Your parents have spent the majority of their lives independent and self-responsible, helping you to navigate through a world of experiences as you grew into your own life, and now the tides have turned and they’re in need of your support.
When your elderly parents reach the “decision making point” – the time when a choice needs to be made so they’re keeping a good quality of life and able to meet their daily needs with assistance – thoughtful decisions are needed. Choices lie between reliable homecare services that can help them to remain comfortable in their own home for as long as possible, a care or retirement facility, or moving in with you.
Making room for Mom and Dad is a scenario that’s increasingly being played out by grown children across Canada, especially for baby boomers with children of their own to care for. It’s a time of transitions, adjustments, and major challenges for everyone. As the grown child, your life can’t help but drastically change and you may faced with controlling the TV volume for your hard of hearing mother, meal planning to suit dietary restrictions, dealing with mood swings (yours or theirs), or playing chauffeur. Primary caregivers responsible for their parents’ care often need to reduce their working schedules to meet the increased demands at home, placing financial strain as the cherry on top.
Not that it’s any easier for the parents to move under your roof. Aging parents are transitioning into an unknown world themselves, often slowly losing their abilities while facing medical problems and feelings of guilt for needing your daily assistance. They may feel shame at needing you to bathe them or assist with grooming. No doubt they’re frustrated, too.
Solutions? At Premier Homecare Services, we have flexible schedules personalized to meet your needs and we offer all the services you need to help your parents remain independent. Whether they are helped to stay in their own home, or you have some extra help around yours, Premier Caregivers can help. If you’d like more information, please contact your local office.
RELATED POSTS & RESOURCES:
Transitioning from Hospital to Homecare – Premier Homecare Services Blog
When Caregiver Expectations Turn into Frustrations – Premier Homecare Services Blog
When Mom/Dad Move In – National Association of Social Workers, Help Starts Here
100 years ago your life expectancy would have been in your 40s. Today, Canadians are now expected to reach about 80 – a doubling of life expectancy.
Recently, I talked with a friend about what age we’d like to reach if we were given the choice. I feel like we all must know someone who says “live fast, die young,” or “I’m not going anywhere for a while.” Call it intuition, but I’ve always felt that I’m going to live a long life, not of the centenarian variety, but a long enough life with what I hope will be a good quality of life.
Quality AND Quantity
That’s the key. Living a full, long life is wonderful, but only when it’s accompanied by a positive quality of life with which to enjoy it. We want to remain physically active with mental acuity. It appears that centenarians, or those who live to be over 100, often have this right combination.
Here’s what centenarians have in common, according to the Boston University School of Medicine’s New England Centenarian Study:
- Most centenarians are slim or lean, not obese.
- Extensive smoking habits are rare.
- Are better able to handle stress and life’s difficulties.
- Are less likely to get dementia.
- Appears to be a genetic link, with many children following
in their parents’ footsteps. - And here’s an interesting one, most centenarian women gave birth
after the age of 35 or 40 through natural conception. In fact, a woman
in this case is 4 times more likely to be a centenarian!
If you’re looking to be one of the 14,000 centenarians expected to be living in Canada by 2031, then you might want to start making some changes for longevity. And if that’s not old enough for you, the number 150 made headlines when a biomedical gerontologist and chief scientist of a foundation dedicated to longevity research announced his belief that 150 years will soon be realized. He views aging as something to be managed, much like an illness or disease.
Why not leave a comment sharing how old you’d like to be? What is your favourite anti-aging tip?
At Premier Homecare Services, our personalized services help you or your loved ones remain independent, where most comfortable, for as long as possible. We’d love to tell you how! Please contact a local office to speak with us or to schedule a free, in-home assessment.
To health, to life!
RELATED POSTS & RESOURCES:
Is this Normal Aging or Not? WebMD Article by M.C. Marill
Increase your Longevity – Canadian Living Magazine, A. Bokma
10 Fun ways to live longer – Article by Dr. Mark Stibich
When it comes to longevity of life, keeping friends close is more important than family. People with many friends live longer than those with fewer friends and social interactions. While having good friends makes our lives richer and longer, the same isn’t true for family.
In a 10-year study of people aged 70 and older, researchers at the Centre for Ageing Studies (Flinders University,Australia), found that maintaining a network of close friends is more likely than good family relationships to increase longevity in older adults.
People with extensive networks of friends, confidantes and companions outlived those with the fewest friends by 22 percent, a remarkable difference. Also, the positive effects of friendships continued throughout the decade-long study, despite profound life changes such as death of a spouse.
While friendships may be a marker for longevity, it’s not to discredit the important role of family to older adults. It’s simply that this study found that family has little effect on survival and longevity.
Why is friendship so important to longevity?
During our lives friends come and go with hopefully a few close ones that we can rely on in times of need. Having someone to turn to when times get tough, to lend a sympathetic ear, can be a distinct advantage over those with no one else to talk too. Friends offer coping mechanisms, support and advice, as well as having positive effects on mood and self-esteem.
At Premier Homecare Services, our professional caregivers provide companionship and can assist your aging loved one with mobility issues to safely get out and meet with friends. If you would like more information to help your loved ones to remain more independent, healthy and happy, please contact a local office.
RELATED POSTS & RESOURCES:
How and Why You Should Maintain Friendships – Article by Elizabeth Scott, M.S.
Getting the Most from your Homecare Agency – Premier Homecare Services Blog
The Australian Longitudinal Study of Ageing – Centre for Ageing Studies, Flinders University
Why it is exactly that in Canada we lump together healthcare and homecare as though they were one in the same – as though the very real needs of our elderly and their uncompensated caregivers can wait under the umbrella of “healthcare first?” Homecare and Healthcare are distinct and the government should take a closer look at the real needs of aging Canadians, their caregivers and the lack of attentive support given to our aging populace.
The most typical situation for seniors is to suffer from a chronic health problem, making it difficult for them to look after themselves at home, but without actually requiring a lot of medical attention. Help is needed with all of the little things that become difficult for all of us as we age and lose our valued independence.
Personal care help, reminders to take medication, friendly conversation, meal preparation and tidying up the home are the day to day activities needed to keep seniors independent and well. Instead, the limited amount of funds set aside for homecare is spent on programs like Ontario’s Aging at Home strategy, now a $1.1-billion program directed at helping those fortunate to live in the vicinity of one of the 14 Local Health Integration Networks (LHIN’s), which are responsible for distributing funds mostly for those in hospitals get at-home medical attention during recovery. This is important, no doubt, but leaves little for the actual daily needs of millions of Canadians despite 20% of it being “earmarked for innovative projects.”
A first step would be for the government to separate homecare from healthcare and budget accordingly. Homecare, which is really a social service, simply can’t compete with the ever increasing costs of hospitals and healthcare providers. It is overshadowed and pushed aside as though the pending emergency of homecare doesn’t loom on the horizon for us all. If homecare were separated from healthcare, Canadians could see for themselves where money was being spent.
Programs are needed to adequately support family caregivers who tirelessly and thanklessly save the government billions of dollars shouldering the burden by caring for their own family. Canadians want respite for family caregivers and a better calculation of ‘need’ for public homecare dollars so they can breathe a little easier.
In addition, a bridging network of community-based supports that assist seniors living at home is needed, one that cooperates with private homecare services providers like Premier Homecare Services, and integrates all existing not-for-profit initiatives and public organizations. Quite an undertaking, no doubt, but if our government is not willing to prepare for the very real fact that boomers are aging and change is needed – who will?
RELATED POSTS & RESOURCES:
Supporting Caregivers and Caregiving in an Aging Canada – IRPP Study (Nov. 2011)
Family Caregivers Need Respite from Holidays – Premier Homecare Services Blog
Tips on Managing Long Distance Caregiving – Premier Homecare Services Blog
Families that make decisions together, cooperate together. Well, at least in an ideal world. In reality, while families are coming together over a busy holiday and using this time to hold meetings, discussing the care and concerns of an aging loved one, decisions that are made can fall apart, are ignored or forgotten, or the distributed responsibilities fall back upon the shoulders of one or two frustrated caregivers again.
Unfortunately, family meetings are often fraught with tensions, underlying fears, long-felt entitlements, and can easily turn into conflicts difficult to resolve when apart. If you want productive discussions to result in decisive strategies for the care and well-being of your loved one, now and into the future, keep the following in mind.
Who should be there? Ask yourself who should be included in the decision making? Whether or not the relative in question is present, their preferences for care should be carefully considered. After all, it is their life being discussed. Some families prefer having the first meeting without the loved one present. Those with dementia may misinterpret the purpose of the meeting and feel threatened. If someone cannot attend, consider teleconferencing or using an internet video chat.
Planning a Meeting Time, Place, Goals and Agenda - Setting aside a time strictly for this family meeting is important, as you want it to be productive and not another social get-together. Stating the purpose of the meeting beforehand and proposing an agenda gives everyone a chance to think about their opinions on the decisions at hand and to consider options. They may also wish to add to the agenda. Consider holding the meeting at a local coffee shop or neutral meeting place. Setting goals for the meeting is a way to keep on topic, and to see progress.
Consider Hiring a Facilitator - When it comes to decisions regarding the care of a loved one, emotions can damage efforts at communication or families may be divided on a big issue. Hiring a facilitator such as a social worker, minister, case manager or family counselor may improve the efficiency of time together, ensures everyone’s opinion is heard and may even keep everyone on their best behaviour.
Consensus and Compromise - Not everyone is going to agree with the decisions made. Work towards consensus-based decisions and compromises that can work for the majority of family members and still respect the wants and needs of your loved one.
Put it in Writing - Write down the final, agreed upon decisions clearly. Outline the individual steps required to reach these final decisions and whom will be responsible for them. Consider adding timelines. This document can be signed, or at least a copy sent to everyone with their own understood responsibilities highlighted. For example, homecare may be decided upon, but who is going to find the proper homecare agency? Who is going to pay for the bills? Who is going to be on call in case of emergency? And so on. These are practical details that can’t be overlooked.
Consider Homecare Services - Personalized and reliable caregivers from Premier Homecare Services make life easier for many families. Please contact your local office and speak with a care coordinator on how our services can help your family.
RELATED POSTS & RESOURCES:
Care Management Skills You Can Use – Premier Homecare Services Blog
Signs Your Elderly Parents Need Homecare Help – Premier Homecare Services Blog
Holding a Family Meeting – (American) Center for Disease Control (CDC)
Flu season is almost upon us and while many of us get the vaccination “just to be sure” or because we are required to, have you ever doubted whether or not the flu vaccination really works? Does it prevent you from getting the flu?
Each year researchers decide which three influenza strains are likely to make the most people sick that year and these are then included into the vaccine. Flu shots are recommended by HealthCanada for everyone over the age of 6 months, every year, especially those in higher risk populations such as older adults or those with a weakened immune system. It’s recommended you take the flu shot in October or November so that it’s working well when flu season starts. It takes about two weeks after receiving the vaccination for it to become effective and generally lasts for about six months up to a year.
Now, here is where the story of your co-worker or your friend comes in, you know, the one who complained of being home sick with the flu days after receiving the vaccine last year. In fact, it’s scientifically impossible to get the flu from the flu shot as it contains inactive or dead influenza bacteria. So, chances are these frustrated people vouching never to get the flu shot again most likely caught the flu bacteria before the vaccine became effective (remember, it takes up to two weeks).
The flu shot isn’t guaranteed to work for everyone, but it is proven to provide good prevention against the season’s most common strains of flu virus, to the majority of vaccinated people. These are good odds. In a recent study released by the Institute for Clinical Evaluative Sciences (ICES),Ontario’s flu strategy delivered positive results, preventing an estimated 300 influenza related deaths, 1000 hospitalizations, 30,000 visits to the emergency department and 200,000 visits to doctors’ offices.
In addition to taking the flu shot, you should be aware of how to prevent the flu.
At Premier Homecare Services, we encourage all of our professional caregivers to receive their annual flu vaccination, providing that extra bit of insurance against our clients becoming ill. If you’d like more information on our caregivers or the services we provide to enable your loved ones to remain more independent at home, please contact your local office within Ontario and British Columbia.
RELATED POSTS & RESOURCES:
Transitioning from Hospital to Homecare – Premier Homecare Services Blog
Flu Prevention Checklist – Public Health Agency ofCanada
Does the Flu Vaccination Work? – (American) Center for Disease Control (CDC)
September is Alzheimer’s awareness month, and with progress being made to understand the mysteries inside our aging craniums, and current treatment options focused on establishing early diagnosis, are we at least now able to make correct and prompt early dementia diagnoses?
Many early symptoms of Alzheimer’s are ambiguous or simply not recognizable, especially by a general practitioner (GP) who may only see their patients irregularly and then depend on observations from patients themselves, caregivers, and family members.
Mild coordination problems may be present, but most of the early symptoms include mood shifts, communication problems and cognitive or memory loss concerns, in other words, invisible symptoms. Often, people who experience early symptoms of memory loss try to hide this fact from others out of fear.
A recent meta-analysis completed by researchers from UK’s University of Leicester involved over 15 thousand people seen by general practitioners, including over 7 thousand with some cognitive impairment. Only 45% of people with early dementia and mild cognitive impairment were properly identified. Mild cognitive impairment is a condition thought to precede dementia.
Researcher and consultant psychiatrist, Dr. Alex Mitchell said, “This study highlights for the first time that GP’s trying to identify dementia actually make more false positive errors, with misidentifications outnumbering missed cases at least two to one.” Part of this misdiagnosis is due to the fact that “patients with depression or hearing problems were more at risk of being misidentified” suggested Dr. Mitchell.
Perhaps more responsibility needs to be placed on family members and friends to notice early symptoms in a loved one, rather than relying on GP’s. Learn about the 10 early signs of dementia, normal aging vs. Alzheimer’s disease, and when it might be time to see a doctor. Contact your local Premier Homecare Services and ask about our homecare services. Our professional in-home caregivers have dementia and Alzheimer’s training and are skilled at recognizing early symptoms of memory loss and dementia in our clients.
RELATED POSTS & RESOURCES:
Are There Ways I Can Prevent Alzheimer’s? – Premier Homecare Services Blog
GP’s Missing Early Dementia – University ofLeicester
Early Detection by Family Members and Friends – On Memory
It’s no surprise thatCanada’s population is aging as boomers make their way into their older years. In fact, Seniors are the fastest-growing segment of the Canadian population, with 4.8 million people aged 65 or older, a figure expected to increase to 10.4 million by 2036.
This aging demographics’ increased demand for services, combined with a decrease in budget commitments from the government, make our future into old age health care seem rather bleak. Canadadoes not have enough qualified Geriatricians or a healthcare system made for them to meet this upcoming demand.
Geriatricians are doctors who specialize in geriatric medicine, troubleshooters who spend time with elderly patients by going over medications, dealing with memory loss problems, identifying access to care concerns and helping avert medical crises (and therefore expensive costs on the healthcare system). Currently there are less than 250 Geriatricians inCanada, and experts predict a need for at least 500 more.
With these few Geriatricians available, and often only in busy city centers, it is the frail elderly with multiple health conditions in poor social conditions that are prioritized to see them. When in fact, their specialized skills could and perhaps should be made benefit to the wider population of aging persons in need.
Canadians are living longer, contributing to society throughout their productive lives, and at minimum deserve a dignified exit. Some suggest that not only Geriatricians are needed, but changes to the healthcare system in which they work – changes that include house calls, increased home care spending and other support services for seniors – ensuring our elderly get respectful treatment.
Reliable homecare provided by Premier Homecare Services ensures your elderly parents’ wide range of needs are met with dignity and sincerity. Ask about our homecare services.
RELATED POSTS & RESOURCES:
Care Management Skills You Can Use – Premier Homecare Services Blog
Do I Need to See a Geriatrician? – SeniorHealth.About.com
A growing number of medical researchers say that leisure activities that challenge the mind— like learning music, playing cards, knitting, and woodworking—can prolong healthy brain functioning.
“We used to think that you were born with all the nerve cells you were ever going to have, and all you could do over your lifetime was lose them,” explains Guy McKhann, MD, founding director of the Zanvyl Krieger Mind/Brain Institute at Johns Hopkins University.” Well, that is wrong. You do make new nerve cells.” Mental challenges activate underused nerve pathways and connections in the brain. This, in turn, prompts the brain to produce growth molecules.
The result? A person’s mental abilities, including memory, remain sharper longer. “In some cases, even mild forms of what we call a brain exercise have been shown to give you about six or seven additional years of cognitive ability,” says Lawrence Katz, Ph.D., a professor of neurobiology at Duke University Medical Center.
The connection between certain types of activities and reducing the risk of dementia has been widely reported.
Here are some ideas to give your brain a workout:
Think in new ways….
Any activity that forces you to think in new ways – requiring you to solve problems, use your imagination, or make associations with information you already have—stimulates the brain.
Change your routine.
“There are ways of living your everyday life that are more brain healthy than others,” he says. “Part of that is making small changes in your routine, so you’re not doing the same thing over and over.” Katz says that actions that break a routine activity in an unexpected way — like shopping at a farmer’s market rather than in the same supermarket every week—can increase brain agility.
Turn off the tube.
“Watching TV is relaxation, not brain exercise,” says Katz. “The passive state of being fed information through your visual system is literally mind-numbing.”
Surprise your senses.
Activities that engage your senses in new ways also qualify as brain exercise, says Katz. For example, cooking or gardening simultaneously engage sight, sound, touch, and smell. “It’s very difficult to make generalizations because for different people, different things are going to work,” says Katz. What’s important is that you do something regularly rather than nothing.
Reprinted from www.aarp.org
As August sees a mass exodus from the offices, most of us envision trading in responsibilities for a glass of wine and a good read. Yet, not all of us are so lucky.
Who works 24 hours a day without benefits, compensation or holidays? Family caregivers do.
Taking a break from the ceaseless responsibilities of being a family caregiver is essential, say many health professionals. Family caregiving is a demanding job, highly stressful and seemingly unrewarding. Family caregivers need a vacation, too!
Vacations are essential ‘mental breaks’ needed to come down from the day to day stresses of a busy, overworked lifestyle. Vacationing once or twice a year helps us feel rejuvenated and refreshed. Family caregivers often don’t get an opportunity to be free from the responsibility of caring for another for years at a time. They either don’t have that choice or don’t know what services are available to help them get the time off they need.
Here’s how family caregivers can take a much needed vacation:
- Respite care is a service that provides the family caregiver with a much needed break from around-the-clock responsibilities. Bringing your loved one to a facility for a respite holiday is an option, but many find uprooting mom or dad from the comforts of home for a week leaves them nervous and worried more than relaxed.
- In-home caregiving services can provide a vacation respite, as well as scheduled weekly respite afternoon to live-in and 24 hour care. With professional caregivers who can cook the meals, clean, do laundry, assist with the responsibilities of daily living and even companionship, this is really a break for you and your loved one. Another benefit of homecare is scheduling a transition period before the vacation to familiarize with the professional caregiver and routines.
- Asking another family member to take over the responsibilities is a good option, provided there is someone who is capable and willing.
- A vacation with your loved one is not really an option for family caregivers to get the rest and rejuvenation they need, but it can sometimes be a good second-best consideration.
Reliable homecare provided by Premier Homecare Services is a cost-effective solution for many, ensuring your elderly parents’ wide range of needs are met and helping you get that vacation you deserve. Ask about our respite services.
RELATED POSTS:
Getting the Most from Your Homecare Agency – Premier Homecare Services Blog
When Elderly Parents want to Stay at Home – Premier Homecare Services Blog
Who Needs a Vacation? Family Caregivers! – Huffington Post