Disputes are bound to happen when siblings are taking care of a parent together. There is no way around that. However, there are positive ways of handling these sibling disputes, instead of arguing about them or resenting each other for them. Everyone must learn to work together and support each other.
Divide the Duties
If you keep having sibling disputes over the same things, it is time to have a meeting together. You should spend the time dividing the duties. This way everyone has their own responsibilities to take care of. Someone might be better at taking care of the finances, so that person can be in charge of bills and handling the money. Someone else might be better at taking care of household errands, so they can go grocery shopping and such. Divide the duties, so everyone does their share of the work.
Hire Caregivers to Help
If part of the disputes involves not having enough time to take care of your aging or disabled parent, it might be best to hire some caregivers to help. The caregivers can be there to help care for your parent and allow you the time off you need to take care of other things.
Communicate
Communication is very important when siblings are taking care of an elderly or disabled parent together. You want to make sure everyone is on the same page with all aspects of the parent’s care. This can take some time, but having regular meetings can help to improve the communication between you and your siblings. You can set up times to have these regular meetings so that nothing slips by. If there are any issues they can be brought up at the meeting. Once a week or twice a month might be sufficient. This depends on how many disputes you and your siblings are having.
Funding the Care
One of the most common types of sibling disputes when it comes to caring for a parent is financing their care. Not every sibling may agree on what to spend for their parent’s care. This is why one sibling should have the ultimate say over finances while taking input from the other siblings. It is also why there should be regular meetings to assure that everything is handled properly.
These are some of the best ways of handling sibling disputes when caring for an elderly or disabled parent. If you are having a difficult time figuring out these disputes you and your siblings are having, it may be best to just let professional caregivers take over in the care for your parent. Remember, your parent’s overall physical and emotional health is what is most important in their care. Keep that in mind whenever a dispute comes up.
If you or an aging loved-one are considering hiring a Home Health Care in Medford, NJ, please contact the caring staff at Attentive Care Inc. 1-800-493-5660
Sources
https://www.pbs.org