Eleanor Gaccetta sheds light to misconceptions of caregiving through her book and her blog.

Eleanor Gaccetta is the author of the book One Caregiver’s Journey. In her memoir, Gaccetta recalls how she took care of her mother for nine and a half years. Gaccetta decided to become a full-time caregiver after her mother suffered a hip injury at age 93. Although not a medical practitioner or a license caregiver, Ellie took it upon herself to take care of her mother until her death at age 102. Her book One Caregiver’s Journey is a chronicle of the challenges, changes, and lessons she encountered during the years she spent as a family caregiver to her mom. Although not written from a medical worker’s perspective, One Caregivers Journey imparts lessons, inspirations, as well as exposes several misconceptions of caregiving. Aside from her book, Eleanor Gaccetta is also dedicating her time in sharing not only her experience in caregiving, but also his observations and realizations through her blog.

In the blog entry entitled The Misconceptions of Caregiving, readers will learn a great deal between how we perceive caregiving and the actual facts. In this article, there are 5 misconceptions listed and debunked. For example, we often think that nursing homes provide the best care. In this blog, the article explains that,

“One of the most common misconceptions of caregiving is the best care is provided in a skilled nursing environment, or nursing home.  That is not true.  Nursing homes are for-profit businesses.  Many nursing care facilities in our communities are old with outdated equipment and do not maintain sufficient staffing levels or have adequate financial resources to ensure residents receive proper skilled care.  Newer nursing care facilities charge upward from $9,000 monthly for a semi-private room taking them out of the reach of most people.  Newer facilities are also generally understaffed, and the care may not be optimal.  In other words, you don’t get what you’re paying for in a new facility.

As mentioned in my book, my cousin and I visited 40 facilities when looking for an assisted living facility for our aunt before finding the right one.  My sage advice is to let your nose and eyes be the judge.  If the facility smells or there are no smiles on the residents’ faces – leave.”  (excerpt from the blog)

While some may this out as a personal bias against nursing home, Gaccetta actually drives home the point. Aside from this valuable insight, Gaccetta also discuss other common misconceptions and long-held beliefs about caregiving. One long-held misconception is that most caregivers are women or that caregiving is a job for women. Gaccetta explains that while majority of caregivers are still women, the world is seeing a constant rise in numbers as far as male caregivers are concern. Other misconceptions featured in the blog include the actual primary role of caregivers, and the myth that caregivers actually hate their job of taking care of other people.

Eleanor Gaccetta’s blogs cover many topics mostly related to caregiving and family caregivers. Her blog section is filled with valuable insights that both professional caregivers and those personally taking care of a family member or a loved one. From tips about providing health care to advice on how caregivers must also take care of themselves. Gaccetta’s experience as a family caregiver for almost a decade is her most credible asset. Overall, Eleanor Gaccetta’s blog is as important as her memoir One Caregiver’s Journey. Together, they help inspire, educate, as well as remind both professional caregivers and family caregivers of the importance of their duty and sacrifice in caring for the sick and the elderly. We recommend both One Caregiver’s Journey and Eleanor Gaccetta’s blogs to be read by all caregivers.