In the not too distant past residential options, for your aging parents, were a move to a nursing home or living with you. However, times have changed with assisted living facilities and home care agencies. Consequently, these options can potentially provide a new lease on life, for your parents, whether it be for a short time or for many years. Home care varies, depending on your parent’s needs and resources, from full-time or part-time assistance. Are you're parents unsteady on their feet, a fall risk, not taking their medications, eating enough, require some caregiving assistance, or help with housework? Therefore,…
The idea of Assisted Living is tremendously appealing – an older individual receiving necessary care and services in a home-like environment, while retaining choice and autonomy. Most Assisted Living facilities are licensed to care for residents only up to a particular need of care. A generic multi-level system might designate three levels: low, moderate and high. When a resident has low care needs, the resident may reside at any type of Assisted Living facility. When the resident's care needs reach the moderate level, the resident is allowed to reside only at a facility licensed for moderate or high care needs. …
Click for a few of the stories uncovered during The Miami Herald’s yearlong investigation into Florida’s assisted living facilities. Thousands of documents revealed a nearly hidden world of questionable deaths, abuse, and cases of neglect towards the elderly and mentally ill. Their project, “Neglected To Death,” chronicled years of caregiver malpractice, unsuitable living conditions, and exposed Florida’s state regulators’ failure to monitor and enforce the laws protecting some of society’s most vulnerable residents. The Miami Herald and WLRN uncovered 70 questionable deaths within the last decade alone. While Florida supposedly holds some of the strictest elder-abuse laws in the nation,…
Prescription drugs are of particular concern. In a recent survey, 49% couldn't name a single drug their parents took. Ask parents about their medications and, if necessary, do research, experts say. Find out the dose, what it's for, who prescribed it and why. People 65 and older account for about a third of all medications prescribed in the U.S., according to the National Institutes of Health, and older patients are more likely to have long-term and multiple prescriptions, which could lead to unintentional misuse. "It's kind of a never-ending process for caregivers," says Sandy Markwood, head of the National Association…
In a recent USA Today article called “Most Baby Boomers Lack A Plan To Care For Parents” a majority of Baby Boomers say they are likely to become caregivers for their parents, but only half can name any medications their parents take, a new survey shows. The survey of 600 adults ages 45 to 65, conducted for the Home Instead Senior Care network, also found: •31% don't know how many medications their parents take. •34% don't know whether their parents have a safe deposit box or where the key is. •36% don't know where their parents' financial information is located….
A past New York Times article on how care coordinators can help adult children face a challenge which often seems overwhelming, both emotionally and mentally, and is always stressful: the job of caring for an elderly parent. The Times article described the caring challenge as follows: There are diagnoses to decipher, housing issues to consider, health aides to vet and a raft of legal documents to complete. It can seem overwhelming, even when families are in complete agreement on how to care for an elderly relative. And often they are not. But a care coordinator can buy you time and…
Senior Life Care Planning’s Elder Care Coordinators are specialists who help family members find the right sources and services for their aging parents. Additionally, they provide care coordination and advocacy, be it home care, assisted living or nursing home facilities. We help family member’s cope with their burden. Let’s look at a hypothetical example to see how valuable Senior Life Care Planning’s care coordinators can be. Wife is providing extensive care for her housebound husband. Wife has difficulty getting her husband out of bed, bathed and dressed. Additionally, Wife relies on her son who lives nearby to help her manage…
At Senior Life Care Planning we receive telephone calls from the children of aging parents stating that their parents need and must move to an assisted living facility; what is the best assisted living facility in the area and how much does it cost? However, before the parents are “shipped off” to the facility, what are your parent’s needs and requirements; is it time for your parents to move; can they stay at home, with or without care; and are they willing to move? What is really behind the call? Caregiver burnout, frustration, communication issues or not knowing where else…
Frequent falls Unexplained bruises Unexplained weight loss Medication mistakes – forgetting to take, overdosing, abusing Behavior issues Getting lost while driving or walking Social isolation Financial management – not paying bills, making gifts to strangers Nutrition – nothing in the refrigerator or cupboards etc. Unsafe driving Confusion and forgetfulness Balance or mobility problems Refusing to see the doctor or follow advice One spouse overwhelmed or in poor health caring for the other spouse
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…
Frederick, MD 
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