Welcome to our blog series on the best apps for caregivers. We’ve got a lot of ground to cover, so let’s get started!
The Best Apps For Caregivers
As a caregiver, you understand the importance of keeping your loved ones safe and happy. You also know that life with a senior can be challenging, especially when it comes to keeping them healthy and happy. That’s why we’re here—to help you find the best apps for caregivers who want to keep their loved ones safe, happy, and healthy.
How To Choose The Right App For Your Loved One
When choosing an app for your loved one, there are a few things you should keep in mind before selecting one. First, think about how much time your loved one will be using the app. Does he or she have access to technology that can support using an app? If not, is there an alternative way for them to use the app? For instance, if they don’t have access to technology but can still use other types of media such as television or books then maybe those would be better options than apps that require more specific hardware like smartphones or tablets (unless they already have those things).
Next thing is whether or not they need assistance from others while
Best Apps For Caregivers
As of February 2021, 85 percent of U.S. adults owned a smartphone, so you probably know what apps are — but did you know they can actually help to make caregiving more manageable? A smartphone is like having a mini-computer with you at all times — and the best caregiving apps help manage the many aspects of care that barrage and overwhelm most caregivers on any given day. Caregiving apps can help you maintain and update important information, get appointment and medication reminders, keep a log of activities, coordinate various caregivers, jot down notes from doctors or other care providers, and stay in touch with and pass on updates and photos to family and friends.
The number of apps being developed for smartphones is always growing, and this is no less true for apps that support caregivers. Given the many responsibilities and pressures that come with caregiving, these apps can be a welcome addition to caregivers’ daily lives.
We’ve compiled a list of some of the most impressive and helpful apps for managing a loved one’s care. Disease-specific apps (for those with a loved one who has Alzheimer’s, cancer, heart disease, or diabetes, for example) are also available. You may find that a single app doesn’t offer everything you need, so be sure to try a few. Most are free, or quite reasonably priced, and they can help make your caregiving life much easier.
Overview of The Best Apps for Caregivers
CaringBridge
CaringBridge is just that — a bridge that allows you and your loved ones to stay in touch. It’s a perfect app for a family that rallies around a loved one in need of care, and for those who are facing surgeries, rehabilitation, and procedures that go along with conditions such as cancer, heart disease, or diabetes. The app offers a space for multiple caregivers and family members to share pertinent information, such as updates, encouragement, and arranging care. There’s a guest book offering a place for journal entries, medical updates, photos, stories, and tributes.
This is a wonderful addition to caregiver apps and unique in that it creates a place for more than managing a loved one’s care — you can uplift, stay in the loop and help each other through a difficult time.
What’s Great About CaringBridge:
CaringBridge specializes in keeping loved ones connected. By focusing on this important goal, the app’s designers have created a product that not only passes along information but is also a holding place for good thoughts, encouragement, and photos as well as medical and caregiving updates. These features make CaringBridge a uniquely thoughtful and comprehensive tool.
The sensitive nature of this information would make anyone nervous about sharing it digitally. Fortunately, CaringBridge has taken measures to secure users’ information, leaving users stress-free when communicating about their loved ones’ needs. These features make CaringBridge a uniquely thoughtful and comprehensive tool.
Get the app:
iPhone/iPad (free)
Android (free)
Lotsa Helping Hands
Lotsa Helping Hands is a caregiving app that helps you create a community of care around your loved one. You can invite family, friends, volunteers, and care aides to join and then manage everything from sitters and errands to appointments and family gatherings using an interactive calendar.
There’s also a section of the app called “Helping Hands,” which serves as a message board and a well-wishes wall where caregivers, family, and friends can leave messages of encouragement for the person receiving care or for someone else in the care circle. This app lets you choose a coordinator and a community member page where you can update contact information, birthdates, and list the best times to call. These features make Lotsa Helping Hands a good resource for creating a vibrant care community.
What’s Great About Lotsa Helping Hands:
Lotsa Helping Hands has much to offer caregivers and their loved ones. The webpage offers real support, stories from other caregivers, a newsletter, and additional features that complement the app.
Get the app:
iPhone/iPad (free)
Android (free)
Caring Village
The Caring Village app is designed specifically for family caregivers to help them easily coordinate and keep track of their loved one’s care.
Caring Village CEO and Co-founder Mike Behrman says he was inspired to launch the app after he and his wife became caregivers for his mother-in-law, who has dementia. “We realized that the most important thing we needed to do was communicate effectively with other family members, her care professionals and neighbors,” he said in a news release.
The app is meant to enable family caregivers to do just that via a secure messaging system where users can create “villages” among friends and relatives to help coordinate the specifics of a loved one’s care. Caring Village users can create customizable care plans for their loved ones plus personalized to-do lists. The app’s features also include a centralized calendar, document storage, a place to list medications, and a wellness journal that allows you to share entries with the rest of your “village.”
What’s Great About Caring Village:
Reviewers say the app is easy to use and gives them peace of mind about staying on top of their loved one’s care plan. As AARP’s Anne Marie Kilgallon was quoted as saying in a Tech Crunch article earlier this year, “[Caring Village is] all about the connection between family, care givers and care recipients.”
Get the app:
iPhone/iPad (free)
Android (free)
First Aid: American Red Cross
The unfortunate reality of caring for someone is that an accident can happen at any time. No matter how cautious you are, normal challenges that come with aging like reduced mobility and balance can lead to accidents and injuries. When these things do occur, you need to address the issue quickly and you don’t want to rely on intuition alone. This is when the First Aid: American Red Cross app can be an essential tool in caring for your loved one.
This app offers its users professional advice, helpful videos, step-by-step instructions, and integrated 9-1-1 calling.
What’s Great About First Aid: American Red Cross:
First Aid: American Red Cross is not only rich in information, but all that information is available offline. If you are in the woods without signal or have your phone in airplane mode during your flight, the tools you need are still readily available. This can be life saving in an emergency situation where there’s no one nearby to help.
Get the App:
iPhone/iPad (free)
Android (free)
eCare21
eCare21 provides round-the-clock patient monitoring through wireless and wearable devices such as a smartwatch or FitBit. You can track the wearer’s glucose, heart rate, activity, medication, weight, calorie intake, and sleep. You, your loved one, other family members, and doctors can access this useful information no matter where they live or work.
eCare will be most helpful for caregivers as they manage their loved one’s schedules and meet their health needs, but it may take several apps or websites to tackle more complex caregiving challenges such as pain management, medication interaction, financial and end-of-life issues.
What’s Great About eCare21:
eCare21’s latest technology allows you to monitor your loved one’s care needs without being intrusive. It’s ideal for a working or long-distance caregiver and by providing vital health data, which means better and quicker response. Forbes offered a favorable review of eCare21 stating, “The patients’ doctors, loved ones and caregivers can keep an eye on them and provide proactive care, even from hundreds of miles away.”
Get the app:
iPhone/iPad (free)
Android (free)
Medisafe
Any caregiver knows the frustrations and concerns involved in medication management. You have to remember when the medication should be taken, whether or not to take it with food, avoiding double dosage, any side effects to watch out for, and make sure to track the medication for benefits or drawbacks. Medisafe Meds & Pill Reminder can help alleviate some of these concerns with reminders, helpful and practical information, and connecting caregivers, seniors, and the medical community together to provide cohesive care.
While some users noted frustrations with loading several medications at various time intervals, it should also be noted that MediSafe receives high marks for customer support. Each online review concern is addressed by the app’s support team.
What’s Great About Medisafe:
Medisafe is unique in that it’s not only a medication reminder but also educates people about their condition and the medicines they’re taking. Medisafe can help to remind, track progress, and will even find coupons and other incentives. Medisafe is designed for users of any age, for caregivers involved in medication monitoring, and is also beneficial for physicians who want to connect with their patients through the Medisafe app. Medisafe has been featured on CNBC and in Reader’s Digest.
apps to find caregivers
10 daily apps to help caregivers take care of their loved ones
These apps can help alleviate some of the stress that comes with caregiving.
By Katie Dupere on September 25, 2016
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10 daily apps to help caregivers take care of their loved ones
Credit: Vicky Leta/Mashable
Being a caregiver for a family member can be as taxing as it is rewarding, and the role often goes underappreciated. While a support network of family and friends is crucial, apps can help alleviate some of the stresses that come with caregiving.
SEE ALSO: 13 apps that support and empower the autistic community
From helping to keep track of appointments to assisting in health emergencies, apps are tackling all areas of caregiving. Here are 10 notable apps that can help support caregivers every day.
- AARP Caregiving
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Credit: AARP Caregiving/Itunes
This app comes from one of the most notable names in elderly care. AARP Caregiving is an app that empowers caregivers with information on how to effectively care for an aging loved one.
The app allows users to monitor symptoms, coordinate care with other family or caregivers, and keep track of appointments and medications. It also features a help center, where caregivers can find answers to urgent or commonly asked questions.
AARP Caregiving is available for free on iPhone and Android.
- CareZone
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Credit: CareZone/Itunes
Dubbed a “health info organizer,” CareZone helps caregivers keep track of medical information by organizing medication, allergies, insurance cards and ID cards all in one place.
Through the app, caregivers can also create to-do lists to keep track of appointments and medication times. The app also curates news relevant to your loved one’s illness, disability or condition. All features are private and secure, according to the company, meaning sensitive information stays private.
CareZone is available for free on iPhone or Android.
- Alzheimer’s Caregiver Buddy
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Credit: Alzheimer’s Caregiver Buddy/Google Play
The Alzheimer’s Association, a leader in action and awareness around the disease, developed this “caregiver buddy” app to help caregivers manage their personal stress, navigate family conflict and reach a 24/7 helpline.
The app includes features like daily care tips for tasks related to hygiene and meal times, and fun activities that will stimulate the body and mind of someone living with dementia. It also covers how to cope with new and sometimes overwhelming behaviors, like aggression or hallucination.
Alzheimer’s Caregiver Buddy is available for free on iPhone or Android.
- Care.com
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Credit: Care.Com App/ITunes
Need a helping hand? Care.com’s app helps you find temporary, qualified care for your loved ones — including caregivers specializing in the needs of people with disabilities and aging populations — with just a few taps of your finger.
Users of the app can search resumes and applications of local professional caregivers to find the right fit for their families. Primary caregivers can even book interviews and facilitate payment through the app, making hiring a professional easy when needed.
Care.com’s app is available for free on iPhone or Android.
- Elder 411
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Credit: Elder 411/ITunes
Elder 411, developed by award-winning geriatric doctor Marion Somers, has practical information for caregivers all in one place.
From safety in the home to communication tips, this app makes caregiving easier to navigate by starting with the basics. It even includes tips on how to manage stress as a caregiver.
Elder 411 is available for $.99 on iPhone.
- First Aid by American Red Cross
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Credit: First Aid By American ReD Cross/Itunes
With so much to remember as a caregiver, it’s helpful to have reminders of the basics — and that includes first aid and CPR. The First Aid app from the American Red Cross provides users with clear and concise first aid and CPR instructions to help in the event of an emergency.
The app also helps users identify health concerns by decoding symptoms, which is especially useful for people who are displaying physical symptoms but can’t verbally describe what they are experiencing.
First Aid by American Red Cross is available for free on iPhone or Android.
- iPharmacy Pro
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Credit: IPharmacy/Itunes
People living with health challenges are sometimes prescribed numerous medications to help ease and manage symptoms. But keeping track of everything that comes with that can get difficult.
iPharmacy Pro helps caregivers easily identify medications, check for any potential drug interactions, and track prescriptions.
The app is available for $.99 on iPhone and Android.
- CaringBridge
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Credit: CaringBridge/Itunes
Communication is critical when dividing caregiving duties among multiple people — and that’s where CaringBridge can help. CaringBridge connects several caregivers through one app, allowing several people to keep track of appointments, changes in health and other essential information.
Users can also send each other inspiring messages and motivation through the app, which really helps pull together a team of caregivers in the toughest moments.
CaringBridge is available for free on iPhone or Android.
- Symple
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Credit: Symple/Itunes
Symple is an easy way to keep track of your loved one’s symptoms like anxiety, fatigue and pain over long periods of time. The app allows you to track up to 10 individual symptoms, recording how your loved one feels and documenting any possible contributing factors to mood or health shifts.
Symple features an interactive graph and spreadsheet that a caregiver can use independently, or send to a doctor for evaluation. Users say the app is simple to use, making it easy to remember sometimes vital health information in between office visits.
The app is available for free on iPhone.
- Pacifica
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Credit: Pacifica/ITunes
Pacifica may not help with the routine tasks of a caregiver, but it does help them with something essential: self-care. Caregivers have to navigate a lot of responsibility, which studies say sometimes leads to and increased risk of depression, stress and other health impacts.
To best care for someone else, caregivers need to take care of themselves. Pacifica is a mindfulness app that aids in relief of anxiety, depression and stress. Users can track their moods and health, while also keeping track of moments during the day that trigger mood shifts. The app has in-app exercises, too, which help reduce stress and anxiety.
Pacifica is available for free on iPhone or Android, with extra features available for a monthly or yearly subscription.
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