Caregiving for aging-parents, an elderly spouse, domestic partner or close friend presents tough challenges, especially when a crisis hits and responsibility suddenly descends upon you.
Maybe your mother has fallen -- perhaps because of instability caused by prescription drug side effects -- and is hospitalized with a broken hip. Or your spouse has wandered off and gotten lost several times. Or a long-time friend and mentor has lost a lot of weight and rarely seems to leave home. aging-parents
Where to Begin?
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We can be plunged into caregiving in a variety of ways -- through sudden crises or a series of small but unsettling mishaps and warning signs. You may be the only person to step in, or you may simply be the linchpin of a large network of family members and friends willing to help. Whatever the situation, you are not sure of the next step. Or even the first step.aging-parents
What kind of help does your loved one need? Are their problems undiagnosed but correctable? For example, prescription drug interactions and side effects, Vitamin B12 deficiency, dehydration, and other treatable conditions are often incorrectly diagnosed as Alzheimer's disease and other forms of dementia.
According to Consumer Reports on Health, "Any new health problem in an older person should be considered drug induced until proven otherwise." (To help you determine if prescription drugs might be a source of your loved one's problems, click on Prescription Drug Interactions.)
Questions - Questions - Questions
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If your loved one's problems are not correctable, what living arrangements and nursing care plans are most appropriate? If they are able to remain in their own home, is it safe? How do you figure out what kind of home care to arrange? Is assisted living preferred over nursing homes? What particular challenges does your loved one's condition pose? What is the best way to access community resources? How will you manage it all -- and still maintain a life of your own?
Whether you are faced with Alzheimer's disease or another form of dementia, recovery from a broken hip, or trying to figure out Medicare's benefits, each caregiving situation is unique. Your loved one's medical history, financial resources, personality, relationships with potential caregivers, proximity to services and other factors all determine the best approach to take.aging-parents
Some seniors may have prepared in advance for declining health and have the necessary documents and services in place; others may have delayed taking action because they always believed they had more time.
If you are in the middle of a crisis and decisions have to be made quickly, or are planning ahead for an elderly loved one because of unsettling warning signs, Aging-Parents-and-Elder-Care can help you with a variety of articles and helpful tools such as: aging-parents
Elder Care 101 - First Steps. Written especially for new family caregivers, this is a comprehensive introduction to the basics of caregiving. It includes 14 important warning signs to tell if a loved one needs help.
Glossary of Terms. The specialized language of elder care includes terms and phrases that are not familiar to many people -- perhaps even confusing -- especially for new caregivers. To help you understand the terminology, Aging Parents and Elder Care has a comprehensive Glossary of Terms that includes easy-to-understand explanations of related financial, insurance and legal terms.
Comprehensive Checklists. Well-designed checklists can be very helpful -- especially for new caregivers -- and for caregivers whose loved ones' conditions are changing. They help family caregivers feel more confident that they have not forgotten something important by covering topics such as:
Online Elder Care Resources. The Internet has thousands of Web sites related to care for the elderly. The ones we selected for our group of recommended resources are -- in our opinion -- the easiest to use and have the best information for family caregivers.
They include organizations, government agencies and businesses. To make it easier for you to find the information you need, we have sorted them into convenient categories and included a brief description of each Web site. For some, we also let you know what we think is good about the resource -- and sometimes what is not so good.
Daily Living Solutions. As we grow older, it often becomes difficult to use many everyday products because of arthritis and other conditions. If you or a loved one needs a little help -- or a lot -- you will find a wide variety of practical and affordable solutions to help overcome the challenges of growing older.
Support Group. As we said earlier, caregiving for aging parents, a spouse or close friend presents tough challenges. But, you are not alone. Many other caregivers have already solved problems like those you now face. Our Support Group message board can help you find them. Family caregivers across the country use it to share their stories, learn from others, and offer helpful advice.
Aging Solutions newsletter. Our free monthly online newsletter is filled with news and helpful tips for family caregivers.
About Us
Mike Gamble, Publisheraging-parents
Mike Gamble, Founder/President of Senior Solutions of America, Inc., has specialized in issues important to seniors -- from retirement planning to Medicare and elder care -- since he began his career in insurance in 1964. He has earned a well-deserved reputation for his ability to develop creative, workable solutions to complex problems.
Recently, he and an associate developed a substantially improved method for matching insurance benefits to the actual cost of elder care -- an accomplishment for which they were awarded the first two United States patents for long-term care insurance. As a result, he has become increasingly recognized for his expertise in elder care.
That expertise was first put to the test in September 2000 when his parents began to require the assistance of formal caregivers. Later, in February 2001, he became the primary care manager for his mother who lived 1,200 miles away. As he, his wife and sisters quickly learned, elder care can be very frustrating, especially if you are new at it. Most of us don't know where to go for answers, or even what questions to ask. Fortunately, his background helped guide him through the mountains of new and often unexpected challenges.
He created Aging Parents and Elder Care (also known as Aging Solutions) to share what he and his family learned both personally and professionally -- to make it easier for you to find the reliable information you need -- quickly.
Senior Solutions of America, Inc.
At Senior Solutions, we research and develop innovative new products and services related to retirement. Our goal? To provide reliable information that is easy to understand, so that you can make informed decisions quickly and confidently.
During our research, we find a lot of information that is outside the scope of Aging Parents and Elder Care -- information that is of special interest to people who have already retired, are preparing for retirement, or just thinking about it.
As a result, we created a sister Web site, Today's Seniors. Designed especially for today's active seniors, it is filled with advice, tips, and articles about retirement, personal finances, Medicare benefits, and more -- with solutions to help seniors simplify their lives, eliminate the hassles, and get the most out of retirement.
Caregiving for aging-parents, an elderly spouse, domestic partner or close friend presents tough challenges, especially when a crisis hits and responsibility suddenly descends upon you.
