Helpful Tips to Assess Care Needs for Elderly
Sitting down with your aging Mom and Dad to discuss financial, legal, and long-term care issues is not easy at all. Facing the fact that the people who took a great care of us are now getting older and might need professional care needs is daunting. Broaching the subject is difficult. It’s a sensitive topic, which is why both you and your parents might be reluctant to start discussing in the first place. Helpful Tips to Assess Care Needs for Elderly
Your Mom and Dad worry about becoming a burden or giving up control, and we can’t blame them for that. You, on the other hand, worry about challenging or insulting them. There might be differences of opinion when it comes to whether they need professional care or not, what type of care is needed, who should be responsible for proving the care plan, and so on.
Most seniors usually believe that they can take care of themselves. We can all agree that aging Americans can be stubborn sometimes. Fortunately, there’s a respectful and gentle way to broach this senior living subject. Following are a few useful tips for assessing care needs.
The importance of the approach
Saying “You just have to do this” is a big ‘no’. You’ll lose them. You should try something like: ”Mom/Dad, I’m really concerned about you; seeing you like this makes me worried.”
That’s the approach you need. Share your concerns about their safety and health, and your parents will come around and say yes.
Getting help from others
Forming a caregiving group or getting help from your brothers, sisters, uncles, aunts and children to address your loved ones’ needs is also recommended. You can even look outside the family because an unrelated person can present a personal, neutral opinion about the situation and offer their solutions. Also, every person finds it easier to reveal their fears to an outside person.
Who Can Help and Be that Person?
- Your personal doctor – he can define the medical needs, and moreover, refer you and your parents to other people or professionals who can be of a lot of help when it comes to making care arrangements and care costs.
- Word-of-mouth – the best way to tackle any problem. Your neighbors or friends might have already been through similar situations, aging in place maybe, so they can advise you.
Assessing personal needs
The elderly are usually into privacy personal independence. If your parents are like this, that means a nursing home is not for them. They should stay home where they can receive minimal home assistance. Others want to hire a professional agency that can organize a comprehensive program. If your parents are planning to rely on an outside agency, a home care directed by agency combined with professional adult daycare is the best solution. Still, some prefer the ease and security provided by residential care facilities, especially if Medicare covers them, even though they don’t need such high care level offered in such institutions. For many people, the senior care cost plays an important role here.
In conclusion, you need to start the conversation early, include every family member, explain the purpose of the discussion, understand the needs of your parents to control their lives, learn what approach is the best for senior retirement, agree to disagree and be patient.
