One of the most common conversations family caregivers have with professionals in senior care is, “My parents aren’t ready yet. We are just looking.” Another one tends to be that, “They are fine for the next few years because I am taking care of their needs, driving them to doctor appointments and scheduling their medications.” In fact, not acting sooner is probably one of the worst choices that you can make together as a family. Here’s why you should be more proactive about seeking care for them and doing it sooner rather than later.
- Decrease Fall Risks
- Avoid Medication Errors
- Reduce Depression
- Evade ER Visits
- Cutback on Family Tension
Decrease Fall Risk
The number one reason for falls is lower extremity weakness. If you are proactively seeking senior care through exercise specialists in a home or at a senior care facility, your loved one doesn’t have to be afraid of falling because they are increasing strength and mobility. This participation in regular exercise will help to decrease the risk of falls.
Avoid Medication Errors
Even though you are laying the ground work for success in medication management, mishaps can happen. Pills fall to the ground, times may be missed and medication errors can still happen. When medications aren’t taken at the right time, this can lead to dizziness, falls and even hospitalization. You can avoid medication errors all together with professional help.
Reduce Depression
Being home alone on a regular basis is not fun at any age. When you mix those feelings with the fear of falling and not being as mobile and independent, depression can settle in. At home caregivers not only assist with medication management and assistance with activities of daily living, they can help provide regular companionship. Better yet, imagine being able to participate or just watch life happening all around you when you want to but combining it with the ability to be alone. It becomes a choice. This independence and access to more activities helps to decrease the onset of depression.
Evade ER Visits
When a senior is alone most hours of the day, the risk of an ER visit is greater. Whether the stove gets left on accidently, a stumble occurs walking through the doorway to answer the phone, a fall happens climbing the footstool to reach something on a shelf or medication is doubled up because of a missed dose, life happens and so do trips to the emergency room. You can avoid these unwanted trips if you seek professional care earlier, rather than later.
Cutback on Family Tension
Being a family caregiver is often a second job and most parents don’t want to feel like their child is now the parent, telling them what to do. The best thing you can do is have the hard conversation before you have to make the decision. Your parent or loved one should be part of this decision-making process. The right care at the right time opens up the possibility of a better quality of life for everyone involved. Your loved one can enjoy activities and outings much more when they’re more open to it and capable of enjoying it. Additionally, a person can get used to a new environment much easier if they experience it at younger age. If senior care is incorporated during the initial stages of decline, you can help prevent it from escalating and becoming a more serious issue. Avoid the dangers of waiting for senior care and make the decision today to enjoy the many benefits.
At Spring Hills Senior Communities, our continuum of care and Signature Touches program is designed to adhere to the unique needs of each and every individual. By providing a holistic approach to care, services and activities, many of these dangers can be reduced and avoided.