Any person involved in the treatment or rehabilitation of a patient; includes the psychiatrist and other members of the traditional treatment team as well as community workers and other nonprofessionals.
Someone responsible for a child’s health and welfare, and for meeting the child’s basic physical and psychological needs. Caretakers include those who have full-time legal responsibility for the child, such as parents or a guardian; others in the home, such as siblings or co-parents; and others who have shorter-term care of the child, such as babysitters or child-care workers. More widely, the terms caregiver and caretaker refer to anyone who meets the physical, emotional, and social needs of others, especially dependent people, such as severely disabled adults.
An individual who provides care for a disabled or ill friend or relative.
One who provides care to a dependent or partially dependent patient. In an acute care setting, the caregiver is most often a professional; however, in the home care situation, this person is often a family member. Care of caregivers is a focus of nurses, social workers, and other health care providers who manage chronically ill patients. Generally, caregivers need emotional support and comfort owing to the extreme stress of their lives.