February is National Senior Independence Month
February is a month of love, but it also is a time to help ensure the seniors you love in your life maintain some of the independence they desire. In honor of National Senior Independence Month, it is a great time to talk with your aging loved one about their independence. Many studies have shown that a majority of those aged 65 and over want to live and age in their own homes for as long as they can. Talk with your senior. Find out how comfortable they are living on their own, listen to what type of help they might need and make a plan together to help them fulfill their desires.
Plan Ahead
While your senior may be able to maneuver around their home adeptly right now, plan ahead with them so that they can do so for years to come if they are desiring to maintain independence and safety. Have them work with you now, so you can plan for the future.
Fall proof their home. Move rugs that might cause tripping hazards. Get clutters out of the way. Go through the home with them and find out what they most often use. Make those things easily accessible for them. Ensure they have good lighting, so they can see where they are going, and any potential tripping hazards.
Consider adding conveniences to their home, such as lighting that goes on when they enter the room, or a lamp that can turn on with the clap of their hands. Maybe they want timers on their lights so they automatically turn on each night and off each morning. Put a phone in each room, or ensure they have a cell phone charger nearby each place they sit. There also are advanced sensors families can look into, that will turn light on and off as your senior enters the room.
Some sensors, including those from Alarm.com, also will communicate digitally with family members, altering them when seniors get out of bed each morning or open their medicine cabinet for their pills. They also will let family members know if something has changed, and seniors don’t get up at their usual time or head into the kitchen for breakfast. Think about the technology you use to make your life easier, and see if your senior would like it. Have they ever tried an Alexa? Show them how easy it is to play any song they might like, or to make a grocery list just by talking to a voice-activated personal assistant.
Whatever you do, talk with your senior to find out what would make their life easier, what they have trouble with each day, and figure out a way to help them so that they can maintain their independence.
Hire a Caregiver
Hiring a caregiver for your senior loved one does not mean they are giving up their independence. In fact, home care workers, including the compassionate caregivers at Right at Home Salem, can help senior citizens stay in their homes for even longer nowadays. Home care workers can help with specific things your senior needs help with. For example, do they struggle with buttoning their clothes or getting dressed each morning? A home caregiver can help your senior get ready for the day each morning, and for bed each night, while your senior cares for themselves throughout the day.
Is your senior capable of doing most things on their own, but gets lonely in their home alone, especially during the cold Massachusetts winters when they don’t feel like venturing out? Home care workers can also simply provide companionship care. They can be there to do the daily crossword with your senior, listen to their stories and more. Home care workers can also help with errands, light housekeeping, meal prep and more. They also can provide more intense care as your senior ages, and possibly declines mentally or physically. Having a home caregiver come into the house, instead of moving seniors elsewhere, can often help dementia patients feel more secure in their familiar surroundings, family feel more secure with seniors walking around on wobbly legs and more.
Right at Home Can Help
If you’re looking for help with your senior loved one as they live independently, our caregivers at Right At Home Salem can help. Right at Home’s caregivers can help with everything from helping to get your senior dressed in the morning to steadying them when they walk.
We serve seniors in the Salem and Marblehead areas. For information on how we can help, call us today at (978) 705-4734. We can help tailor our care plans to meet your specific needs. Whether you need care every day of the week, or just a mid-week break, we are here to help local families.
If you have a calling to help seniors enjoy their life at home safely, join us. Right at Home Salem-Marblehead is looking for the Right People to join our team. We have immediate openings for in-home caregivers, Certified Home Health Aide and Certified Nursing Assistants. visit us online to see our open positions.
