Your elderly father had been diagnosed with some form of dementia, perhaps a few months or a couple of years ago. Lately, wandering is a concern for you and the rest of your family. Maybe your mother has been doing her best to support him, with your support or somebody else in the family, but things are progressing, and you all notice it. Home care can certainly be a solution, but what about help with wandering risks?
When a person has a disease like Alzheimer’s or another type of dementia that will affect their brain, it can increase the risk of wandering, becoming distorted, and getting lost. Wandering is a very serious risk for somebody with Alzheimer’s or other types of dementia.
Even though your mother or others have been helping to support your father, if they are not there 24 hours a day, seven days a week, the risk of wandering remains real.
Home care is far better than putting keyed deadbolts all the doors and locking all the windows because, after all, if nobody else is home with your father and a fire breaks out, how would he possibly get outside to safety? That’s just one risk we need to take seriously.
So, let’s look at how home care can make a difference in helping your father avoid wandering and getting lost.
First, the home care aide can support him when you or your mother or somebody else can’t be there with him.
It’s difficult to be the primary caregiver for somebody with dementia. You feel you have to be on call all the time. A home care agency can provide in-home care aides to support your father during times when your mother or somebody else won’t be there with him.
It doesn’t have to be all day long, either. Through an agency, you can depend on home care for just a few hours at a time, even for as little as one or two days a week to start. That could be exactly what your mother and you need so you can take some time to yourselves and not worry about him getting lost and wandering out of the house alone.
Second, a home care aide can help keep him focused.
When was the last time you encouraged your father to read, do the crossword puzzle, play strategic games, or another activity that really strengthens his mind? A lot of people assume there’s nothing you can do because there’s no cure for Alzheimer’s or other forms of dementia … yet.
However, the brain is a muscle and, like all muscles, the more exercise it gets, the stronger it can be. While this isn’t a cure, it can help slow down the progression of memory loss, ultimately reducing a potential risk of wandering in some cases.
Third, a home care aide would allow him to remain safe.
Having somebody there with him so he’s not alone means you wouldn’t need keyed deadbolts or have to lock all the windows up tight. The home care aide would support him, keep an eye at him, and make sure he didn’t wander off without that caregiver staying with him.
If you or a loved one are looking for experienced home care in Fairfax, VA, contact SenCura
at 703-880-2547. Providing in-home senior care in Northern Virginia.