senior home care
Easing stress in caring for an elderly relative: it’s a family affair
Feeling all alone and overwhelmed is not unusual for family members who care for an elderly loved one. Often the majority of care falls on one person’s shoulders—and frequently that person is the eldest daughter or the adult child who lives closest to parents. Not surprisingly, 31% of those caregivers feel they’d like more help. About 25% feel some resentment toward other family members who don’t assist with care.
So just how can family caregivers approach other family members, especially siblings, in a way that will get them the help we need? The following approaches are some possibilities:
- Be specific: Give everyone a responsibility, such as inviting your elderly parent to dinner once a week, driving her or him to a medical appointment once a month, or calling once a week.
- Divide and conquer: Break down tasks and assign them according to everyone’s talents and skills. For instance, one sibling might pay bills, while another might spend one Sunday a month cooking several meals to be frozen.
- Communicate and share: Keep your siblings, other extended family members, or family friends in the loop about concerns and needs. They can’t help if they don’t know what you need. You may wish to set aside a specific time to do this each week or month.
- Be open to other effective care options: If you don’t have siblings (or even if you do), think about joining a support group, turning to friends or members of your faith community, or considering a professional home caregiver for assistance.
Another important step in easing stress, of course, is simply recognizing it. Sometimes, we can get so involved in providing care and fulfilling our other responsibilities that we don’t realize just how stressed we are. The “Caregiver StressMeter” is a short, interactive quiz that will help you determine your stress level. Once you’ve done that, you can decide which of the hints above you need to get the support you need:
Careful planning and choices are important for seniors considering retirement communities
While many people still have the idea that seniors often move from their hometowns and head to a retirement community in a warm part of the country, most prefer to stay put in the homes they’ve known for years. Often some home care assistance allows them to do this. However, it’s true that some seniors may decide to move to a retirement community—nearby or farther afield—because of recreational opportunities, the option of leaving most home maintenance and chores to others, or lifetime security.
If you have loved ones who are thinking about moving to a community designed for seniors, you can help them evaluate their 
options.
- First, what does each retirement community offer? Is there a continuum of options, beginning with residences for independent living, through apartments equipped for people who need some assistance, to a nursing home for those needing constant professional care?
- How convenient is the location, not only for the senior resident, but for family and friends who want to visit?
- How does your relative feel about living in a community that’s restricted to people of his or her own generation? For some, this is a welcome opportunity for socializing with those who share similar life experiences. Other seniors might miss social interactions with children and people of various ages.
- What amenities and services are most important to your elderly relative, and are these available in the retirement community?
- What are the specific overall costs, any additional fees, and contractual obligations? Both your relative and you need to be familiar and comfortable with the financial and legal implications.
Sitting down together to list and discuss questions and concerns, visits to potential communities, and taking time to weigh all the options can help both you and your elderly relative make the right decision about which retirement community will be best for the years ahead.
Senior Care is personal to us. Request information about our home care services in Northern Colorado, OR call us at 970-494-0289.
What happens when senior caregivers become seniors themselves?
Any of us who are home caregivers for elderly relatives know how much planning and work is involved in meeting their needs. We also come to realize how helpful it would be for our own kids or other family members if we planned ahead for our senior years.
It’s true that this planning takes time and money, but it can make our later years much more secure and happy. Planning is also a lot easier when you can do it in advance, at your leisure, instead of when an urgent need arises.
The recently published Stages of Senior Care: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Making the Best Decisions (Paul and Lori Hogan, McGraw-Hill, 2009) provides some useful hints on organizing your future:
- Prioritize your needs beyond the essentials of housing and food. Is continuing education important to you, or annual vacations with family, or a property that allows you to garden?
- Ensure that your home is “elder-friendly” for the years to come. If you’re moving, for instance, keep in mind that you may not want to climb a lot of stairs in 15 years.
- Plan your estate and make sure your will is in order.
- Prepare an advance directive that details your wishes if you cannot make medical decisions yourself.
- Assign a power of attorney in case you are disabled by illness or an accident.
- Provide your family with instructions about your final wishes when you die.
- Research long-term care protection. A policy can help pay for professional nonmedical home care or other care needs.
Having plans in place for your own future will mean you have one less thing to worry about in your busy life. That can help decrease stress and increase everybody’s quality of life as you care for your own parents.
Senior Care is personal to us. Request information about our home care services in Northern Colorado, OR call us at 970-494-0289.
Help seniors stay independent and prevent frailty with physical, mental, and spiritual activity
If you asked your elderly parents what they feared most, they would likely say, “Losing my independence.” In fact, the Boomer Project, a recent national survey of 523 seniors and 1,279 adult caregivers, showed that 90% of seniors say a loss of independence is their greatest fear.
Frailty—a syndrome of weakness, fatigue, and declining physical activity—is one of the major contributors to seniors’ loss of independence. There are different causes of frailty for different people. A health crisis, like a heart attack or stroke, may be responsible. In other seniors, weight loss and falls may signal frailty.
Fortunately, there are ways family caregivers and professional nonmedical home care providers can help prevent or even reverse frailty in elderly loved ones. The first step is recognizing the signs that frailty may be an issue for older people:
- Has their interest level in activities and people changed?
- Are they less physically active and moving more slowly than usual?
- Has their appetite decreased? Do they show signs of losing weight, such as needing a smaller size in clothing?
- Do they have increased difficulty with balance? Are they unsteady on their feet?
Of course, if you notice any of these signs, it’s worth talking to your relative’s doctor so that any medical problems can be found and treated. Finding ways to help elderly people stay physically, mentally, and spiritually active is also valuable. Card and memory games, making changes in daily routines, gentle physical exercise, keeping a scrapbook of memories, and tending a garden all are ways to ward off frailty and maintain a sense of independence.
You can find an activity calendar and a booklet with other practical ways to help seniors stay active at http://www.getmommoving.com/activities-mind-body-soul/.
More information on the Boomer Project is available at http://www.boomerproject.com.
Senior Care is personal to us. Request information about our home care services in Northern Colorado, OR call us at 970-494-0289.
Medical home care can help seniors stay in the community
Think “medical care” for seniors, and you’re likely to think of the hospitals, rehabilitative services, and nursing homes available in Northern Colorado. But “medical home care” is also a possibility for many seniors.
Those of us who are family caregivers know very well that our elderly parents usually want to stay in their own homes and communities as they age. And many of them can do just that, with only nonmedical home care by family members or professionals. The challenge comes if they suffer a serious illness or medical event, such as a broken hip or a stroke.
Twenty years ago, such situations meant a senior was likely to need nursing home care. Nowadays, though, medical devices are more advanced and portable, and often medical care can be brought into the home. If you’re considering medical care for a senior living at home, here’s what you should know:
- When you’re looking for a medical caregiver, search for a “home health agency.” This means the provider has met federal requirements for care and is Medicare-certified.
- Home medical care agencies can help with equipment set-up and operation, supervise care, and provide visiting therapists, nurses, medical aides, and physicians.
- Consider both medical and professional nonmedical home care, as they can be complementary. Medical care involves such things as changing dressings, administering medication, and monitoring physical health. Nonmedical care includes companionship, help with errands, meal preparation, and light housework. For example, a senior with Alzheimer’s disease and medical needs, such as intravenous feedings or wound care, would also benefit from a professional nonmedical caregiver trained specifically in dementia care.
Senior Care is personal to us. Request information about our home care services in Northern Colorado, OR call us at 970-494-0289.
Community care centers give seniors social and intellectual stimulation
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Seniors living in their own homes or in a family caregiver’s home need opportunities for social contact, intellectual stimulation, and physical exercise. Professional non-medical home care is one option, as trained caregivers offer companionship, can play card and board games with a senior, and can accompany her or him on walks or during other activities. In addition, community care centers are available for day-time activities.
A range of care centers are available. In Northern Colorado, the Larimer County Office on Aging can give detailed information on community care centers near you: http://www.larimer.org/seniors/lcoa.htm.
In general, these are the types of care centers:
- Senior centers—for people over 55 who are in good health and can dine, exercise, take classes, learn new hobbies like pottery or painting, and go on outings with those of their own age.
- Adult-care centers (ACCs)—for seniors with age-related disabilities. Often these people are the ones who also have professional nonmedical home care, but may benefit from interacting with others. Health day care services at ACCs ensure seniors follow their prescribed therapies and take medications.
- Social day care—for seniors who are not independent enough for senior centers, but without serious handicaps.
There are also specific dementia day care services for people who have non-advanced Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia. These not only provide appropriate activities and care for the senior, but give family members a needed break from caregiving.
Senior Care is personal to us. Request information about our home care services in Northern Colorado, OR call us at 970-494-0289.
