Use your visit to tell if a loved one needs help to stay at home safely. Are you going home for the holidays? If you are, in addition to celebrating take a moment to make sure your older loved ones are still capable of managing their daily lives on their own. Often older adults need some help to stay safe and healthy.
To help determine if older people need help to stay at home, Visiting Angels has developed this simple checklist:
Check their appearance:
• Are they wearing appropriate clothing?
• Is there a drastic change in their clothing choices?
• Are their clothes clean?
• Is there any body odor that could indicate difficulty bathing, washing their hair or brushing their teeth?
• Have they made any drastic changes to their appearance?
Appearance is an immediate clue that the activities of daily living may be becoming more difficult or may indicate deteriorating vision or changes in mental acuity.
Take a look around the home:
• Is the refrigerator appropriately stocked?
• Is the house at its usual level of tidiness?
• Are dishes and laundry being taken care?
• Is there expired food?
• Are they eating enough? What about water intake?
• Are medications organized or are there expired medications?
A change in housekeeping and food choices can indicate difficulty managing shopping, cleaning or cooking.
Talk about their daily routine:
• Ask about activities and friends – are they still participating in things they enjoy?
• Are they able to get themselves to where they want to go?
• Have they skipped or missed appointments?
• Are bills being paid on time?
Giving up activities, missing appointments and ignoring the mail are all signs that an older person may need help. They’re also signs of possible depression.
Staying in their home is typically the goal of most seniors. But the reality may be that caring for a home and managing the activities of daily living can become increasingly difficult as we age. A holiday visit represents an ideal opportunity for adult children to assess older family members’ living situations and see if home care could help them.
If you’re not sure if your loved ones need home care, contact Visiting Angels at 661-263-2273. A consultation may help your loved ones stay at home safely, and give you peace of mind.