It’s a tale we’ve all heard – an elderly person fell down some stairs and broke his or her hip. The elder has an uphill climb ahead of them to a full recovery, or any recovery at all. Many people never fully recover, are stuck in a wheelchair or moved into an assisted living center. None of these scenarios has to be the case--most times with good rehabilitation, after care and support a senior that falls can return to a safe, independent lifestyle.

A similar event happened to a client of Easy Living’s. He fell down his stairs, broke his hip and completed rehabilitation. He wanted to return home after rehabilitation and with around the clock home care from Easy Living he was able to do so and rebuild his strength. He has returned to living completely on his own and he's able to walk up and down his stairs again.

This isn’t a unique story. Easy Living helps elderly individuals every day live more independently and return back to health. Our home caregivers can provide transportation to medical appointments, help around the house, ensure medications are taken properly, cook nutritious meals and provide constant encouragement, all of which lead to returned health and living back at home independently.

EasyLiving supports independent living, healthy aging and prevention. Check out our Falls Prevention Checklist or contact us for more information on fall prevention or to schedule a free, in-home consultation.

A new feature to our blog: Home Care stories from our clients and ways our home care services can help. We hope that if you recognize a situation you and your family are facing, these stories will help identify some of the ways home caregivers can provide solutions.

Date Night Interrupted

Imagine you’re getting ready to go out on a long-overdue date with your husband, but just as you’re heading out the door, you receive a frantic call from your mom. She has lost her keys… again, and is begging for you to come over and help her find them. There goes your romantic, relaxing date night. Instead you have to drive over to your mom’s house, calm her down and help her find her keys. There’s no telling how long it will take, so you call and cancel your dinner reservations.

This entire scenario could be avoided if your mom had a home care aide. Not only would the aide be there to help mom find her keys, but they probably wouldn’t have been lost in the first place because the home caregiver would have made sure your mom put the keys back in their rightful place. And to be honest, your mom’s call might not be about keys at all. She could just be lonely, and a home health aide would address this problem as well. In addition, to helping your mom around the house, a home caregiver is there to keep her company as well.

The less your mom relies on you, the more your relationship will benefit. As much as you don’t want your evening interrupted, your mom doesn’t want to have to rely on you to come to her rescue. Having a home health aide there to help care for her, allows the two of you to maintain that mother-daughter relationship. Instead of having to stop by to take check on her, you can stop by just to spend time with her. We offer home care solutions for family caregivers and invite you to contact us today for a free consultation.

You may also wish to read our blog post on How In Home Care Services Can Improve Your Relationship with Your Parents.

We understand that economic times are tough and it can be quite costly to pay for home care for a loved one, family member or even yourself. We thought it would be helpful for you to gain some insight from EasyLiving’s Executive Director, Alex Chamberlain, regarding finding affordable home care that is right for you.

You and your family have decided that it is time to bring in outside help to assist with the care of a loved one in need. Because you want them to be able to remain safe, comfortable and independent in their own home for as long as possible, you have chosen to hire an in-home caregiver or home healthcare agency. The next step is choosing the best care provider for you and your loved one. But how do you know who the best is?

Here are five tips for finding a quality home care provider:

1. Get recommendations. Talk to trusted professionals and community members. Your parent’s doctor, financial advisor, attorney, other medical providers, friends or family members may have familiarity and experience with local companies that do a good job. A list of providers is also available from your local Area Agency on Aging or hospital social work department. However, it is rare for these resources to make specific recommendations.

2. Know your liability. Understand the possible liabilities and ramifications involved when hiring a caregiver privately. Consider issues such as taxes, insurance, liability and worker’s compensation, backup coverage, background checks/oversight and training. If hiring through a nurse registry or employment agency, the family may end up being the official employer, responsible for pay, taxes and other obligations. On the other end of the spectrum, fully licensed private duty home health agencies offer more comprehensive services and protections as employers of the caregivers.

3. Consider innovation. Research how current their monitoring and communications technology is. How easy is it to monitor the care your loved one is receiving? Can you speak to the caregiver or management at any time?

4. Get to know who you’re hiring. When talking with an agency, get a feel for their process. Will they allow you and your loved one to interview potential caregivers? How do they handle replacing a caregiver that is not a good fit? What steps do they take to ensure coverage and accountability? How do they supervise, train and support staff? Do they strive for continuity or will your loved one have different staff each time? How many caregivers will cover the shifts your loved one requires? While regulations standardize licensed home care agencies to a degree, these are the things that will set one agency apart from another.
 
5. Research involvement. Seek out providers who have a history in the community and the industry. Check if providers are involved with local and national associations such as the Alzheimer’s Association, the Area Agency on Aging and the National Private Duty Association. Their involvement demonstrates passion and dedication for their field. Management staff that has a history in the community and the profession demonstrates a commitment, stability and a positive reputation that they would want to protect. EasyLiving's team is involved with many local community and professional groups: click here to view some of our professional affiliations.

With many years of advocating for the rights of seniors and their families in Pinellas County Florida, EasyLiving, Inc., a fully licensed, private duty home healthcare company, has dedicated its company to offering clients more personalized service, flexible scheduling and reliable, expert caregivers. EasyLiving caregivers undergo an extensive interview process to ensure that they maintain fully qualified and licensed team members. Every caregiver has completed a criminal background check and drug screening, and are insured, bonded and covered under worker’s compensation to ensure that our clients receive the highest quality service from trustworthy, experienced professionals. EasyLiving provides paid training as well as all continuing education requirements to its caregivers annually, enabling them to improve their expertise and service.

To review more information on how we provide the highest quality home care in Pinellas County and learn more about our philosophy, view this blog post Q&A with our Executive Director, Alex Chamberlain on quality home health care and contact us today for a FREE consultation and answers to your questions.

Most seniors wish to remain in home as they age, maintaining their routine, possessions and familiar surroundings. The question that weighs on many elderly persons and their family members is “Can I afford in home care?” and “How can I find affordable in home care options?” We work with clients and families every day to create affordable in home care plans to meet their needs.

Here are 4 tips for your consideration when it comes to finding affordable in home care for elderly and seniors:

1. Determine your needs and put together a plan that prioritizes where you need help most. Receiving affordable in home care for a few hours/week can help you maintain health and wellbeing and save money in the long run.

2. Use a combination of resources to meet your needs. Perhaps you use a subsidized transportation service for doctor’s appointments, but once or twice per week you could have an in home care assistant provide personalized, door-to-door transportation to cover all of your errands, help with shopping, additional appointments and social outings. As a caregiver, you might divide up some time between family members, your loved one might attend an adult day program once/week and you might use affordable in home care as an option at other times.

3. Get an assessment of your needs and options. Request a free in home meeting where you can review your affordable in home care options. You can also set up an appointment with a geriatric care manager for a more in-depth assessment with specific recommendations for an in home care plan with specific resources and financial/benefits options.

4. Plan ahead if possible and find out about your insurance coverage for in home care. Learn more about what Medicare pays for when it comes to in home care and how you can fill the gaps. Explore long term care insurance and other options for financing care.

Need help identifying affordable in home care options and resources to help you with aging in place? Request a free in home care consultation today!

Your loved ones probably don't need more "stuff". What could they really use? It can be a challenge to come up with a meaningful, useful and loving gift for older loved ones, especially if they have health issues, limited mobility or have downsized and moved to a retirement community. Consider giving the gift of home care. EasyLiving offers a range of elderly home care services that are needed--from light housekeeping to meal preparation, transportation, companionship and concierge services for special events or travel (even long-distance travel) and help after a surgery or hospitalization.

Elderly Home Care Services Options

Purchase a gift certificate, redeemable for hours of elderly home care service, so that your loved one can benefit this holiday season. Here are some examples of the ways you and your loved ones may benefit from elderly care at home:

• Concerned about Mom driving? Give the gift of a personal driver to take her where she needs to go, on her schedule.

• Could your loved one use some company during the holiday season? Give the gift of companionship to enjoy outings, shopping or visiting at home.

• Are there household projects that need to be done? Give the gift of household help--for errands, light housekeeping, organizing and maintenance.

• Are holiday traditions important to your loved ones? Give the gift of a helper to wrap gifts, complete cards, make favorite holiday recipes or attend holiday events.

To learn more about our elderly home care services options for your older loved ones, contact us today . We can provide tips on making the holidays special and help you purchase elderly home care gift certificates for your loved ones. They make the perfect gift for the holidays or any time of year.

For additional elderly home care gift ideas, check out the Aging Wisely Gifts for Seniors Guide.