Helping Dementia Family Caregivers Make Confident Medical Decisions.
Have you have been named medical Power of Attorney (POA), Health Care Proxy, surrogate, or legal guardian/conservator for your person living with dementia?
Whether or not you were named “medical decision maker” legally in a document,
if you find yourself in this role, alone or with other family members, you are in the right place.
You have an important and tough job.
Let me help you prepare for what is to come, create a medical decision plan, and be able to act with confidence when it comes to the medical side of things.
Hi, I’m Dr. Brittany Lamb, emergency medicine physician. I see people like you every day at work. People wanting to do the right thing by their family member stressed and looking for information, strategies, and resources.
I’m here to help!
In medicine we have a saying,
"You don't know, what you don't know."
Let's uncover what you need to understand before making medical decisions on behalf of your person.
Avoiding crisis decisions is what we are working towards.
A plan is how you get there.
A few of the topics I help caregivers with;
Advance Directives & Medical Order Forms.
How to interpret these documents, which can you use and when.
- DNR (Do-Not-Resuscitate)
- POLST (Physician Orders for Life Sustaining Treatment)
- medical POA (Power of Attorney)
- Living Will
Planning for Medical Emergencies.
Medical emergencies are a when not if, situation for a person living with dementia. Have a plan for how you will act as things change. The medical complications of dementia, aging, and chronic diseases (ie. CHF (congestive heart failure), atrial fibrillation) are known.
How to talk to your family.
Perhaps your loved one doesn’t want to weigh in or can’t anymore. Learn ways to approach talking to them and other family members about the future. Have the hard talk now to avoid a worse conversation later.
Determining goals of care.
Nurses and doctors will ask you, “What do you want done?” We pin down what is important to your loved one (even if they won’t or can’t tell you now) so we can answer this as things change.
How to communicate with your person's care team.
Health care is getting more fast-paced and fragmented every day. Providers helping you make medical decisions have less and less time for meaningful conversation. I teach you how to make those minutes count.
How you see yourself in this role.
Let’s face it, if you don’t believe you can do this, you will struggle. Becoming informed is the key to making confident medical decisions. I teach you what you need to know quickly and in plain language.
Medications.
Are there medications the medical team may be ok with stopping? We discuss common medication issues that come up as we age. Which meds can help with the symptoms/behaviors of dementia and what do you need to know to advocate for your person.
Create a plan for how you will make medical decisions for your person.
Each person with dementia has a unique set of symptoms, but the diseases that cause dementia lead to the same result. I teach you what is likely to happen as your person’s disease worsens so we can figure out how you will act when it does.
About Me
Hi!
I'm Brittany Lamb, an emergency medicine physician, educator & advocate for dementia family caregivers.
When your person with dementia is no longer able to make their own medical decisions, it will fall to you.
Good news is the medical issues that come up with dementia, chronic illnesses, and those we commonly develop (simply by aging) are predictable.
Problem is, most caregivers I work with in the ER have not been educated about this reality or the choices they have in how things are treated.
Simply put, they do not have a plan.
I could talk for hours about why it is not wise to wait until something happens to decide how you will make decisions for your person with dementia.
I see caregivers overwhelmed, paralyzed by fear and guilt.
In the chaotic and hectic moments in the ER they are often unable to make decisions confidently.
I know you are capable of making the best decision for your person when armed with the knowledge you need to do so.
I will help you take back control and create a plan for how you will act when you are called upon to do so.
Stop spending your time worrying about what is to come. Instead, become educated and informed.
Create a plan for how you will make future medical decisions so you can focus on spending quality time with your loved one and take better care of yourself.
What People Are Saying...
