Check on your Elderly Neighbors

Thank you to the following websites for use of their photos: http://www.rushdenosteopath.co.uk/news/wp-content/uploads/2012/11/Hypothermia1.jpg http://www.irishexaminer.com/remote/media.central.ie/media/images/e/ElderlyWomanLookingOutWindow_large.jpg?width=648&s=ie-359393 http://cdn.images.express.co.uk/img/dynamic/1/590x/secondary/weather-398683.jpg http://i4.mirror.co.uk/incoming/article4611527.ece/ALTERNATES/s615/Elderly-man-who-can-only-afford-to-heat-himself.jpg http://www.nrcare.co.uk/blog/img/Old-Man.png http://i1.dailyrecord.co.uk/incoming/article1278495.ece/ALTERNATES/s615/fuel%20poverty.jpg http://wkow.images.worldnow.com/images/9695845_G.jpg http://www.redcross.org.uk/~/media/BritishRedCross/Images%20-%20special%20use/Teaching%20resources%20-%20copyright/Archived%20resources/newsthink%201112/Man%20looks%20out%20at%20snow.jpg?w=300&h=197&as=1

Holiday gift tips for the Older person in your life this 2020 Gift Giving Season

Holiday gift tips for the Older person in your life this year

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A few things to get you started:

  • Aftershave

  • Air freshener plug-ins

  • Body spray

  • Button Pins

  • Calculator

  • Can coolers

  • Candy

  • Car fresheners

  • Change purse

  • Decals

  • Dice

  • Disposable camera

  • Essential oils

  • Extra memory cards

  • Fun Playing cards

  • Gloves

  • Hand exercisers

  • Handwarmers

  • Ink pens

  • Jewelry

  • Keychains

  • Lip balm

  • Lotion

  • Lures

  • Magnets

  • Magnifying glass

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  • Make-up

  • Manicure tools

  • Nail polish sets

  • Pen knife

  • Perfume

  • Personalized checkbook cover

  • Personalized coasters

  • Poker chips

  • Scarves

  • Sharpie markers

  • Shoelaces

  • Small flashlight

  • Snacks

  • Socks

  • Stress balls

  • Sunglasses

  • Toothbrush

  • Wallet

  • Watches

  • Winter hats

  • Zippo Lighters

Filling a Senior's stocking this year with more than cheer! 2020

Holiday gift tips for the Older person in your life this year

Slide1.JPG

 

A few things to get you started:

  • Aftershave

  • Air freshener plug-ins

  • Body spray

  • Button Pins

  • Calculator

  • Can coolers

  • Candy

  • Car fresheners

  • Change purse

  • Decals

  • Dice

  • Disposable camera

  • Essential oils

  • Extra memory cards

  • Fun Playing cards

  • Gloves

  • Hand exercisers

  • Handwarmers

  • Ink pens

  • Jewelry

  • Keychains

  • Lip balm

  • Lotion

  • Lures

  • Magnets

  • Magnifying glass

Slide3.JPG

 

  • Make-up

  • Manicure tools

  • Nail polish sets

  • Pen knife

  • Perfume

  • Personalized checkbook cover

  • Personalized coasters

  • Poker chips

  • Scarves

  • Sharpie markers

  • Shoelaces

  • Small flashlight

  • Snacks

  • Socks

  • Stress balls

  • Sunglasses

  • Toothbrush

  • Wallet

  • Watches

  • Winter hats

  • Zippo Lighters

Walker 101 | Maintenance 101

Did you know that much like your car you need to provide maintenance to your Walker or Rollator?

Have a Physical Therapist assess that the walker is appropriately set for the person’s weight and height.

Wipe down handles on regular basis with Clorox wipes or disinfectant wipes.

Secure any brake lines to side rails with zip ties to keep the lines from catching on corners or nearby items while in use.

Be sure any added bags or baskets are out of line of vision.

 

Understanding the impact of long-term care cost

Understanding the impact of long-term care cost

72% of Americans become impoverished after just 12 months of nursing home care found a Harvard University study in the Compensation & Benefits Review. Long term care nor Assisted Living care are not typically covered by medical insurance or Medicare. Medicare cover skilled and rehabilitative care for brief period of time while a person is working to regain their strength after a illness or incident that resulted in a three-day hospital stay. That coverage does not include custodial care or the assistance someone needs for daily living should the insurance determine rehab has plateau in therapy.

There is the option for applying for income based assistance through state programs such as Medicaid. Programs like these traditionally cover nursing home cost once a loved one is bereft of their assets.

 

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Learn How To | Effectively Use Body Mechanics and Transferring with Your Loved One

Learn How To: Effectively Use Body Mechanics and Transferring with Your Loved One

What is Body Mechanics?

Body mechanics is the proper use of ones muscles to move or lift an objects while maintaining correct posture.  

How to Use Good Body Mechanics 

It is important even in every day life to pay close attention to the way you use your body to lift, walk, push, sit, pull, stand or move objects.  If used properly the body can be a fabulous tool. When misused, it will ultimately break down.


Learn more about Body mechanics with this how to guide by visiting:  https://theultimatecaregivingexpert.com/2018/04/17/caregivers-expert-advice-body-mechanics-transferring/

 

Golden Alert | Seniors Living Alone - It maybe Hazardous to Their Health

With even more seniors becoming isolated because of Social Distancing 2020 it is important to understand the dangers of elderly living alone.

Research has shown that an alarming number of seniors are remaining in their homes when they are in need of more assistance and high level of care. In so many of these cases they are remaining in their homes alone.

Most of us wish to remain in our homes as long as possible but when do the benefits of staying your home no longer out weight the dangers? 

Our Social Worker, Alisha Duvall MSW/MFT, found that after consulting the Administration on Aging that nearly 44% of seniors 65 and older living alone need assistance with the activities of daily living.  Some would say that there is an easy solution to preventing these dangers - move them into a nursing home. Our Social Worker disagrees. Most seniors can excel and thrive in a lower level of care. In Kenctuckiana there are over four levels of care before you need nursing home long term care and those options should be explored. 

Call Alisha at (502)242-7691

There are many dangers of living alone. In an article in the Smithsonian,  Joseph Stromberg declared Warning: Living alone may be hazardous to your health. He went on to say that it is not simply the dangers of depression and anxiety that develop with prolonged social isolation but it actually increases a seniors change of death.  

 Joseph Stromberg  went on to say, "the group, led by Andrew Steptoe, examined data on the 6,500 older adults (aged 52 and up) who took part in the English Longitudinal Study of Ageing in 2004, and monitored which participants survived up until last March. The researchers specifically looked at the association between mortality (overall risk of death) and a pair of conditions: social isolation (as indicated by a lack of contact with others) and loneliness (as reflected by participants’ answers on a survey).

In total, 14.1 percent of the people who’d participated in the survey had died in the 8 years after the study was administered, but those who were classified as socially isolated had died at considerably higher rates. Of the most socially isolated respondents, 21.9 percent did not survive to March 2012, as compared with 12.3 percent of the least isolated. Even after the participants’ baseline health and demographic factors were taken into account, being socially isolated still correlated to an increase in their mortality.

Interestingly, though, defining oneself as lonely—via the answers about one’s emotions and psychological state on the survey—did not have the same effect. Those who were lonely did have overall higher mortality, but this was because on average, they were older and had poorer baseline health conditions at the start. When the researchers controlled for baseline health and age, the mortality gap between the lonely and the non-lonely largely vanished.

This indicates that the real danger of living alone is not feeling lonely per se, but having reduced contact with others. One possibility is that an older person who seldom sees friends and family is less likely to get the help they need in managing various ailments, and is probably also less likely to be encouraged to go see a doctor when new health problems pop up. The researchers speculate that living alone might even cause people to have poorer health habits, such as smoking, eating an unhealthy diet and getting less physical activity."

As previous researchers have found those with a health condition such as cardiovascular disease are more likely to die than of their counterparts who are not living alone.  Just like a pack of wolves are more likely to survive than the lone wolf so are Seniors. Simply being around others helps us ensure that we take better care of ourselves. Call our social worker today to ask about your loved ones risk and the options and resources available to get them the extra care and support they need. 


Read more: https://www.smithsonianmag.com/science-nature/warning-living-alone-may-be-hazardous-to-your-health-8795790/#H3P42Lqzy4gAEIwS.99
 

Top 3 Most Common Infections seen in Elderly | #3. Pneumonia in the Elderly

Top 3 Most Common Infections seen in Elderly | #3. Pneumonia in the Elderly

Over 60% of seniors have been admitted to hospitals due to pneumonia at least once after the age of 65. Researches, Jorge Perez San Juan, Lisandra Rodriguez Hernandez, Timothy L. Wiemken, Robert R. Kelley, Rafael Fernandez-Botran, Martin Gnoni, Paula Peyrani, Madhavi J. Rane, Forest W. Arnold, Julio A. Ramirez, Silvia Uriarte, and Jose Bordon, associated with the University of Louisville found that “advanced age is an independent risk factor for mortality.” They continued by saying, “human aging is associated with a gradual decrease of immune function.” Because of the increased susceptibility due to conditions like diabetes, dementia, stroke, brain injury, cerebral palsy, changes in lung capacity, and increased exposure to disease in community settings seniors are at greater risk for pneumonia. UofL Physician Practices say to watch for symptoms like fever, cough, and chill. In Elderly symptoms like confusion, weakness and delirium are more common. Ask your doctor about what types of pneumonia can be prevented using a pneumococcal vaccine.

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