Organising your practice to support carers course for GPs

Carers experience health, social and financial problems as a result of their role. They are more likely to have seen their GP recently than any other support professional, and so it is vital for GPs within primary care teams to know how to identify and support carers in order to maintain the health of the carer, and to preserve the caregiving situation. This session was reviewed by Chantal Simon and last updated on 06/06/13.

Learning Objectives

By the end of this session you will be able to:

• Describe methods of coordinating the practice team to support carers
• Identify and educate a Carers Lead
• Describe ways to provide in-practice support
• Describe ways of providing information to carers
• Liaise with carers centres and other community services
• Describe how to refer carers to create an emergency plan

Carers are more likely to have seen their GP recently than any other support professional. It is vital for GPs within primary care teams to know how to identify and support carers in order to involve them in patient care and maintain the health of the carer, thus preserving the caregiving situation.