Setting Priorities and Solving Problems

In Orientation to Caregiving. A Handbook for Family Caregivers of Patients with Serious illnesses, the authors recommend that caregivers categorize problems and tasks based on both their urgency and their importance using a simple chart. Here is an example: As you’re prioritizing, it can be helpful to use the “do, delegate, defer, or drop” technique:
  • Do: What things are necessary for you to get done now?
  • Delegate: What tasks can you give or ask others to do?
  • Defer: What tasks can wait to get done?
  • Drop: What things can you forget about for now?