The goal of professional caregivers is to help seniors retain their independence for as long as possible. Your mom wants to age in place, but you worry about her ability to do so. Here are all the ways caregivers can help.
Caregiver in Amityville NY: Aging in Place
Caregivers Can Help With Housework and Laundry.
If your mom struggles to carry laundry up and down stairs to a basement laundry room, home care services help. Caregivers can do the laundry, iron it, fold it, and put it away.
For household chores that are too hard for a senior to manage, caregivers can help with that, too. Caregivers can carry a vacuum from one floor to the next and vacuum carpets. They can mop floors, clean counters, wash dishes, and put them away.
Caregivers Can Help With Personal Care.
Caregivers can assist with personal care and grooming. If a senior has arthritis and finds it hard to floss or brush teeth, caregivers can help. Caregivers can dry and style a senior’s hair, help them put on creams and lotions, and trim and file nails.
Some seniors have a hard time reaching up to wash their hair or reaching down to scrub feet. Caregivers can wash hair and clean areas of the body that the senior can’t reach. After the shower, caregivers can help a senior get dry and put on clothes.
Caregivers Offer Companionship.
Some seniors don’t even need much in the way of services. They live alone and need someone to check in every day or two and make sure they’re okay. Some simply want someone to talk to once a week or each day.
Companion care is ideal for seniors who don’t have family close by. Friends may have moved out of state. Seniors who need companionship often have a higher risk of no one noticing if they were to fall or become sick. It could be days or weeks before someone stopped by. Caregivers who provide companion care stop by and make sure everything is okay on a regular basis.
Caregivers Can Help Families Affected by Dementia.
Dementia progresses over the months and years. As the disease worsens, seniors need help with meal preparation, transportation, cleaning, and scheduling. In the later stages, people with Alzheimer’s and other forms of dementia may wander off and get lost.
Caregivers can help families with dementia care. With caregivers covering several shifts, seniors with dementia never have to be alone. They have someone there to keep them from wandering.
Start discussing caregivers together as soon as possible. The earlier you and your family talk about it, the easier it is to interview home care agencies and find the right match. Get started now.
If you or an aging family member are considering professional caregiver services in Amityville, NY, please call the caring staff at A Gentle Touch Senior Home and Health Care at 631-647-7622 today.