It is never easy to move from being completely independent with very little help to accepting help readily from in-home care professionals. Your elderly family member might find that the process is a lot more complicated than she expected it would be. There are plenty of things you can do to help your senior with the transition to accepting help more readily.
Learn Your Senior’s Needs
It’s entirely possible that you already have a very good handle on most of your elderly family member’s needs. But as she grows older and starts to face additional challenges around her health, aging, and other concerns, she’s likely to need more specialized help. Once you and she have a full list of what is more difficult and where she needs help, you have a better chance of putting together a plan that truly meets those needs.
Keep Your Senior in the Loop
Remember that this is your senior’s life you’re talking about changing. Even if she seems to you to be unable to make choices and decisions about her own care, your elderly family member does have preferences. Keep your elderly family member in the loop about new decisions around home care services. When you make sure you’re giving her as many choices as possible, you’re empowering her further.
Talk with Your Senior’s Medical Providers
As much as it helps to keep your senior involved in these discussions, it’s equally important to talk with her medical providers about her needs and the options available to your senior. Your senior’s doctors can help you to look a little further down the line and anticipate changes that may be coming sooner than you realize. With their help, you can address concerns by putting the right home care solutions in place.
Narrow Down What Kind of Care Would Help Most
If your senior is nearing the end of her life, then hospice care might be the right solution. But if your elderly family member isn’t there yet, in-home care may do the most for her at this stage. Refer back to the lists you and she have made to see what types of care best fit those needs. Keep the conversation open with your senior about what is helping and make sure you’re addressing her needs as fully as possible.
Revisit the Plan Once it’s in Place
No plan is set in stone forever and ever, as much as you and your family may want that to be true. You and your elderly family member need to not only stay open to talking about what is helping and what isn’t but stay open to making changes to the types of care she receives. In-home care professionals can help with household tasks, meal preparation, personal care tasks, and more depending on your senior’s needs.
If you or a loved one are looking for experienced In-Home Care in Arlington, VA, contact SenCura at 703-880-2547. Providing in-home senior care in Northern Virginia.