Every year more than 730,000 people suffer a heart attack. This severe medical event can occur extremely quickly and leave a lasting negative impact on your parent’s health, wellbeing, and quality of life well into the future. This means that as a caregiver it is your responsibility to help your parent understand what they need to do in order to take care of themselves after they suffer a heart attack, and do what you can to help them comply with these guidelines so that they can live a lifestyle that is healthier and happier throughout their later years.

One of the most important things that you can do to encourage your parent to make the treatment and management decisions that are right for them is to make sure that they understand their treatment options. Use these tips to help your parent understand their options and make the decisions that are right for them:

• Talk to their doctor. In order for your parent to really understand the treatment options that are available to them, it is important that you, too, understand these options. Schedule a time to sit down with their doctor to talk about what your parent can do to take care of themselves after suffering from a heart attack. There are many different treatment options from medication to drugs, and it is important that you understand each of these and what they do so that you can help them to work with their doctor to make the decisions that are right for them.
• Empower them. It can be overwhelming to suffer a heart attack and your parent might feel vulnerable after suffering such a serious medical event. They might not think that they are equipped to make the decisions that they need to make in order to take care of themselves after suffering the heart attack. This can make the situation more stressful and leave them feeling even more like they are losing their grip on the life that they desire. Empower your parent to make these decisions by encouraging them. Tell them that they are still capable of handling this and that you know that they will make the decision that is right for them. Reassure them that you are there for them, but also encourage them to do what they know is right for their situation.
• Ask questions. Many elderly adults are uncomfortable questioning a doctor at all. They have a tremendous amount of respect for doctors and feel that since the doctor knows what they are talking about, they have no place questioning what they have to say or asking questions. This, however, could result in them not understanding their health situation or the decisions that they need to make. Be willing to ask questions for them. If you know that your parent is confused or is not comfortable with something that the doctor has said or done, step forward and ask questions for them so that they can have all of the information that they need.

Sources:

http://www.heart.org/HEARTORG/Conditions/HeartAttack/PreventionTreatmentofHeartAttack/Treatment-of-a-Heart-Attack_UCM_002042_Article.jsp#.V5N3y7grLIU

http://www.cdc.gov/heartdisease/facts.htm