When to Use Senior Home Care Services

As one gets older, you may face a special set of challenges, namely an increasing need for assistance with tasks that were once done independently without question. Further, aging can bring unique and unforeseen difficulties, including serious health complications and mobility issues. It’s known to be a natural part of the human life cycle. In the senior years, ages 65 and older, the body and mind start to decline. This can be a difficult fact of life to deal with, especially regarding a loved one. Whether it’s your spouse, a parent, or a friend, no one truly wants to face their loved one’s transition into old age, much less voice concerns to their loved one. However, the sooner you find your valued senior a professional home caregiver, the more readily they can deal with everyday tasks and medical needs in the pride and comfort of home.

 It is advisable that you do not delay locating senior home care services in Fullerton. Your loved one’s health, happiness, safety, and independence may depend on a professional caregiver’s assistance. As their loved one, it’s important that you know when it’s time to contact a senior home care provider, who will provide the assistance they need in their own property.

What Is Home Care?

Home care refers to a trained and experienced professional who visits patients at home and provides them with a variety of services, including healthcare and assistance with hygiene, chores, mobility, and personal company. The individual who visits your loved one will be trained to provide all the above services directly to seniors. They may be certified medical professionals, including Home Health Aides, Certified Nursing Assistants, and Licensed Vocational Nurses, all of whom must undergo a combination of classroom training and hands-on experience with patients like your senior.

The goal of hiring home care is to bring the benefits of a nursing home directly to your loved one in the comfort of their home. Senior home care providers in Fullerton can make your loved one feel comfortable and cared for, while also giving them the benefit of expert experience.

Home care is generally reserved for those seniors in the most need of assistance at home. These are the signs that your loved one is such an individual.

Strained or Limited Mobility

Does the senior citizen in your life have difficulty moving throughout their home without assistance? Moving independently means that you can walk, climb steps, bend over, transition between sitting and standing, and get in and out of bed, all without being held or guided. Unfortunately, most elderly people develop mobility issues for one reason or another. From osteoporosis sufferers to stroke survivors or individuals who have generally lost muscle and bone mass in their senior years, it’s all too common for seniors to attempt independence, potentially straining themselves or putting themselves at risk of falling, which can lead to serious medical complications.

If your loved one cannot move independently or chooses to move independently but has clear pain or difficulty when doing so, contact senior home care providers, who can guide them throughout their home to prevent falls and other risks.

Precise Health Needs

Senior citizens can develop myriad diseases, conditions, and health complications as the body ages. If your loved one has been in and out of the hospital or regularly sees a physician, they may also need senior home care for daily observation and assistance. 

For instance, seniors with heart conditions should have their blood pressure and heart rate checked regularly. Any diversion from a normal rate can spell an emergency, like a heart attack. Diabetics should have their glucose levels checked several times a day, a task that elderly individuals may forget to perform. Seniors with declining memory skills may also skip vital medication dosages or even allow life-saving medications to run out or expire. If your loved one relies on anti-inflammatory medicines , anticoagulants, steroids, and other serious medications, their health may be at serious, immediate risk. Home care experts are trained to spot such emergencies and can contact your loved one’s physician or emergency response services when necessary.

Hiring senior home care solutions in Fullerton means leaving your loved one’s health in the hands of a trained professional, who can be there to assist them with health maintenance duties and monitor their overall health status when you can’t.

Missing Responsibilities around the House

If you want to know how your loved one is faring in their senior years, look around their home. Seniors in declining bodily or mental health will skip important chores, like cleaning surfaces, cooking meals, watering plants, or doing laundry. Worse, seniors who should not be living independently may skip vital hygiene tasks.

Hygiene isn’t just about looking presentable for elderly individuals. Appropriate bathing or showering, toileting, hand washing, tooth brushing or denture care, and general skin care keep your loved one healthy and safe from pathogens.

If your loved one is avoiding general hygiene or chores, it’s imperative that you contact senior home care providers as soon as possible. These are signs of general difficulty caring for oneself without assistance. Your loved one may be ashamed to admit their difficulties or may be in denial that they are aging out of their prior independence. However, it’s for their own benefit that you hire professional assistance with chores and hygiene, even if your senior is initially resistant to help.

Declining Memory

Difficult for both your loved one and their relatives, declining memory is one of the most certain signs that a senior needs home care assistance. Memory issues can be attributed to mental health conditions like dementia and Alzheimer’s; however, a slight amount of memory loss is frequent and normal as people age.

Common signs of memory loss include difficulty remembering phone numbers and addresses, calling loved ones by the wrong name, or general forgetfulness that may contribute to decline in chores and hygiene duties. Memory-challenged seniors may also forget to take medications or perform other tasks that ensure their continued health and safety.

Finding Assistance

If any of the above categories apply to your senior loved one, or if you simply want your senior to have trusted company at home when no family and friends are available, locate senior home care services in Fullerton. Home care provides your loved one with transportation and mobility, health observation, assistance with chores, general hygiene help, and so much more, with all the attention and dedication you’d offer yourself if you could.

24 Hour Home Care is an excellent home care provider that connects you with certified and experienced home caregivers, all of whom have undergone extensive background checks and training. Our home caregivers are available around the clock so that your loved one is safely monitored and closely assisted when they need it most. Contact 24 Hour Home Care to learn about insurance coverage, ask about our range of services, or to discuss your loved one’s condition and needs. Remember that the first step of reaching out is yours, as many elderly loved ones are unaware that they need assistance or may even be ashamed of their loss of independence. Homecare providers like the team at 24Hr Home Care will work to help your loved one maintain as much independence as is safe and healthy for them, giving you the time you need and deserve to rest and recharge.