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Posts Tagged ‘elderly’

Retirement is something that, in our twenties at least, we think is that doesn’t need to be considered just yet – and that pensions, savings and the many other financial products that go hand in hand with ‘old age’ are for those of older generations entirely.

You will no doubt have already been advised that you need to plan for retirement now (whenever now happens to be), before it’s too late – and that’s true, but knowing what steps to take can be daunting. Additionally, the noise around what will be the state pension in a couple of decades makes for a bleak future.

Before you start flicking through brochures that explain stakeholder pensions and personal pensions, your first port of call should be the Pensions Advisory Service – an impartial body who are best placed to outline the practicalities or pensions and let you know how to calculate your likely retirement finances by basing your circumstances against plausible levels of investment.

This means that, as any financial advisor will be able to tell you, you do need to start as early as possible if you are to make your retirement finances into something more than a liveable income – but this also means making what extra cash you do have at your disposal work best for you. And now. This is a balance which many understandably struggle with and, perhaps even more understandably, is the main reason that many people feel like they “may as well put retirement planning off for a couple of years.”

To get around this complacency, and the fear, the wisest thing to do would be to speak to a Retirement Planner. These are otherwise known as financial advisors, but with a specialism in retirement planning, and are well-versed in determining the best policy for you – so the best thing might be to speak to a number of retirement planners from different financial institutions or banks in order to get a feel from the levels of potential return across a range of retirement investment plans.

Find the best annuity rates online.

An assisted living residence is often called an assisted living facility or ALF. It is meant to help people who need assistance with some activities of daily living such as taking their medications at the correct dosage and time or taking a bath, but who do not need the 24-hour care they could receive at a nursing home. Texas licenses ALFs as personal care facilities. In Texas, a facility only needs to be licensed if it cares for more than four residents.

The first ALFs opened in the 1980s, when the United States was dealing with an aging, but basically healthy, population who did not have family nearby to help meet the few care needs they did have. These people resisted going into nursing homes, which at the time offered only limited privacy and personal choice. ALFs usually provided people with private rooms or apartments; social activities and outings were available but not mandatory.

ALFs currently house over 1 million people in the U. S. Many of these people suffer from the early stages of illnesses such as Alzheimer’s or Lewy Body Dementia that impair cognition. The rest have purely physical needs. In Texas, there are 830 licensed, and 4000 unlicensed, personal care facilities.

An assisted living residence provides customers with a room and with three nutritious meals every day. In addition, the facility also provides staff to help with activities of daily living. Common needs include help managing one’s medications, performing personal hygiene tasks such as bathing, getting dressed, and going to the bathroom. Some residents may also need help with activities such as transferring from a wheelchair and eating.

Like an apartment complex, a facility charges a basic rate for each room or apartment, with single rooms and studios being the least expensive. The facility then charges extra for the care required by each person. Most facilities express different care levels in “points”–the higher the points, the greater the additional cost.

For instance, in Austin, Texas, ALFs charge an average of $1500 per month for room and board alone. Once you figure in the services most people need, that cost goes up by about $500 per month. These costs are still less expensive than the costs of nursing homes which, in the Austin regions, charge an average of $3000 to $4000 each month.

Although some 90% of ALF residents nation wide pay for their care out-of-pocket, Texas was one of the first two states to pass legislation allowing Medicaid to cover the cost of an assisted living residence through its Community-Based Alternatives program. This program helps over 20,000 Texans who would not be able to afford assisted living care otherwise.

Assisted living is not an appropriate care option for everyone. Those who live in an ALF must be able to comprehend emergency instructions (e. G., “Go out that door and wait for me on the sidewalk.”), and must be able to evacuate themselves from a dangerous situation such as a burning building. Assisted living is also not an appropriate option for anyone who requires 24/7 care and supervision nor is it a good choice for people who require invasive procedures, such as IV medications, as part of their care.

Happen to be looking for Assisted Living Texas or Assisted Living California? Our directory provides up-to-date and comprehensive listings for seniors across North American.

Caring for a family member inflicted with symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease is both debilitating and a challenging task. Each day brings new demands as the caregiver copes with the rapid progression of the new patterns of behavior of the Alzheimer’s patient.

In preparing and setting up an effective home care for an Alzheimer’s patient, a compassionate caregiver must make the following changes in a new home environment:

1. As the disease progresses, adjusting your communication style to the patient’s changing needs.

2. Scheduling visitors to avoid surprises and have something to look forward to. Even if the elder with dementia does not recognize those who visit, the contact is nonetheless valuable for them.

3. Establishing routines in activities of daily living. Be accepting of the increasingly limited capabilities of the person with dementia and implement care strategies accordingly. Do your best to be patient, kind, flexible, supportive, and calm. This disease is no one’s fault, although it is very aggravating and disappointing.

By the same token, don’t take problem behaviors (like aggressiveness or wandering) personally. Accept the symptoms of the disease and proceed from there. Remember that the person is not behaving this way on purpose.

Plan activities that the patient is interested in, such as art, cooking, walking, swimming, or gardening. Focus on enjoyment, not achievement. If the person is lucid enough, involve them in making music, doing puzzles or crosswords, or playing memory games, card or board games. Or, the patient may passively enjoy hearing music, contact with pets, or sitting outside in the garden.

Go for walks in the neighborhood, go for a drive, or spend time at a park. Walking is often therapeutic, although the pace may not be as vigorous as you might like. Develop a style of paying more attention to the beauty and novelty of your surroundings as you walk.

4. Maintaining social contacts and fun. During the early stage of the disease, caregivers can promote the patient’s sense of well being by providing emotional support and by helping to maintain familiar activities and social contacts.

Even when Alzheimer’s patients no longer have the cognitive ability to understand your humor, they can still appreciate it. They may still smile or laugh and sharing that laughter can be a relief to both you and your charge. Use the same modes of humor as you always have: teasing, nonsense, clowning. Be even more silly than usual!

To counteract isolation and loneliness, encourage family and friends to stay involved. Take the patient to family gatherings if it’s comfortable to do so. Schedule visitors, to avoid surprises and have something to look forward to. Even if the elder with dementia does not recognize those who visit, the contact is nonetheless valuable for them.

Sometimes the caregiver will want to join the patient in family gatherings or stay in the home when visitors are present. Caregivers can start feeling isolated and lonely themselves as more and more of their time is built around the elder’s needs. If the patient feels safe with the visitors, the caregiver can use the visiting time as an opportunity for relief and respite. Adult day care has similar benefits: social stimulation for the patient and free time for the caregiver.

5. Promote comfort and safety. As problems with memory and judgment increase, the patient becomes more vulnerable to accidents and injuries. There will be times when you’ll want to remind the person that they have Alzheimer’s. At other times it might be better to refer to a “memory problem.” Even if you repeatedly tell the elder that they have Alzheimer’s disease, they may not remember that you told them. Be prepared to patiently repeat the information at times when you’re trying to help the person understand why they can’t do something or why you are taking over a task the person used to do.

Carefully screened and compassionate caregivers regard their responsibility as a way of being involved with their loved one. Their caring is based on unconditional love, and they do not consider it a burden. Dementia patients are able to read body language and to respond to the positive attitudes of the caregiver. Where patient and caregiver have had problems in their past relationship, it can be especially challenging to empathize and be kind, so a support system for the caregiver is most important.

6. Communicate with an Alzheimer’s patient. A good home care service trains caregivers to acknowledge requests and respond to these patients. Don’t argue or try to change the person’s mind, even if you believe the request is irrational. Be affectionate with the patient, if this feels natural. Try not to set up a cycle of paying attention only when the person displays problem behaviors. Break this negative cycle by being supportive of positive behavior.

Jack Haddad, MD, MBA
Portfolio Manager
MD Capital Management
Affiliated Hospitals
Sutter-Roseville Medical Center, Roseville, CA
San Francisco General Hospital, San Francisco, CA
San Jose Orthopedic Medical Group, San Jose, CA
Highland Hospital, Oakland, CA

Dr. Jack Haddad, MD, MBA is the founder and owner of King of Home Care, an independently owned non-medical In-home care agency. In addition to his compassion and dedication to the home care industry, Dr. Haddad’s expertise and knowledge with In-Home Care is evident by the clinical research trials that he has conducted over the years.

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