Is Home Care A Good Option? Here's Some Tips To Help You Decide

Many elderly people choose to stay in their homes for as long as possible. They feel more independent and comfortable in the home they love. However, when the issue arises as to whether elderly people can take care of their home and themselves, families have to make some difficult decisions. Should the elderly person stay in the home or move to an assisted living facility?

Here is some information to help families decide if home care is a good option for an elderly loved one.

What Are The Main Issues With Care?

If your elderly loved one refuses to move, you can assess the situation and decide if home care is a good option. This allows the elderly person to remain in the home, close to loved ones and surroundings that make them feel safe.

This also gives them a sense of freedom, which is important for mental health as well as physical health. To determine if home care is a possibility, ask yourself what type of help the elderly person needs. An in-home caregiver can help if the elderly person only needs help in certain areas, such as:

• Cleaning
• Meal preparation
• Grooming
• Dressing
• Driving
• Other daily tasks

If the elderly person requires around the clock medical care, home care may not be the right choice.

What Are Some Home Care Options?

Once it's decided that home care is right for your loved one, you must find someone to assist. You do have a few different options to ensure your loved one is getting the help and care needed to stay in the home.

Family Help: Asking family to help works well if you have several family members who can take turns offering assistance. This is a task that should not fall on the shoulders of one family member because taking care of elderly loved ones can be challenging, no matter how much you love them. This is also a good option if the funds aren't there to hire help.

Hired Help: Many home care agencies offer access to hire compassionate caring people to come into the home and help out. Depending on your needs and budget, you can hire someone to come in part-time or to live in the home.

Remote Monitoring: When falls are a concern, but the elderly person can care for him or herself, remote monitoring is a good option. This is ideal for elderly parents that have medical issues but can cook and care for the home. With monitoring devices, help is just the push of a button away.

Combination: When cost is a concern, you can hire a caregiver part-time and have family fill in when they can. Another option is to install a monitoring device so the person has access to help at times when family or caregiver is not available. This can reduce costs, but also provide the elderly with loved ones.

Only you and your elderly loved ones can decide which type of care or combination of care works best for your situation, so take time to discuss and research all the options. Talk to a company that offers home care, such as Elkview General Hospital for more information.