Getting aged care help is more often a subject regularly raised in the minds of the children of aging parents or even elderly themselves. However, difficulty lies in bringing up the issue especially when the family is in denial of an aged-related problem.
Sometimes, only when the actual crisis arises that the family starts frantically searching for aged care help expecting to find one that magically suits all the criteria. However, due to the pressing of time, they are eventually forced to compromise and end up going with an aged care help that isn’t suitable for their loved one. This leads us to ponder when exactly is the right time to move into aged care?
According to research and decades of observation, the stipulated best time for elders to get aged care help is when they still can accomplish the task that is required for their basic needs or while they require only minimal attention for the transition to take place smoothly. Most elderly that are comfortable with aged care help are those that have been given the opportunity to mentally prepare themselves beforehand. It is not unusual for the family to take the elderly to visit many aged care centres, enquiring into various factors such as lifestyle, cost, diet nutrition, health care standards, community, and so on, before they make a collective decision. However, more often than not, elderly folks are usually most contented being at home in a familiar environment which brings the preference of getting aged care help at home as opposed to moving into an aged care facility.
As such, a big no-no would be to wait until either when the elderly is in need of high-level care or when the family is at the brink of collapsing from stress to start looking for suitable aged care help. If you are already reading this and the idea of getting aged care help has crossed your mind, then the right time to get aged care help is most likely now.
Aged care now? Look for these signs
* Loss of interest in activities and hobbies
* Poor physical health and hygiene
* Confusion performing daily tasks
* Changes in character, mood swings, sudden rageDon’t be afraid to broach the subject across the table. In fact, some elderly folks are afraid to bring up the topic first as they are worried about the judgement others may pass upon them.
Perhaps, start gently by speaking from their perspective as this can help open up doors for discussion as the family explores aged care help preferences.
Once the family has set out a list of preferences of aged care help, it’s time to start making calls gain a better understanding of your options. It usually is worth the effort to check out at home aged care options as elderly folks often prefer being in a comfortable, familiar environment.
It’s important to remember that growing old is a scary thing and when you make a lifelong adjustment abrupt such as a sudden introduction of aged care help, it can negatively impact your loved one causing anxiety and anguish for all involved. Start your search well in advanced to give them time to ease into it and to enhance the positive emotions surrounding the aged care help transition.
