Alzheimer’s Home Health Care Requires Good Communication to Smooth the Process
Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias can cause a person to act in different and unpredictable ways. Some individuals with Alzheimer’s become anxious or aggressive. Others repeat certain questions and gestures. Many misinterpret what they see or hear.
These types of reactions can lead to misunderstanding, frustration and tension, particularly between the person with dementia and the caregiver. It is important to understand that the person is not acting that way on purpose.
The physical, emotional and financial effects of caring for a family member with Alzheimer’s disease can be serious threats to a family caregiver’s welfare, especially as stress and pressures mount. If you need home health or assistance with your loved one living with Alzheimer’s in Austin, please call us at 512.347.9207.
When a person has Alzheimer’s disease, the damage to his or her brain can make it difficult to recall or to understand words. Attempting to recall or decipher words can be overwhelming and result in frustration. The person may become agitated or repeat one word or a question over and over – a true test of your patience and understanding.
Home Instead Senior Care in Austin helps families cope with elder care. Please call us at 512-347-9207 when seeking non-medical, companionship, and professional caregvers in Austin.
Family Law - Choosing an Attorney
The search to find the “right” attorney for your parent can happen through a friend or co-workers recommendation, or a caregiver support group. Also, ask your local area Agency on Aging, they can also lead you in the right direction.
When you are interviewing Attorneys, make sure they have a lot of knowledge about Medicaid laws and regulations, tax planning, trusts, power of attorney laws for healthcare and asset management, conservatorships, social security, and housing and/ or healthcare contracts.
Be prepared when you go to your consultation. Here is a simple list of things to bring with you:
1. Existing wills
2. Bank statements
3. Lists of debts
4. Documents of title
5. Lists of major assets
6. Contracts or legally binding documents
Preparation is the key to keeping everyone happy and feeling good about the choices being made. Make sure all family members are on the same page, and keep the emphasis on your parent and the fact that you are all doing this for them. Also, try to praise each other after accomplishing these difficult tasks. Stay positive and focused!
The number of people living with Alzheimer’s in North America is only expected to grow in the upcoming years, and should be around 11.3 to 16 million people by 2050; with 81 people suffering from some form of dementia by 2040.
As a result, the number of family caregivers will increase and so will the need for services to assist Austin Seniors with the day-to-day responsibilities. I don’t make recommendations to my patients and their families unless I know it’s a service or organization that is reputable, safe, knowledgeable, and generally one of the best in the business; but I’ve seen first hand how Home Instead Senior Care’s services can reduce the stress caregivers and their families deal with, and improve the over all quality of life of those living through Alzheimer’s disease.
The news is not all grim, however. More Alzheimer’s patients than ever are staying at home, particularly those in the early stages of the disease. As with your family, loved ones often make extra efforts to keep their seniors at home.
It’s easy for family to get burned out, though. That’s why there is help available for those seniors as well as family caregivers. Home Instead Senior Care employs CAREGivers who can serve as a respite to adult daughters like you, as well as sons and spouses. The company’s CAREGivers perform duties such as meal preparation, light housekeeping, errands and shopping. Some CAREGivers are even trained to work with Alzheimer’s clients. Contact the company today for more information.
For more information about Home Instead Senior Care, contact <<Insert Franchise Owner’s Full Name>> at <<Insert Telephone Number>> or visit www.homeinstead.com. To read this Alzheimer’s Association report, log on to
Question: With my elderly parents, both age 80 in Austin Texas, at risk for Alzheimer’s disease as a result of heredity and age, I’m always looking for the latest research. What’s new?
Exciting new research recently released about Alzheimer’s disease has uncovered an immunization that could offer a way to blunt or even prevent this devastating disease. Jordan Tang, Ph.D., who led the study at the Oklahoma Medical Research Foundation, and other OMRF scientists immunized Alzheimer’s mice with a protein believed to play a key role in the disease causing process.*
The mice who received the vaccination showed a significant reduction in the build up of protein plaques which, when present in the brain for long periods of time, are believed to cause the cell death, memory loss and neurological dysfunction characteristic of Alzheimer’s.
The immunized mice also showed better cognitive performance than control mice that had not received the vaccine. The new research appears in The Journal of the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology.
The next stage of the research, funded in part by a grant from the Alzheimer’s Association, will be testing in humans. “There currently is no effective treatment for Alzheimer’s disease, so we must explore every possible option to find a way to stop it,” he said.
If your company’s Human Resource department is researching options for back-up care for employees taking care of their families, you will want to know how do these programs work. If you are a working mother caring for children and older adults, you might be struggling to get through the days. Call us if you could use some help at 512-347-9207.
You join thousands of others in this nation caring for seniors as well as young children. Many employers like yours are investigating back-up care programs for their employees as a way to reduce employee stress and improve absenteeism and productivity. These programs provide lists of providers that employees can access and contact quickly when they need back-up care.
Work Options Group, a Colorado-based company that specializes in the provision of corporate-sponsored back-up care, shares some feedback from employees who use back-up care. Survey results indicate that the employee benefit does in fact reduce stress and unscheduled absenteeism as well as improve productivity and loyalty among employees. Below are key findings from the 2008 Back-up Care Survey conducted by Work Options Group. More than 1,200 employees who used back-up care through Work Options Group between March 1 and May 31, 2008 completed the survey.
Home Instead Senior Care Austin helps Dementia and Alzheimer’s patients live at home. Please call for more information 512-347-9207.
Our female elders, over the age of 90, are more inclined to dementia and significantly more likely to have dementia than men of the same age. A U of CA - Irvine study shows, one of the largest studies of dementia and other health factors in this age group. It validates the need for elder care & senior care services -Home Instead Senior Care Austin. The need will only continue to increase as the population ages.
The study’s findings show that “more will need to be done to provide adequate resources to care for the increasing number of very old people with dementia”, Maria Corrada, a UC-Irvine epidemiologist and study co-author.
They found signs of dementia in 45 percent of women and 28 percent of men age 90 and older living in a southern California retirement community. Researchers found no clear reason for the discrepancy, but noted that women with higher levels of education were less likely to show signs of senility.
The “oldest old,” is the fastest growing segment of the population, according to the U.S. Census. While there are currently nearly 2 million nonagenarians in the U.S. alone, that number is projected to increase to 10 to 12 million by the middle of the century.
The study appears in the July 2 online issue of Neurology. For more information about caring for your loved one living with memory loss, Home Instead Senior Care Austin can help. Call us today at 512-347-9207.
Wandering is a big concern for elder’s with Alzheimer’s. Family members should be aware of this common issue when dealing with any form of dementia. Too often we hear of an elderly family member that has wandered away from their home, unable to remember their way back. On our Amber alert highway warning signs too often we see Elderly Missing… driving brown or blue or whatever color sedan. How many loved one’s end up in another state, not knowing where they are or where they are going.
If you have a private question for our elder care expert, Catherine Kohl, please send her your confidential question about Alzheimer’s - HISC.Kohl@yahoo.com.
Alz.org gives us some useful tips on elderly wandering. It’s good to know that the elderly or people with dementia often have a purpose or goal in mind when wandering. They may be searching for something that is lost or trying to fulfill a former job responsibility.
Here are some tips to reduce wandering from Alz.org:
Encourage your elder to move and exercise - this helps reduce anxiety, agitation and restlessness
Make sure their basic needs are met like nutrition, thrist, and toileting
Have them participate in activites such as folding laundry or preparing dinner
Camouflage doorknobs by putting cloth napkins over them
Redirect them when they begin to pace or become restless
By placing a mirror near doorways, stop them from leaving or exiting
Always reassure the person if they feel lost or abandoned - leading by the hand, guiding them to their room helps them feel less anxious
Home Instead Senior Care Austin can assist in evaluating your loved one who may possibly exhibit these behaviors and symptoms. Call us at 512-347-9207.
Any caring for an aging loved one whether they are living with Alzheimer’s disease or not, all family members need a break from caregiving. Those living with dementia may want a break from the daily routine at home. You may want to go out and meet your friends for lunch or simply take a drive in the neighborhood.
Respite care can help, by providing a new environment or time to relax. Home Instead Senior Care Austin offers families a break by caring for your loved one for a few hours or several days or weeks depending on your particular needs and interests.
Respite care provides famililes, a temporary break from daily caregiving responsibilities. Using Home Instead Senior Care services supports your ability to continue taking care of your loved one with Alzheimer’s in the home.
Home Instead Senior Care Services:
Our in-home care services offer a range of options:
Companionship services:
Offer elderly companionship and conversation
Provide respite care
Monitor diet and eating
Check food expirations
Assist with evening and tuck-in
Aid with morning and wake-up
Arrange appointments
Provide medication reminders
Aid with reading
Assist with walking
Write letters and correspondence
Organize mail
Stimulate mental awareness
Assist with entertaining
Answer the door
Reminisce about the past
Assist with clothing selection
Care for houseplants
Provide reminders for appointments
Discuss current and historical events
Participate in crafts
Play games and cards
Supervise home maintenance
Record and arrange recipes
Personal care services:
Eating
Grooming
Dressing
Bathing
Incontinence
Cognitive impairment
Mobility
Medication reminders
Home Helper Services:
Provide Alzheimer’s Care
Assist with laundry and ironing
Take out garbage
Change linens
Plan, prepare and clean up meals
Make beds
Dust furniture
Drop off and pick up dry cleaning
Pick up prescriptions
Organize and clean closets
Assist with pet care
Shop for groceries and supplies
Prepare future meals
Escort to appointments
Accompany to lunch or dinner
Escort for shopping and errands
Attend plays and concerts
Escort to religious services
Attend club meetings and sporting events
There are a wide variety of services available, and this list may grow to include activities and support that are unique to your needs. Home Instead Senior Care Austin can help with compassionate, home care services delivered right in your loved one’s home. Call us today 512-347-9207.
Catherine Kohl, our senior care expert, is equipped to answer your toughest questions on Alzheimer’s elder care in Austin - hisc.kohl@yahoo.com.
Because each person living with Alzheimer’s disease in Austin is unique, every individual contributes special talents, knowledge, values and customs to make the world a better place. People living with Alzheimer’s disease and other dementia’s have actively contributed to the world for decades.
Home Instead Senior Care CAREGiversspecialize in Alzheimer’s and dementia related illnesses. In addition to learning more about your loved one, who they are today, but our CAREGivers also want to learn who they were - what your loved one enjoyed doing when he or she was more active and aware, what jobs they had, what cities they lived in, and what countries they formerly traveled.
Learning more about your loved ones contributions to the world, their life experiences, abilities and talents can help our CAREGivers make the most of their daily lives and bring quality back into their worlds. There are various ways to gather a life story. Compiling photos and information and putting them in sequence of events, is a great way to keep your loved one interested in activities. We at Home Instead Senior Care Austin, provide the training required to connect the days and tell a complete story.
Call us for a free consultation 512-347-9207 or send me an email with your questions or concerns about Alzheimer’s disease - HISC.Kohl@yahoo.com.
