Expert Advice for CAR T-Cell Therapy Care Partners
Expert Advice for CAR T-Cell Therapy Care Partners from Patient Empowerment Network on Vimeo.
How can care partners prepare to care for someone undergoing CAR T-cell therapy? Social worker Marc Paloma shares advice to prepare oneself for the process and encourages care partners to manage expectations with friends and family. Marc Paloma is an outpatient hematology/oncology clinic social worker at University of Chicago Medicine.
See More from The Care Partner Toolkit: CAR T-Cell Therapy
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Transcript:
Katherine Banwell:
Marc, what are three key pieces of advice you have for care partners who are preparing to care for someone going through CAR T-cell therapy?
Marc Paloma:
So, I sometimes use the analogy with them that for patients as well, but also for the care partners going through CAR T is almost like preparing or going through a marathon or doing marathon training. So, for the CAR T partners, I always – to the CAR T care partners, I always say as much as you can be in the best physical and mental shape as you can be going into the process because there obviously will be a lot asked of you as the care partner. I also remind the care partners remember that you are not a perfect person and there are going to be times where you maybe will make mistakes or maybe not do the best that you think you could have been or you could have done. And just to forgive yourself if needed.
And also the last thing is to acknowledge even out loud to family members to the patient that while you’re being the care partner for that you are also going through a process as well, a parallel process to something that the patient is going through. And that’s something that can create its own anxieties and insecurities for the care partner. So…
Katherine Banwell:
Yeah.
Marc Paloma:
…those are the three important things I would say.
And lastly, be patient with the process as the patient goes through the recovery and the healing process. There are many days where if you’re going forward, things are going well and it can feel like three steps forward and then maybe one step backwards.
So, just be as patient as you can with that healing process and as the care provider, you and the patient will get through it. It just sometimes takes time to go through that process.
