My name's Marcy. I’m forty-two years old, single, and live alone. I had knee surgery six months ago, and I didn’t plan to have a professional help me after surgery. What a mistake! I made it a total of one day home alone before calling in a home health care professional. I had family and friends who were available to help, and they were great when it came to cooking and cleaning. However, when it came to helping with personal hygiene, caring for my surgery site, and helping me move, I needed more than family and friends. I’m going to share more about my home health care experience. I hope you find what I share to be helpful.
Home Health Care after Surgery
What Will An In-Home Memory Care Service Do For Your Loved One?
Ngoc Volkers
When you hear the words "memory care," you may picture a facility similar to an assisted living facility where your loved one stays full-time. If your loved one does not need this level of care yet and if you really want them to stay at home, then you may think that memory care services are not for you. However, there are also services that provide in-home memory care. They send caregivers out to patients' homes; the patients themselves do not need to move. Here are some of the things a memory care service can do for your loved one in their own home.
Help with bathing and hygiene.
Older adults with memory problems sometimes struggle to take care of their own hygiene. They may not remember to bathe, or they may forget to do things like brush their teeth. An in-home caregiver can assist with these things so that you know they are being done properly. Caregivers are trained to provide these services with tact and respect, which will help your loved one feel more comfortable.
Prepare meals.
Older adults tend to experience a decline in appetite. Pair this with memory trouble, and it makes sense why adults with memory problems do not always feed themselves well. A caregiver can prepare and serve meals. They can even leave meals in the fridge for your loved one, along with reminders, so that they are more likely to eat when they are on their own. Good nutrition will help keep your loved one healthier overall and may even reduce some of their memory problems.
Recommend layout changes.
A caregiver can observe how your loved one lives in their space and make recommendations for changes that might make their daily life easier. For example, are they always forgetting which room is the bathroom? The caregiver might recommend putting a sign on the bathroom to make things easier. Do they forget to take things out of the microwave? The caregiver might recommend putting the microwave on the table so they can sit near it while their food heats, which will jog their memory.
Monitor health changes.
Caregivers have healthcare training, which means they are more likely to notice changes in your loved one's health than you may be. They will also know whether certain changes are a cause for alarm or not. It can be really helpful to know that someone knowledgeable is keeping an eye on your loved one's health.
Even if your loved one is not ready to go into a memory care facility, they can benefit from in-home memory care services. Talk to a caregiver service near you to learn more.
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