In a recent article on khn.org, Judith Graham writes about CareMaps—an emerging asset for caregivers created by an organization called Atlas of Caregiving. As Judith describes, a CareMap is a "hand-drawn picture" depicting all individuals that a person cares for as well as the people closely connected with those individuals and the caregiver's own personal support system. Judith quotes Rajiv Mehta, the project’s founder, saying that one of the goals of CareMaps is to understand the “ecosystem of family caregiving, the relationships that surround caregivers and that shape their experiences.”
CareMaps have generated interest from social workers, psychologists, and other care management professionals and helped them to understand a caregivers experience in a different way; AARP is even testing CareMaps in six cities this year. How could a quick sketch of stick figures, shapes, and other symbols be such a valuable tool and have this kind of impact? Watch the video below to learn more about this intriguing new tool.
Learn how to draw and use your own CareMap at atlasofcaregiving.com/drawing-using-caremap/.