MedScope: Medical Alert Systems

The Doctors and nurses are doing their best and trying their hardest, and even though you do not do “emergency” room service and are scared, they do “emergency” work all the time and your case is just another case to them; they are somewhat numb to your terror, but that doesn’t mean they care any less. Get help, get answers, get information, just don’t get in their way.

If you are taking in your loved one to emergency, don’t show fear, show strength. Tell them how well they look, how they’ll be out in no time, how they are in the right place to be fixed and that they’ll be on the road to recovery in no time. Talk about the future and plan for a health strategy. Talk about nice things. Keep their mind at ease and their heart rate down. Just be there with them, for them, and tell them how well they’re doing.

NEW HOME

Our bodies aren’t what they used to be, therefore, our living spaces maybe can’t be what they used to be. For instance, stairs seem to become steeper and longer as we age, so you may want a single story home, or you could think about renting out the top floor, that way, not only would you have an income, but you’d have people around you. So think about your needs.

Also, think about your environment, such as, is your house on a slope? On a hill? On a slight incline?

As we age not only does our balance waiver, but our bodies do not react as quickly, not to mention our impaired judgment of distance due our aging eyes.

When you think about your living space and your style of living, keep in mind if you have to have help as in a nurse or a maid, or maybe both. Do you or will you have enough room for a live-in maid or nurse or caregiver? If you need the help, do you have enough space for you and for them?

And where do you want to live? The mountains, the beach, smack dab in a highrise in the city?

You may also want to think about living with your relatives, like your sibling and sharing expenses. Or maybe one of many of your children have wanted you to come and live with them. If you want to be close to the family, living in a Mother-In-Law apartment may be the way to go. That way you’re close to those you love, you’ll always have loving company for socialization and they will always keep a watchful eye on you.

Your town or city should have some type of senior friendly transportation also, such as cabs or a health-care van. And how about food? In addition to taking a cab or bus, many items can be ordered on-line, such as fresh fruit from Harry and David’s or groceries from your large grocery market chain, or even medications from the drugstore.

Also, think about what you want to do as you age. You may be aging but you still have muscle control and your mind.

So what will make you happy? What type of activities will bring enjoyment?

Would you like to paint? You’ll need space and light. Garden? You’ll need a rail to hold onto, a waist level hose bib, and a raised garden bed. Want to keep active? How about a lap pool? Swimming is great, buoyant, weightless, aerobic exercise.but will or do you have room for a pool? Maybe your home is or will be a townhome with lots of neighbors for company and a community pool for socialization and exercise.

There are a myriad of combinations, all of which should be carefully thought out.

It’s never to late to plan or daydream how you see yourself in your aging years. You have options just as you did when you were first starting out in life, only now your needs have changed.

Look at aging as an opportunity, not as a loss.

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EMERGENCY ROOM

Whether you take a family member or are assisted by your nurse, everyone seems to eventually enter the emergency room. Don’t be nervous. It’s just a big room with many rooms and everyone needs attention right then. There’s an administrator at the front for the inevitable paperwork, so bring your Medical cards for certain, and bring your checkbook, and speak up when you need to.

The administration will go much easier if you have your information and proof of insurance right in your wallet. So, put it there now, so you’ll never have to think if you have it, because in an emergency, it’s hard enough to keep your head on straight, let alone the details of business.

Okay, once in emergency, you go to administration. They say wait. It is excruciating. If you know your family member is dying, make a huge stink. Don’t be shy and think, they’ll get to your loved one. Be heard. The hospitals are shorthanded. Get what you need and do what you need to do, to get to get what you need, but only if it is a true emergency.

So, the administrator and their nurse finally call you. If the emergency is for your loved one, when you go into a room and they sometimes they ask you to leave. Do what you want, stay, go; that all depends on the type of person you are and the relationship you have with the person you brought in. You wait in the little space, which may be a room, or may be a curtain drawn closed, but it is your space. The Doctor shows and the assessment begins.

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Then there’s the thought of who will take care of me? And how long will I be in a convalescing facility. When I get out, will I be able, as an elder, to take care of myself or be involved in an assisted living facility? Do I have someone close to me who can help? How much should I rely on my children? How incapacitated will I really be? Will I need a nurse?

There are many questions about what will happen to us when we are extremely sick. And now, while you’re well, is the time to decide your course of action.

Know which convalescing homes are in your area. Tour them now. Write down which one you’d like to go to so that there is no question as to your wishes. If you live alone, post your information somewhere so that everyone is aware of its existence, such as taped to your dresser mirror.

If you need nursing care, find a competent company now, in your area and call for rates, that way you know for how much to budget, and your destination and the experience will not be so unnerving.

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It is often heard, “what’s to become of me”, when it is too late. Why not find out what your options are now? Why not prepare yourself, mentally, at least for that which may be?

We know we or one of our loved ones will eventually get extremely sick and/or need some type of convalescing. So, let’s look into the world of convalescing.

We also know we will eventually enter an emergency room, whether for ourselves or for a loved one. So, let’s look into the world of the ER.

We also know that the majority of us will be moving into a different house as we age. So, let’s look into our options.

CONVALESCING

To think that we’ll eventually get sick is a thought no one should think. And to think that we’d need such nurturing that we’d have to go to a convalescing place is almost out of our reality. Well, it may be time to think these thoughts. There is of course, long-term care insurance, which is really something to very seriously check into and purchase some type, so that you don’t lose all of your savings.

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America has an abundance of elder-care facilities. The Yellow Pages are filled with businesses that specialize in caring for the elderly. They have life-care facilities that offer patients lifetime care, nursing homes that supply medical needs, and acute care for our loved ones. I’ve read that this type of extensive care can range form $2,000 to $ 4,000 per month. Some care facilities may charge as much  as $50,000  to $300,000 as a deposit for a lifetime care service.

These nursing homes are necessary, and I’m glad they’re available. However, like my Grandma before me, I believe there’s no better medicine for great-grandma or great-grandpa then to be a part of their daily lives, to see and hear the sights and sounds of a household, to smell the aroma of a favorite recipe simmering on the kitchen stove,  to hear the sound of a grandchild’s  tears and laugher- the whole nine yards of sharing the invigorating experience of life-in-progress.

In Grandma’s day taking in the elderly meant adding to an already crowded household. It meant three or four generations under one roof.  At times there would be slamming of doors, arguments galore and hurtful words screamed out in anger. It also meant there would be shrieks of joy, plenty of encouraging words, doors being opened, shared disappointments, comfort, hugs, and kisses while all the while he music of Puccini echoed down the hall. Most of all, it meant being a family.

I remember asking  Grandma how she tolerated having to care for her ailing parents as well as the inconvenience of so many generations crowding  her household?  Grandma smiled and responded with an old-world tale written by Jacob Grimm. It’s a generational story that has stayed with me all of these years.                                                                    

There once was an old man who lived in a village with his son and his son’s wife and child. The old man was deaf and blind and had trouble eating his food without spilling it. Sometimes, accidentally , the old man would drop his son’s fine china and break it. The son and his wife were disgusted by the old man and made him eat out of a wooden bowl behind the stove. One day the little grandson was working with some pieces of wood. When his father asked him what he was making, the little boy answered, “I’m making a wooden trough  for you and Mother to eat out of when I’m grown up.”  The next day, the old grandfather was back at the table eating outr of his son’s best china. Not another word was said on the matter.

The realization that we’re all going to be there someday is reason enough for compassion

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According to  the latest United State’s census, 29 percent of Americans are under age 18. At the other end of the spectrum, 13 percent are 70 years and older. A figure that is predicted to reach 30 percent by the year 2050.  

Those of us born during World War II suddenly find ourselves on the sunny side of that 13 percent. We remember our Grandparents’ and how, when they were our age,  we thought of them as being old and wise. Judging by the aches and pains in my joints every morning, I pretty much have the “old”  part down pat, but sometimes I wonder if I’ll  ever be as wise.

As I explore the world of senior citizen, I also discover that my role with my  parents is changing– that parent is becoming child and child is becoming parent. Hopefully, by the time you reach this stage in life, you’ve successfully raised your own kids, they’ve grown up, matured and moved out of your house and now have children of their own. While your kids were growing up, your parents were growing old. While the grand kids were becoming stronger, more independent, your parents were becoming weaker and more dependent.

They call this period in our lives the “golden years,” though I don’t know why. Perhaps it’s because, like gold, the days are fewer and more precious. Or maybe it refers to the “Golden Age” believed by Greek and Roman poets to be the time when one lives in the ideal state of happiness and prosperity.

Either way, neither of these definitions accurately describes these so-called golden years or helps to make the journey though them any less  complex, nor does it answer the Question, “When did parent become child and child become parent?”

I think the transformation begins when we stop asking and start telling our parents what to do: when we stop taking advice and start giving it: when we drive them to the doctor, dentist and grocery store: take them shopping for new clothes and shoes and insist they buy the most practical; take them to the market and suggest hamburger instead of steak because it’s easier to chew. It begins the first time we remind them to take their vitamins, wear a warm coat and stay out of the rain. It starts when we haven’t heard from them in a few days and we start to panic. You know: all the same loving, but aggravating, things they’ve been doing for us for more than half a century.

Role reversal isn’t anything new. It’s been going on since man began walking upright, pairing off and forming families. but how we deal with our elderly has changed, In Grandma’s day the elderly or infirm weren’t deposited in nursing homes; they were cared for at home by their adult children, just as their parents did before them and so on. If it’s at all possible, it’s a practice my generation will uphold.

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Part 2 of 2:

How do I choose a home care provider?
The questions below will help you choose the home care provider that is appropriate for your medical needs and family situation. Regardless of whether the care you seek is skilled or home support care, it is important that you know the answers to the following questions.

What should I consider when hiring privately or through an agency?

AGENCY:
*Is the agency performing criminal background checks?
*How long and what geographical areas are covered in the background check they perform?
*What are the experience levels and specialties of aides available?
*Will the agency be responsible for finding a replacement caregiver if my regular aide is sick or on vacation?
*What hours can I speak to someone from the agency?
*Is the agency licensed and bonded?

PRIVATELY:
*Should the family perform a background check?
*What is the aid’s previous experience?
*Who will replace my caregiver if they are sick or on vacation?
*Does the caregiver have any type of licenses or certifications?
*Do I have to do reference checking?
*Who will be my advocate if I have a problem with my
caregiver?

Points to consider when choosing a home care provider:

— How can I cancel the service I requested?

— How much is the cancellation charge?

— Who do I call if my caregiver is unable to work?

— What is their phone number?

— What are the fees?

— What exactly is covered by those fees?

— Will the agency respond to requests for “short notice” services?

— Is there an extra charge for these services?

— Is there a minimum or a maximum number of hours of home care service per day?

— Is there a minimum or a maximum number of days of home care service per week?

— Is there someone available to assist me 24 hours a day, 7 days a week?

— How long will it take someone to return my call after business hours?

— How do I make changes to the initial caregiver schedule?

— Do the aides provide transportation if needed?

— What type of screening does the agency perform?

— How long will I wait for service after placing my request?

— Will the same caregiver assist me every day or will it be somebody different?

— Will someone from the agency call to see if I am satisfied with the services provided to me?

— How often will they call and check-in with me?

— Will I be responsible for providing meals for the caregiver?

— Will my live-in caregiver require a private bedroom?

— Will my caregiver clean my house and do my laundry?

— Do I need to sign a contract with the agency?

— How long is the contract good for?

— What does it entail?

— Do I need to have a qualified, elder law attorney review this contract before signing it?

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