Guardianship vs. conservatorship.
Guardianship and conservatorship are court arrangements that give someone authority over a person who can no longer decide for themselves, generally over personal and medical matters versus finances.
When a parent loses the ability to make decisions and has no power of attorney in place, the family may have to go to court. A judge can appoint someone to decide on the parent's behalf. In many states a guardian handles personal and medical choices, while a conservator handles money and property, though the terms and split vary by state.
This is the path families end up on when planning did not happen in time. It is public, can be slow and costly, and hands a court ongoing oversight of your parent's affairs.
It is almost always harder than the alternative. A durable power of attorney and a healthcare proxy, set up while your parent still has capacity, usually make guardianship unnecessary.
Where Kinbase fits
Terms like this one show up in real weeks, in a discharge folder or a doctor’s offhand remark. Kinbase gives your family one place to keep what you learn about your parent’s care, so the next person helping is not starting from scratch.
Start your family’s record.
Name the book, invite the people who help, and the record starts keeping itself. Most families are set up inside ten minutes.
Free for families to start. Everyone you invite joins from a link or by scanning a code, and nobody has to install anything to read or write.