At Senior Life Care Planning our goal is to help your aging parents or loved ones stay safe and independent in their own home. As we age, we will need some kind of assistance to stay at home. However, the problem is, most of us do not have long term care insurance or the resources to pay for it. Millions of older adults have to impoverish themselves to get help with daily tasks like eating, dressing, or bathing. Or, they end up being forced out of their homes and into a nursing home too soon. Others rely on family caregivers…
Here are seven things to look for if you visit your aging parents. Once-organized drawers are crammed full of old documents, etc. The mailbox is full of donation requests. There's a pile of unpaid bills. There are mistakes in their checkbooks. The refrigerator is filled with expired food. The house is no longer clean. Reminder notes are everywhere.
Millions of Americans are now caring for their aging parents. Aging parents and their caregiving children are in difficult financial economic times. Consequently, the aging parents and their children are entering into legal agreements, “caregiver agreements,” in order to compensate children who are providing caregiving services. In preparing these caregiving agreements, families should consider the following: What types of services are being performed? Therefore, define the duties and responsibilities, of the parent and caregiving children How much compensation shall be paid to the caregiver? What services are being performed? What is reasonable compensation? Have all family members involved in the…
If a war time veteran who served 90 days active duty with one day during war time, an honorable discharge, AND have limited financial resources and gross income, the veteran can file for non-service connected pension benefits and use the cost of home care etc. to offset their total household gross income to receive the pension. If the veteran is independent, the maximium per month is $1,291.00 or $15,493.00 annually. If the veteran, also requires assistance, can qualify for up to $1,949.00 per month or $23,396.00 annually.
The New York Times article states that an increasing number of seniors who need assistance are being cared for by other seniors. It's not unusual for someone in her 80s to be cared for by a paid caregiver in her 60s or 70s. The article reports that in 2008, 28 percent of home care aides were over age 55. Older workers fill the paid caregiver role for a number of reasons. Some need the income. For some, the part-time nature of the work fits their schedule and energy level. Also, if they are receiving Social Security benefits and are under…
Sleep problems are often dismissed by caregivers for two common, misguided reasons, says geriatric psychiatrist Ken Robbins. First, they assume that poor sleep is part of aging or of dementia, and that nothing can be done about it. Second, they fear that addressing sleep problems is “selfish,” only for their benefit. The senior whose sleep issues are addressed will experience better mood, more energy, and less pain; sleep is closely connected with all three conditions. And the caregiver who makes his or her own sleep a priority will be better able to cope with caregiving stresses and will have more…
Discussing the subject requires patience and tact. However, you may consider the following approaches with your parents to achieve greater success for hiring a caregiver rather than having them move to an assisted living facility or nursing home: they can remain at home; in-home care is often less costly; they will be given one-on-one attention when their caregiver is there; they can maintain their independence in their own home; accept the care for the sake of their spouse, even if in reality, it is equally beneficial for them both; explain to your parent how much you worry about them. According…
The cost of nursing homes and other assisted living facilities continues to rise significantly, according to the Market Survey of Long-Term Care Costs conducted by insurance provider MetLife. Private-room nursing home rates rose 4.6% in 2010, increasing to an average of $229 per day or $83,585 per year, while assisted living rose 5.2% on average to $3,293 per month, or $39,516 per year. "The cost of care in nursing homes and assisted living has been and continues to be high and, in the past year, the increases have even outpaced medical care inflation of about 3%," Sandra Timmermann, director of…
Caring for elderly parents can become a family affair. Oftentimes family members question whether parents can “legally” pay for the help they receive from relatives. The short answer is yes, but you’ll need to make sure you follow some important guidelines. OurParents.com recently published an article for handy reference; here are their points on how an elder can pay a relative for care services at home. Gifts. Yes, parents can make gifts to a relative out of appreciation for care and assistance. But be careful. If your parent eventually needs Medicaid to help pay for long-term nursing care, any gifts…
Hospice uses pain management techniques to compassionately care for the dying, states The Hospice Foundation of America. The first hospice in the United States was established in New Haven, Connecticut in 1974.Today there are more than 4,700 hospice programs in the United States. Hospice programs cared for 965,000 people enrolled in Medicare in 2006, and nearly 1.4 million people in the United States in 2007. Hospice is not a place but a concept of care. Eighty percent of hospice care is provided in the patient's home, family member's home and in nursing homes. Inpatient hospice facilities are sometimes available to…
Frederick, MD 
301-663-9230
