Gift ideas and almost killing the maintenance guy

To start out-it wasn't intentional! The head of maintenance at one of my facilities has been SO nice to put up with my constant questions about fixing things, and has been teaching me some basic electric, plumbing, and other concepts that elude me currently but that I want to learn to maintain my own apartment and eventually house. As if it isn't bad enough having me tag around after him at work asking question after question, today I almost killed him, and I wasn't even on shift!

He was on the roof checking for missing shingles, and I pulled up with one of my coworkers, a few of us had just gone to breakfast together for fun, and without even thinking, I saw him up there and honked. Probably wasn't my best idea ever, as he jumped about a foot down the roof. Luckily he caught his footing, but my heart didn't stop racing for quite a while! I won't do that again.

Anyways, today's post is in honor of a day approaching soon that I'm excited about: my birthday! :) In light of that fact, I was told to make a list of what I would like so my family could start shopping, and it got me thinking: what do you buy a CNA? and if you have a family member in a care center or rehabilitation, what is a good gift for them? Here are two lists, one for each scenario.

CNA list:

• Rain boots-These are fun because we shower people so much. If the aide doesn't wear either rain boots or only leather tennis shoes (absolutely NO mesh), they have soaked squishy feet for 8-16 hours. In case you were wondering, it's not as fun as it sounds. Rain boots are cute and add a little splash of fun to the scrubs.
• Retractable pens-A must have for every aide. I love the pens hospice companies provide, because they never die (I'm not just trying to be funny, they really don't)
• Scrubs (holiday or patterned)-My coworkers accuse me of dressing like I work in pediatrics instead of geriatrics b/c of the scrubs I wear. What fun are solid scrubs? Yawn! Holiday ones are fun b/c you look forward to wearing them all year! (Plus they go on bargain sales right after the holiday so you can get them for almost nothing)
• Fun medical products-I have seen many products that poke fun at the medical profession, and they are so cool. This is something I must have before I die. The picture is up above. Something like this-TOTALLY appropriate :)  

Patient list: 

• Mugs-A gigantic mug for drinking is a necessity, the facility or hospital usually provides one, but a fun and personalized one is preferred
• Back scratcher- They make claw like metal sticks that are great for scratching under casts or to those hard to reach places
• Decorations-Whether this is a card you make with your kids, or vinyl quotes to put on the wall, anything that will cheer up and keep your family member motivated and happy is sufficient
• Reacher- This is an approximate three foot long pole with a trigger on the handle and a claw at the end for picking up things off the floor, etc. SO helpful to patients, mobile or not, so they don't have to get up every time they need something a few feet away.
• Snacks- Who doesn't like em? Bring their favorite candy or drink and put it in their closet or fridge for those times that the dinner just isn't sounding that great. Ensure (also called Boost) is a great high protein/calorie drink that many of the elderly really enjoy and will provide the nutrients and energy a meal would.
• Pets-Both my facilities allow pets to visit. For the same reason they have service dogs, cats, etc. go through hospitals, your family member's pet will be a comfort and familiar thing that they love. Bring the pet in once or twice a week, a patient seeing their pet is such a boost to their energy and motivation that it will be worth the hassle.

Sorry this post was late, I chose politics over you guys last night (that isn't meant to be an insult), and as always, if you enjoyed this post, share the blog on Facebook or other sites, and don't honk at people on roofs! :)