Living with a senior is not easy because they constantly demand your attention and care. If you are the only loved one of a senior and you are finding it difficult to give the senior the time he or she deserves then you should consider in-home personal care options. In these options, an expert care provider will come to your home and take care of every need of a senior.
In-home care is more preferred than moving to a nursing home because you get to remain in control and the senior feels more comfortable. In-home care is also vital because the reputation of nursing homes is not as good as it once was. Nursing homes are being blamed for sedating seniors with untested or inappropriate drugs.
Another advantage of in-home care over nursing homes is that the former is more cost effective. If you, as a family member can spend the nights taking care of the senior, you don’t need to pay someone to do the same. Similarly, if you can order stuff for a senior from Halo Healthcare and get them delivered, you don’t need to bother asking the care provider to shop for the same and bring them home.
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What are In-Home Care Options?
Now, if you are seriously considering hiring an expert for in-home care, then you should know that it’s not as easy as it seems. There are many in-home health care options you need to consider and choose from. Some of them are mentioned right here.
1. Companion Care
In this method, the care provider will act as a companion for seniors who are medically fit and capable of doing their stuff but feel lonely at times. The care provider will offer companionship, talk with the senior, make sure the senior is entertained and help with social interaction.
Some other tasks a hired companion can help with our food preparation, running errands, housekeeping, etc. Make sure you talk about these extra tasks while hiring someone to ensure that there are no misunderstandings later on.
You can usually hire companion care on an hourly, daily or weekly basis depending on the needs of the seniors. The ideal scenario would be if a senior seeks help from a companion a few times a week and spend the rest of the days in going out and meeting new people to get rid of loneliness.
2. Personal Care Provider
In this option, a personal care assistant can be hired who will help the senior with even the most basic personal activities like bathing, dressing, food preparation, housekeeping, etc. This option is best for seniors who can’t move much on their own or have an illness that restricts them to take care of themselves.
You can hire someone to come for a few hours every day like from 10 to 3 every day, or you can opt for 24 by 7 assistance. It all depends on how dependent a senior is on another person and what’s your budget.
3. Home Health Care
This is another in-home care method in which medical assistance is provided by an expert at home to either help a senior get rid of a temporary health problem like a fracture or to get constant long-term care for an illness like diabetes management. In this type of care, the expert would be more focused on ensuring that a senior takes care of his or her health.
The expert may also ensure that a senior lives a healthy lifestyle by controlling what a senior eats, how long a senior sleep or how much exercise she/he does in a day. The expert will act on the doctor’s orders and help a senior take better care of himself/herself.
4. Nursing Care
This option usually opts when a senior needs to manage a chronic condition or has a disease/ health issue that needs extra attention and care. As the name suggests, in this option, a nurse will be hired by you to take care of the senior. The duties of the nurse might include specialized tasks like wound care, nutrition therapy, administering injections or monitoring a serious health issue. Some nurses can also provide speech, physical or occupational therapy.
When hiring a nurse, you need to confirm a nurse’s status to be extra sure and safe. Also, remember that the nurse will only provide medical care services.
The nurse won’t help with other tasks like bathing, cooking, cleaning or even offer companionship. If you need the nurse to do any of those, be clear about it. In most cases, the nurse will ask you to hire an attendant for chores like bathing, cooking, cleaning, etc.
Conclusion
In essence, it can be said that there are many options for in-home care for seniors. You need to analyze the pros and cons of each option before making a decision. Good Luck!
Also read: 7 Benefits of Sending a Loved One to a Senior Living Community
