Plain definitions

Caregiving glossary

The words you meet when arranging home care, in plain English with the common Bahasa Malaysia term. Reviewed by M. Thurairaj, Registered Physiotherapist.

Activities of daily living (ADLs) Aktiviti kehidupan harian: The basic self-care tasks a person does every day: bathing, dressing, eating, using the toilet, and moving around. How much help these need shapes the whole care plan.
Adult diaper Lampin dewasa: An absorbent pad or pull-up worn by someone who cannot always reach the toilet in time. Changed promptly to keep skin dry and prevent sores and rashes.
Aspiration Aspirasi (tersedak): When food, drink or saliva goes down the airway instead of the stomach. It does not always look like obvious choking, so a wet-sounding voice or a small cough at every meal is worth reporting. The risk rises after a stroke, which is why food texture and unhurried feeding matter.
Bedridden Terlantar: Confined to bed and unable to get up without help. Needs regular turning, careful skin checks, and feeding and washing done at the bedside.
Blood pressure Tekanan darah: The force of blood against the vessel walls. Too high strains the heart over years; a drop on standing causes the dizziness behind many older adults' falls.
Care plan Pelan penjagaan: A simple written outline of what help a person needs each day, who does what, and which tasks belong to a nurse or doctor rather than a caregiver.
Caregiver Penjaga: A person who gives day-to-day, non-clinical support at home — help with washing, meals, mobility and company — so an older adult can stay safely in their own house.
Catheter Kateter: A thin tube that drains urine from the bladder into a bag when a person cannot pass it normally. Inserting and changing it is a trained nurse's task.
Commode Komod (kerusi tandas): A portable toilet chair placed beside the bed, so someone who cannot reach the bathroom in time avoids the dangerous night walk down a dark corridor.
Dehydration Dehidrasi: Not enough fluid in the body, which in older adults brings on confusion, dizziness and falls quickly. In our heat, gentle reminders to sip through the day matter.
Dementia Demensia (nyanyuk): A gradual decline in memory, thinking, and judgment that changes how a person copes day to day. Familiar routines and a calm home reduce the confusion and agitation.
Diabetes (blood sugar) Kencing manis (diabetes): A condition where blood sugar runs too high. It needs steady meals, medicine on time, and daily foot checks, since small wounds heal slowly and can turn serious.
Discharge planning Perancangan discaj: Sorting out what a patient needs before they leave hospital: medicines, follow-up dates, equipment, and who will help at home, so the return does not go wrong.
Fall risk Risiko jatuh: How likely a person is to fall, based on weak legs, poor balance, certain medicines, and hazards at home. One fall is the strongest sign another is coming.
Feeding tube (NG tube) Tiub makanan (tiub NG): A tube passing through the nose into the stomach to give food and medicine when swallowing is unsafe. A nurse manages it; a caregiver watches it stays in place.
Grab bar Palang pegangan: A rail screwed firmly into the wall beside a toilet or inside a shower to grip during a transfer. A suction rail holds towels, never a person's weight.
Hospital bed Katil hospital: An adjustable bed that raises the head, feet, or whole height with a handset, making it easier to sit someone up, feed them, or move them without straining backs.
Hospital sitter (bedside companion) Penemani pesakit: Someone who stays with a patient in the ward — watching for confusion, helping to the toilet, alerting nurses — when family cannot be there around the clock.
Incontinence Inkontinens: Loss of reliable control over passing urine or stool. Common with age and illness, managed with a toilet routine, adult diapers, and calm, matter-of-fact handling that protects dignity.
Live-in caregiver Penjaga menetap: A caregiver who stays in the home full-time, sleeping over, so support is on hand through the day and night. Suits families whose parent should not be left alone.
Medication management Pengurusan ubat: Keeping track of which pills are taken when, using a weekly box and reminders so nothing is doubled or missed. A caregiver prompts; the doctor sets the doses.
Mobility aid Alat bantu pergerakan: Any equipment that helps a person move safely — walking stick, frame, wheelchair. The right one is fitted to the person; the wrong height causes more falls than it prevents.
Nebuliser Nebuliser: A small machine that turns liquid medicine into a mist to breathe in, opening tight airways in asthma or lung disease. Used at home on the doctor's instructions.
Occupational therapy Terapi carakerja: Therapy that helps a person manage everyday tasks again — dressing, cooking, bathing — by retraining the skill or adapting the home with rails, seats, and simpler tools.
Overnight care Penjagaan waktu malam: Support through the night for someone who wakes confused, needs the toilet often, or is a fall risk after dark, letting the rest of the family sleep.
Oxygen concentrator Mesin oksigen (penumpu oksigen): A machine that pulls oxygen from room air for someone whose lungs cannot take in enough. The doctor sets the flow rate; the family keeps the tubing clear and safe.
Palliative care Penjagaan paliatif: Care that keeps someone with a serious illness comfortable — easing pain, breathlessness, and distress — rather than trying to cure. It can run for months, not only the final days.
Physiotherapy Fisioterapi: Treatment that rebuilds strength, balance, and movement through assessed, targeted exercise. It is clinical work: a physiotherapist tests the real problem and sets the plan, not a caregiver.
Post-hospital care Penjagaan selepas hospital: Help at home in the weeks after a hospital stay, when a person is weak and at highest risk of falls, missed medication, or landing back in the ward.
Pressure sore (bedsore) Luka tekanan (luka baring): A skin wound from lying or sitting in one position too long, common over the tailbone, heels and hips. Regular repositioning and clean, dry skin are the main defences; once one forms, treating it is a nurse's job.
Rehabilitation Pemulihan: The recovery work after a stroke, surgery, or long illness to regain as much independence as possible, combining therapy, practice, and steady daily support at home.
Repositioning (turning) Ubah posisi (pusing badan): Regularly shifting a bedridden person's position, often every two hours, so their skin is not crushed against the mattress in one spot long enough to break down.
Respite care Penjagaan rehat: Short-term cover so a family caregiver can rest, travel, or recover from their own illness. Someone steps in for a few hours, days, or a week, then hands back.
Stroke Strok (angin ahmar): Damage to the brain when its blood supply is blocked or bursts, often leaving one side weak and speech or swallowing affected. It is an emergency: call 999 at the first signs, because acting fast saves function.
Transfer Pemindahan: Moving a person between bed, chair, wheelchair, or toilet. Done wrong it injures both people, so good technique and sometimes a hoist or slide sheet matter here.
Vital signs Tanda vital: Basic body readings — temperature, pulse, breathing, blood pressure — that show how someone is doing. A sudden change is often the first warning to call the doctor.
Walking frame (walker) Rangka berjalan (walker): A four-legged metal frame gripped with both hands for support while walking. Set to the correct height it steadies; too tall or short and it becomes a hazard.
Walking stick Tongkat: A single cane for light support and balance on one side. Held in the hand opposite the weaker leg, which surprises most families the first time.
Wheelchair Kerusi roda: A wheeled chair for someone who cannot walk far. For home use, check it fits through your doorways and turns in a tiled bathroom before you buy.
Wound care Penjagaan luka: Cleaning and dressing a cut, surgical wound, or sore so it heals without infection. Changing a proper dressing is a nursing task, not daily caregiver work.

Using these terms in a care enquiry

Most of these words turn up in three places: a hospital discharge conversation, a quote, or the first meeting with a caregiver. Knowing them makes those conversations shorter and clearer.

The terms that most often cause confusion are the ones marking the line between daily support and clinical work — caregiver vs nurse sets that out with examples. If you are preparing for a discharge, the discharge checklist uses this vocabulary in context, and the care-hours planner turns the daily-living terms into an estimate of hours.

For deeper reading on any of these, see the articles or the FAQ. When you are ready to describe your situation, the contact page explains what to include.