When you are seeking out a home health care provider for your elderly parent, there are many factors you are likely considering and taking into account. However, it can sometimes be easy to overlook some of the smaller details in your search process when you are focused on the bigger picture. Get to know some of the details that you should work out with your elderly parent's senior home care services provider so that you can be sure that your parent gets all of the care and assistance they need going forward.
Discuss The Type Of Mobility Assistance And Lifts They Are Able To Provide
The various home care services that may be operating in your area will all have different rules and restrictions on the extent of physical assistance they can provide to your parent. These rules and regulations are designed to protect the safety of caregivers as well as the clients that they serve.
Be sure that you fully discuss with your parent's home care service the type of mobility services that your parent needs before they begin providing them with care. If your parent cannot get out of bed on their own but only needs partial assistance like holding their hands for balance or holding the walker or wheelchair steady while they stand up, nearly all caregiver services can provide those types of partially assisted lifts and transfers.
However, if your loved one needs to have their full body weight held up with the assistance of a person and/or a lifting device, then some caregivers may not have training and proper insurance to provide the help. Discuss any restrictions in this regard with the care services company so you can be sure that you chose the right type of care for your parent.
If Overnight Care Is Needed Be Sure To Specify The Type
There are two types of overnight care that a home care service can provide. These two types are asleep overnights and awake overnights. An asleep overnight shift means that the caregiver will stay at your parent's home overnight but are allowed to sleep while doing so. Of course, if your parent needs help, the caregiver would then wake up to provide assistance. This would be ideal if your parent is largely independent but just likes to know that someone is around in case they need help or if they only need help getting out of bed to go to the bathroom but can do everything else on their own.
On the other hand, home care services can provide awake overnight services. In these instances, the caregiver is required to stay awake for the duration of their shift so that they are ready and able to provide all of the care and assistance your parent will need during the night. If your parent has dementia or Alzheimer's disease, for example, an awake overnight caregiver would be the best option because people with dementia often have spells of confusion and tend to wander in the middle of the night.
Ask If They Are Able Or Willing To Continue Care If Your Parent Moves To Senior Living
It can take your elderly parent some time to get used to their home caregivers and develop close working relationships with them. As such, if your loved one ends up needing more extensive care or finds that they are no longer comfortable remaining in their own home for any reason, you want to be sure that they can continue to work with their current caregivers.
Talk to the home care services provider about their ability and willingness to work with your parent if they move to a senior living or assisted living community. That way, you will be able to choose the caregiver service that can stick with your parent through changes in residence and care needs.
Now that you know more about a few of the important details that you should discuss with your elderly parent's home healthcare service, you can be sure that you find the right provider for your parent and get them the care and support they need. For more information, contact services like Staff Mates Homecare.
Share2 June 2016
Having a daughter comes with a number of challenges. One challenge that you will one day need to tackle is determining when to introduce your daughter to the gynecologist. Do you take your daughter to the same gynecologist that you see or take her somewhere else? Do you wait until she gets her first period or do you take her in to learn about the menstrual cycle from the doctor? There is a long list of questions you likely have about introducing your daughter to the world of gynecology. Having gone through this twice myself, I have learned quite a bit and have included a lot of helpful information in my site to help other parents get through this complicated time a little easier.
