CAREGIVERS in Shenzhen should register their personal information with medical institutions before providing nursing services to patients, according to the caregiver management rules issued by the city’s health and family planning commission, the Daily Sunshine reported Tuesday.

Caregivers are those hired by a patient or a patient’s family members or those who volunteer to take care of the patient at a medical institution.

According to the new rules that took effect yesterday, caregivers should register their personal information, such as their name, ID card, phone number, address and their relation to the patient, with medical institutions.

“The registration of caregivers’ personal information is a way to improve the management of caregivers and protect the patients’ interests,” said Ding Xiaorong, vice president of Shenzhen Nursing Association.

According to Ding, the quality of caregivers varies greatly, as some caregivers don’t take their work seriously and even take advantage of patients. For example, some caregivers drank the soup made by the patients’ family members before giving the soup to the patients.

According to the rules, caregivers are not allowed to change the speed of a patient’s intravenous drip. Many people believe that a slower intravenous drip is good for the patients, but Ding said this is a misunderstanding. “For instance, a 250-milliliter bottle of mannitol should be given to the patient within 30 minutes. If the intravenous drip is too slow, it will affect the treatment,” Ding said.

The rules also stipulate that caregivers should tell a doctor or nurse when something bad happens to their patient and they should protect their patient’s privacy. Those who are diagnosed with schizophrenia, infectious diseases or skin diseases may not work as caregivers.

(Zhang Yang)