Assist elderly with daily living activities is one of the most important things that family members face. Getting older is not easy, but sooner or later, it happens to everyone. It is difficult to watch your parents or grandparents grow old, especially when their physical or mental health declines over time. Many people are entering this uncontrollable stage in life. A stage in which we have to take care of the elderly or those who once took care of us.
Accepting this responsibility is a difficult task and it is necessary to make an impact by doing the right and practical things to improve the living conditions of the elderly. According to the Benefits of In-Home Care for Elderly, using this method in caring for the elderly is one of the best methods. In this article from humanhealthmag, we will explain ways to improve life and help the elderly with daily tasks.
How to Care for and Maintain Elderly Parents
Care and assist elderly with daily living activities include careful care that must be carried out in a healthy and calm environment that does not affect the mental health of the elderly mother. Care including feeding the elderly, giving medications on time, careful medical care and increasing social contact of elderly parents are things that are very effective in caring for them. Note that if you do not have enough time to care for your parents yourself, you can take advantage of Choosing Caregiver for Elderly Parents. Assistance can also be mentioned in the following:
- Cooking meals or helping elderly parents prepare their own meals
- Cleaning their home
- Taking care of their finances
- Preparing raw materials and kitchen supplies
- Parents’ personal hygiene
- Teaching them self-care
- Having wheelchairs for a better rehabilitation process for the elderly
Introducing Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) for Older Adults
The activities of daily living that older adults need to perform fall into six main skill categories. Each category is based on the ability to complete tasks safely and completely without guidance, supervision, or assistance. Many older adults need someone to help them do the following tasks:
- Eating: Can the person successfully move food and drinks from the table to their mouth?
- Bathing: Can the person get into and out of the bathroom without assistance? Can the person wash their body and hair thoroughly?
- Dressing: Can the person choose appropriate clothing, put on and take off their clothes, and do things like buttoning and tying them properly?
- Continence: Can the person control their urination and defecation?
- Toileting: Is the person able to go to the toilet, clean their genitals, and pull up their clothes?
- Getting Around: Is the person able to move from a chair to a bed without the help of another person?
Methods to Assist Elderly With Daily Living Activities
We all know that assisting elderly with daily living activities has many challenges that must be done with utmost compassion and care because just as they once took care of us, now it is our turn to take care of them properly. Below we will explain some methods of caring for elderly parents.
Regular presence with the elderly
- Sometimes our elderly parents want nothing more than the presence and companionship of their children by their side. One of the best things you can do to help your elderly is to visit them in person. Especially if these elderly people live alone, visiting them regularly is very important. Sometimes the elderly’s conditions are impossible for them to live alone and it is necessary to invite them to live in your home. If they agree to do this, it is better to make their new living conditions as similar as possible to their own home and provide them with comfort and peace.
Frequent contact
- If it is not possible to visit the elderly person daily due to busyness and life problems, be sure to call them several times a day and ask about their situation. Even if your elderly person is a very independent person, they still like to hear from you that you care about them. Sometimes a surprise phone call to pay attention and help the elderly can really make an elderly person happy and cheerful.
Empathy with the elderly
- Aging is always accompanied by challenges such as physical disabilities, health ailments, memory loss, lack of freedom and inability to do things they were once good at. All of these can be very frustrating for the elderly. When helping the elderly, try to empathize with them even if you do not understand them. Listening and then responding empathetically will create positive and pleasant feelings in them.
Safeguarding the home environment
- Sometimes as you age, there are places in the home that may be dangerous for the elderly person. To help the elderly, identify these areas in the home and take steps to correct and make them safe. You can use Home Safety Equipment for the Elderly for this.
Cooking
- You can prepare your parents’ meals yourself. Note that buying food and planning to cook and cook together and planning the elderly’s nutrition can help a lot to boost the person’s morale. For example, to pay more attention and help the elderly, go to the elderly’s house with all the family members in an afternoon and take responsibility for buying food, cooking dinner and washing all the dishes and cleaning as a group.
Hiring a part-time or full-time nurse
- Hiring a nurse for the elderly can be a good idea to accompany and help the elderly. Sometimes the permanent presence of a responsible and reliable nurse who can help the elderly with daily tasks and help them both inside and outside the home can be very helpful.
Taking Medications on Time
- Taking medications on time is very important for assist elderly with daily living activities. Independent seniors may need medical supervision due to improper medication use. Issues such as poor vision and memory problems make medication use dangerous for seniors. Label medications and write how to take them in large letters. Also, store medications separately in separate drawers or shelves.
Important Factors in the Lifestyle of the Elderly
assist elderly with daily living activities requires observing some tips and care methods. Improving lifestyle ensures the health of people in old age. With the onset of old age, the sense of taste, smell, vision and touch decreases. Usually, the decrease in the sense of taste and smell is more common in the elderly. This decrease is caused by various factors such as: a decrease in the number of taste buds and olfactory nerve, personal diseases such as Alzheimer’s, medications, surgical interventions and environmental factors. Some lifestyle factors affect physiological age and must be observed to care for the elderly. These tips include:
- Smoking
- Stress control
- Sleep regulation
- Body weight control
- Exercise and physical activity
- Balanced food intake and proper nutrition
Benefits of Assisting the Elderly with Daily Living Activities at Home
Do you have an elderly person in your family who needs care due to illness or reduced physical abilities? If you have not yet made a decision on how to assist the elderly with daily living activities and are considering home care or nursing home care options, we recommend that you read this section of the article to learn more about the benefits of caring for the elderly at home. In general, the benefits of caring for the elderly at home are as follows:
- Affordability
- More attention to the elderly’s well-being
- Maintaining the independence of the elderly
- More comfort and security for the elderly
- Reducing conflict between those around the elderly
- Maintaining the peace of mind of the elderly and children
- Personal care and receiving private attention
- The possibility of faster recovery after illness and surgery
- Companionship and companionship of the caregiver and family with the elderly
Concluding Remarks
In this article, we talked about assist elderly with daily living activities. Caring for the elderly at home requires patience, love, and attention. By following the tips and advice provided in this article, you can help your elderly loved ones live in a safe, comfortable, and loving environment. Home care also allows families to improve the quality of life of their elderly with empathy and kindness. Although this responsibility has its own challenges, with careful planning and use of available resources, it is possible to care for the elderly at home in the best possible way.
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Frequently Asked Questions
How to Help Seniors With Daily Tasks?
To help seniors, you can listen to them and support them by helping them stay connected with their family, friends, and community. You can also help them with household chores.
Why is it Important to Help Your Seniors?
There will come a time when seniors will not be able to function without care. Helping them through their children or caregivers will enable them to live a higher quality of life. Love for them is the best reason to seek senior care for your loved one.
What do Seniors Need Most?
Seniors’ needs include family support, home safety, medical needs, cognitive health, personal hygiene, meal preparation, and physical activity.
Why Should we Respect our Seniors?
Showing respect to seniors is beneficial for both seniors and caregivers. When seniors feel valued, their mental health is also maintained.