Safety Concerns and Assessment for the Elderly

The deterioration in health is not the only factor that you need to worry about when it comes to assort serious care measures and monitoring the elderly members at home. The physical aspects change largely with passing time as people cross their 50s. The limitations to lead an independent life and manage things on their own may not be possible for them as they start ageing. Following are some factors urging the need to consider the elderly safety assessment at home and outside seriously to avoid fatal risks.

Lower Perception Level and Adjustment

Difficulty in vision, depth perceptibility, problems with color, brightness, and contrasts are evident. Lack of acute vision and belated adjustments to the various light conditions poses a high risk while on the roads as well as at home. Falling, slipping, and other injuries due to accidents can be a crucial matter during this phase of life. If the elderly relatives are troubled with eyesight and adaptability problems, it is necessary to take some tests and advices of the specialists, if it is safe for them to travel or stay at home alone. If the eyesight has been affected, then the caregivers need to follow safety precautions for elderly at home to eliminate the chances of any mishap.

Abridged Sensing

With ageing the senses to touch, heat, pain, pressure, cold is reduced considerably. The severe chances of encountering injuries due to cuts, hitting hard objects, burns and others increase manifold with less intensity to experience pain the in the region. This urges the need to organize some elderly safety measures at home. The difficulty in implementing the olfactory senses prevents them from identifying stale food, smell of gases, including LPG leakage, etc. This raises concerns of fire breakout, dense smoke intoxication due to inhaling suffocating gases and other issues. Hearing impairment is common, causing deviation from responding to the doorbells, fire alarms, telephone ringing and others.

Decreased Bone Mineral and Density

With gradual ageing, the density of the bones is reduced largely, especially in women. The rapid loss of calcium from the bones makes them more brittle and prone to breaking and fractures during old age. The ability to balance the body while walking is also lowered that can result in falling, slips, accidents while moving through the stairs etc. Sometimes, these physical conditions are induced by certain medication and strong doses. If the difficulty persists, then elderly care and monitoring is important during mobilization.

The early stage detection of minor occurrences calls for considering the safety issues for seniors at home. The assessment and medical examination will help to determine the level of dependence of the seniors on others. In the case of past incidents of falling and doctor’s advice, special care has to be taken when taking the elderly to the washroom, walking and other physical activities. It can be very risky to leave these elderly members at home all alone. There should be at least one member or a caregiver to look after the needs of the person to prevent any dangerous incident and give food and medicines on time. 

Balancing Elderly Care Issues and Professional Life

  

                                       Image courtesy of Photostock at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

The professional career management, maintaining a balance with the family life and caring for the elderly at home can be a tough job. While the sentiments for your parents and grandparents are your topmost priority, yet, offering the level of caring and emotional support required can be difficult at times. You have several responsibilities, including completion of the projects on time, looking after children, a social life and much more.

Maintaining equilibrium with life, career and senior care issues is an intense challenge at the time when the women are involved in major professional functionalities. At this point, you are compelled to explore the various alternatives to extend caring for the elderly at home. While it is largely desirable that the family members spend some quality time with the seniors, the assisted care services at home is a suitable option to stay tension free while you are not around. The elders need your love and support while at home. The care provider can handle the daily responsibilities finely to ensure a healthy life for them. The members of the house can utilize their spare time to interact with the elders to keep them happy.

As per the survey by Metlife, the impact of care giving by working family members in the US resulted in average financial losses of $303,880. This has affected the finances, including retirement funds of over 10 million regular employees in their 50s. Experiences reveal that care giving at home results in greater stress, fatigue, less attendance, lack of concentration and poor performance in their professional life.

Managing medical treatment and other amenities for the seniors urge the need to accumulate extra money. Under such circumstances, people generally struggle hard to work more to fulfill these requirements. Isolating the seniors at home is often not desired. This can be even more risky, especially if they are going through some medical complications and are unable to manage the regular activities on their own. Hence, making a choice with assisted living care services facilitate to maintain steadiness and ensure maximum financial security for the entire family.

The parents and grandparents want your company. When you are at home after a tiring schedule, it may not be possible for you to take care of them. The elderly care benefits Canada will reduce your worries and help to be more relaxed as you share some precious moments with them. 

How important is Oral Health Check Up and caring for the Elderly

                                            Image courtesy of Arztsamui at FreeDigitalPhotos.net 

Dental care and oral hygiene are very important for older adults. The oral complications can increase with ageing, especially after reaching the age of 50 years. This includes periodontal disease, loss of teeth, plaque and large cavity formation, enamel decaying etc. Often the diseases in the mouth can trigger serious health concerns, including pneumonia (caused by bacterial droplets in the mouth that reach the lungs over the time), diabetes (caused by the emergence of periodontitis that affect the capability of the organs to utilize the insulin to prevent excessive sugar absorption in the blood), etc. 

Dental Problems in the Older Adults

Already mentioned above, the elderly can develop several problems in the gums, teeth roots, enamel layers and other parts of the mouth. The following are some specific common oral health problems evident in seniors. 

• The thinning of the outer glossy enamel layer may allow the appearance of the yellowish dentin tissue.
• The prolonged use of artificial dentures may result in the loss of sense of taste, and sensory actions.
• Lack of proper dental caring may cause receding of the gum tissue from the tooth enamel. This leads to the action of acid decaying on the roots of the exposed tooth.
• The emergence of gum diseases can result in the loss of tooth.
• Improper denture fitting can cause the fungus attack such as Candida and others into the gum tissues situated underneath.
• Extreme dryness can occur in the mouth due to the use of certain medicines. 

The professionals need to consider these problems in older adults and take care of the oral hygiene of the patients, especially those who are under treatment and dependence on the caregivers. The caregiver should be proficient in offering the elderly dental care services to prevent the occurrence of any sort of oral problem.

Dental Caring for Seniors

Some basic dental caring practices can help to gain fine oral health and freshness of breath even during the old age. Following are some important tips on oral care for elderly to maintain a healthy living. 

• Brush the teeth everyday in the morning and bedtime. Use a fluoride based toothpaste for proper cleaning and sensation. Use an electric toothbrush if suggested by the dentist.
• To remove plaque and prevent any future formation, conduct flossing once every day.
• Visit a dentist at regular intervals for detailed oral checkup, cleaning and treatment.
• Use a mouthwash with antibacterial ingredients to reduce germ attack on the gum tissues.
• Avoid smoking to prevent gum diseases, teeth yellowing and enamel decay and tooth loss.
• Remove the dentures at the night. Keep the dentures out of your mouth for at least 4 to 5 hours daily. Clean the dentures every day. 

When contacting the care-giving agencies, it is necessary to ensure that the caregivers are trained and efficient in catering to the elderly dental care needs. The regular diet must be rich in vitamins D and essential minerals, preferably vegetarian base to maintain strong and problem free oral health.

Caring and Treatment for Elderly with Parkinson’s Disease

                                Image courtesy of Vichaya Kiatying-Angsulee at FreeDigitalPhotos.net

Parkinson’s disease is one of the most vividly found neurological disorders in the elderly. The disease largely affects the brain due to the lack of dopamine chemical production ability of the nerve cells. Dopamine plays an important role in sending signals from the brain to different parts of the nervous system. The disorder is generally evident in people over the age of 50 years. The inadequate functioning of the nervous system results in tremors or shaking while walking, eating, talking etc. Initially, the minor problems are evident, but with passing time, the acute symptoms may pose difficulties in leading a normal and independent life.

Parkinson’s disease Treatment for the Elderly

Permanent cure and effective treatment to get rid of the Parkinson’s disease symptoms is not available. The treatment methodologies are therefore directed to reduce the complications and bestow an improved lifestyle. Some important medicines, including Amantadine drug act as dopamine agonists, but are not provided to the elderly adults due to the risk of contacting psychotoxins. One of the most important medicines for the Parkinson’s disease in older adults is Levodopa. This psychoactive drug can be given to the seniors with neurological complications during all stages of the disease.

Elderly Care Plan

Mostly, the family members do not want to stay away from the seniors with the Parkinson’s disease, due to several worries such as lack of caring, insufficient medication facilities etc. The home environment is obviously a better option for accommodating the patient but dedicated care giving is very important. If you are looking for elderly home care Canada services, it is essential to ask if the professional caregiver is experienced in handling the patients with the disease. Some agencies offer only general assistance services to the seniors. For these patients, intense caring, constant monitoring, and specific periodic medication urge the need to follow a care-giving plan.

The elderly care plan for patients with acute Parkinson’s disease symptoms include:

• Exclusive safety and health supervision
• Helping in dressing, giving food on time, and taking care of other requirements
• Giving medicines as per the prescribed time regulations
• Offering special therapeutic assistance such as physiotherapy and other required services

With a gradual rise in the severing symptoms of this disease, the seniors can show the signs of depression due to the greater dependence on others, lack of activity etc. It is the duty of the people around to offer the best moral support and involve the elderly into some sort of physical activity, exercising, walking etc. You can consult an occupational therapist treating the elderly with Parkinson’s disease.

Emotional Bonding with Elderly Family Members

The family is the root to the social bonding you share with the relatives, friends and other associates. Every member of the family is valuable, creating a bond of love and unity to maintain a harmonious environment. The seniors have a very special place in the lives of the children and grand children. They have worked hard for years to bring up their kids, taught the crucial lessons of life, and helped them to emerge as professionals and important part of the society. Hence, whatever we are today, it is because of the immense hard work and lots of patience from our parents and other elder relatives. In their old age, their caring and health concerns therefore remains the utmost priority for the next generations.

The lifestyle and attitude towards the elderly are changing with great pace. Women are now involved in greater professional roles with inflexible work hours and encounter several challenges to look after their children and pay attention to other important family matters. Despite all the busy affairs and worries, people wish to handle the care giving on their own to ensure best protection, hygiene and health of the elder relatives. On several instances, this poses a hindrance to deliver excellent performances in the academic and career fields. The assisted care services at home offer greater relief and assurance that the elders are safe, healthy, and most importantly in a good company.

While we share a great comfort zone with our parents, often this bond is lacking when there are more than two generations living together. From the early childhood, it becomes our responsibility to abridge the distances between the parents and the youngsters. Spending some time with the elders creates an atmosphere to establish connectivity, gain greater understanding, and create some precious memories. With elderly care provisions readily available, it becomes easy to manage an outing for a picnic at a nearby location. Nowadays, you can hire spacious vans with all the homely amenities for a comfortable journey and complete peace of mind.

At all points of the time elderly home care Canada offer great help and care support that the seniors require in their old age. However, the love and attention of the near ones work wonders to keep them happy and adapt to the professional care giving services. Have you ever considered the point that the emotional bonding of the children in the family and elderly forms the base for the unbound happiness in life? Please share your experiences with us and the readers. 

Coping with the Challenges of Elderly Care Resistance

The health and proper caring of the elderly members of the family is always the prime concern for everyone. Your sentiments and respect for the elderly parents and grandparents are precious. However, problems can arise posing difficulties for you to balance the regular work and family responsibilities with the intense caring of the seniors. While assisted caring is a brilliant option, the resistance to accept care and lack of cooperation are quite likely. Rudeness and forcing decisions often worsen the situation and disturb the harmonious atmosphere. Effective communication and patience is the key to sort out these issues.

Why is Elderly Resistance to Care?

It is extremely important to understand the reasons for elderly care resistance that can arise from several emotional factors and some practical considerations.

• The primary emotional turbulence may raise the feeling of loss of independence and desired level of privacy.
• The seniors are often reluctant to obey the routine care, monitoring, assistance and medical treatment, which are very important for their health.
• The elders are often worried about the expenses on caring and medical facilities. They do not want the family members to bear the burden of these costs.
• The feeling of insecurity and lack of confidence in the care provider arouses resistance to take help.

Approaches to Cope with Elderly Care Resistance

To protect the loving parents and grandparents in their old age, you have to approach them with a lot of patience. The decision to arrange for caring and assistance support can be solely determined based on advice of the doctors, the present health condition and ability of the seniors to manage their lives independently.

Communication: A friendly conversation can resolve the problem and help to prepare the elders for the care and support. Always ensure a time when the elders and your family members are relaxed and happy.

Scope of Expression: Always provide full scope to the seniors so that they can express their point. Allow comfort zones to the elders to state their preferences. They may like to ensure several matters before agreeing for the assisted caring.

Avoid Haste: The initial discussion on the matter may not be fruitful in dealing with the elderly resistance to help. Give some time so that they can prepare themselves for the decision. You can always try to put up a discussion at some other time.

Describe Your Situation: During the discussion, state your concern for the elders and explain your situation properly so that they can agree on the point. They are your loved ones and will always understand the difficulties and extend cooperation.

Trial Period: The elders are often resistant to allow strangers around them. A trial run will help the elder to understand the nature of help and take the final decision.

Despite multiple attempts if the problems of elderly resistance to care continue to persist, you can consult a professional advisor. Seniors are often more agreeable to the advices of the doctors, close friends, and other associates.

Do you have any more suggestions that can help with the elderly resistance issues? Please provide your opinion. We deeply appreciate your valuable suggestions.  

The Elderly Homeless

The epidemic of the elderly homeless is growing rapidly in recent years and has causes from many different fronts. Like any growing homeless population, the elderly homeless population poses a significant amount of unique problems that can cause or exacerbate many individual and societal ills. Though many of these issues seem insurmountable or generally difficult to grasp, there are many solutions that can be implemented to reduce the amount of elderly homeless on the street and in shelters.

Causes 

Although a cause for homelessness can’t be pinned down for every homeless person, or even every homeless person in a particular subgroup, there are generalizations that can easily be made within the groups themselves. The elderly, even ones who are not destitute, are generally at a few stark disadvantages compared to the rest of the population. This can be seen in the fact that 3.6 million American seniors are below the poverty line. Unlike other segments of the population, the elderly may not be able to generate any additional income to get out of poverty.

The effect of poverty can be seen when the issue of affordable housing is discussed. This lack of affordable housing has less to do with the price of the home than you may think. It is due, in large part, to the cost of several other things that the elderly experience, such as health issues that may become costly over time. With certain resources, such as social security benefits, running out, as well as the fact that many workers are unable to save up for retirement, it is no surprise that this problem may worsen significantly as people are able to get less and less money after they are unable to work.

Another concern that many elderly Americans will run into is the likelihood of a specific “trigger event” that will send them into a downward spiral, leading to homelessness. Often the elderly will see the dissolution of a long-lasting marriage, whether from divorce or death. This may cause them to become depressed and withdrawn, leading to a lack of care for themselves and possibly even destitution.

It’s also likely that they will experience their own declining health that, as mentioned before, will bring up a lot of specific economic challenges that other segments of the population may not have to experience. Mental health concerns, in particular, are of consequence when discussing the elderly homeless as many of them will go to their primary care physician for the physical symptoms of things like depression or anxiety rather than recognizing, or admitting, the problem and seeing a mental health specialist.

Unique Problems 

The elderly homeless have significant and unique, problems that are specific to their group. One of the main concerns with the elderly homeless is the fact that many health issues can be caused by or exacerbated by situations that they are exposed to while homeless. Chronic diseases, such as diabetes or arthritis, which may be able to be easily controlled and regulated, may be neglected while homeless. Oftentimes a homeless person of any age will become more physically frail due to malnutrition or even instances of injury or assault. This is especially true of those whose health is already declining due to old age.

Just the act of being homeless can bring about feelings of loneliness and isolation may take over, causing even further withdrawal. These habits and lack of mental stimuli have been shown to have a direct link to Alzheimer’s disease.

Because of these unique problems for elderly individuals, it puts a strain on already under-funded and thinly stretched homeless resources. While many individuals in their late 40s and early 50s in a stable situation may be able to work, the accelerated physical and mental degradation that a person experiences while homeless may take them out of the workforce entirely. This can make it significantly more difficult for homeless resources to help them create a future for themselves until they are in their late 60s.

Solutions 

Many of the solutions that can be implemented to help the elderly are easier to create as preventative care methods, rather than waiting for the elderly to become homeless first. One of the possible solutions is to create community living homes which could be subsidized homes at which professional teams can meet the needs of elders who are at risk of becoming homeless or are recovering from being homeless.

These communities could provide several solutions to the elderly that would not be available to them if they were to utilize the usual homeless resources, such as psychiatric care and old age-centric medical care. They would also allow for some self-sufficiency for those who are otherwise healthy.

Even within, or near, these same communities could be a section of subsidized housing for elderly people complete with in home care from the community. This would be a less restrictive option than a nursing home or even a closely monitored community and could be a good option as a stepping-stone to independence for the previously homeless elders.