Chapter 2: Who’s on your team?

Creating your “circle of care”

I’ve been there
Sophie talks about each person is different and may not be able to provide direct care, but have their roles in supporting care at home. (3:22)Video transcript

It’s important to have a number of people or a “circle of care” who can help. Think about what you and the person who is ill may need. What can you realistically do? What will you need help with? Are there things that different members of your family and close friends can do to help? What is the person who is ill able to do for themself?

Below is a sample circle of care, which identifies who will help with tasks and when.

Circle of care

Create your own “circle of care”

Creating your “circle of care” is simple. Use the worksheets in the Helpful resources section below to help you:

  1. Identify what tasks need to be done

  2. Think about who can help with tasks, what tasks can they help with, and how often can they help

  3. Keep track of who will help and when

You can also use these worksheets to support you in asking for help. Often friends and family want to help but are not sure how. Having a specific list of tasks ready for when people ask what they can do be very useful.


Helpful resources