battery needs to be recharged or they are worried about their home’s security.
Popping around their house and sorting out the little details can take a weight off their mind and leave them feeling more relaxed, knowing their life back home is taken care of.