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Eldercare
& Caregiver Resource Center: Recognizing
The Need For Help Your parent's golden years. They can be a time of joy and pleasure, filled with laughing grandchildren, golf or other activities, social time with friends and family, and more. They can also be a time of change, a time of uncertainty, as the memory begins playing tricks on them, and once simple tasks become more difficult. And, while sometimes the changes are gradual, occasionally they can spring upon them, particularly in the wake of an illness or accident. With this in mind, you must stay ahead of the game to ensure their safety during all of life's transitions. A key example is being able to recognize when it is time for you to take the initiative and begin investigating your family's options in order to provide the assistance or support needed within your aging loved ones home. According to Eldercare Specialist, Angel McCormick, there are several warning signs that serve as good indicators that it might be time to seek outside support to meet the needs of your parents. If you find that they are forgetting to pay bills or overpaying on them, missing doses of their daily medication or taking it incorrectly, finding that a chronic illness is prohibiting them from doing daily tasks like preparing meals, housekeeping or driving, or are witnessing a reoccurrence of falling - it might be time to consider encouraging them to turn to others for help. Whether they could benefit from you or another relative coming over one afternoon a week to help with household chores and paying the bills or need daily assistance with activities ranging from bathing to transportation, it's important for them to realize that it is okay to ask for help. They will likely be pleasantly surprised to find just how willing others are to lend a hand, from family members and friends to neighbors or members of their church. It can be both a comfort and blessing to have regular visits by these friends and loved ones, as they can meet their emotional needs at a level no one else can. In addition to this existing network, a variety of helpful community resources are also available to help enhance the quality of life for your aging loved one. There are also a number of trained professionals, social workers and experienced geriatric care managers in the area who can assist them with planning, decision-making and the selection and placement of appropriate resources. They can also provide you with educational information on vital aging and caregiver topics, placement services to help determine when a change in living arrangements is the best choice for your parents, direct services to provide care and support in their home and much more. If you think your parents could benefit from such resources but are unsure on where to start, a good place to turn to is your company's Caring Workplace Eldercare Specialist, Angel McCormick @ (314) 802-5106. |
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St.
Andrew's Resources for Seniors: Eldercare & Caregiver Resource Center Home | About St. Andrew's | Communities | At-Home Services | Management Services | Eldercare & Caregiver Resource Center | Charitable Fund |
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