In honor of Older Americans Month this May, the theme is “Age My Way,” which is something that many aging adults very much want. For many seniors, aging in place, or remaining in their own home, is exactly what they want to do as they age according to their own choices. How can your senior age in place safely? Bringing in 24-hour home care as part of her care plan is a great first step.
Help with Household Tasks
As your elderly family member ages, she may need more and more assistance keeping up with household tasks and chores. Elder care providers can keep up with those tasks for her, allowing her to conserve her energy and still have what she needs around her. While moving to a location where those tasks would be handled for her solves this problem superficially, it removes your senior’s ability to stay right where she is.
Help with Personal Care Tasks
Personal care tasks, like bathing, can also become more difficult for your senior over time. 24-hour home care providers can assist with these tasks, helping your elderly family member to keep her body and her clothing clean and hygienic. Until your senior needs that amount of help, she can handle what she’s able to on her own. A common misconception of accepting help is that your elderly family member can never have her independence, but that’s not the case.
Assistance with Healthy Meals
Meals and cooking often become difficult for aging adults. When the process of preparing food becomes too much of a chore, many older adults skip it or opt for unhealthy choices instead. If your elderly family member is planning to age in place, that’s something she can’t afford to do. She may well need help ensuring that she’s got healthy meals ready to go whenever she’s ready to eat. Having help from 24-hour home care may eventually become necessary in order to ensure she’s eating well.
Transportation Assistance
As driving becomes more difficult and finally something that she can no longer do, your senior needs to make some big decisions. Knowing that elder care providers can take over the task of driving for her can help to make sure that she’s still able to go where she needs and wants to go, but that she’s doing so safely and not trying to drive herself.
Companionship
Another big concern for seniors who age in place is loneliness and even isolation. Caregivers are able to offer friendly companionship to your elderly family member, ensuring that she’s not spending too much time alone. Companionship is key for her mental and emotional well-being.
Safety
Overall, knowing that there’s someone there with your senior helps her to be much safer. If there is clutter or anything else that could pose a tripping risk, for instance, there’s someone there to make sure it doesn’t become a problem. Likewise, if your senior experiences a health emergency, there’s someone there with her.
Properly aging in place means that your elderly family member has all of the tools and assistance that she might need, and that those are in place before she needs them.
If you or an aging loved one is considering 24-hour home care in Lockwood, MT, call the caring staff at SYNERGY Home Care of Billings today. 406-839-2390
