All Home Care Matters

Episode 39 -

Need ideas for celebrating Christmas with seniors? A quarantine Christmas isn’t going to be easy – especially for the older adults in our lives. Still, there are ways to make the holiday meaningful for everyone – even while social distancing. In today’s episode, we’ll dive into ideas for the pandemic holiday – including gift ideas for quarantine, virtual activities, and safe, face-to-face fun. On this episode learn how you can make Christmas special for your elderly family members in 2020.

And be sure to hit that subscribe button so you never miss out on a new episode.

For more quarantine Christmas ideas, check out these resources:

https://seniors.lovetoknow.com/aging-health/ways-help-seniors-quarantine-when-you-cant-visit

https://www.hellomagazine.com/healthandbeauty/mother-and-baby/2020041688143/gifts-for-grandparents-isolation/

Episode 38 -

On this episode of All Home Care Matters we are excited to welcome Josh Crisp to the show. Josh is a senior living executive who has over 14 years in the development, construction, and management of senior living across the Southeast and if that is not impressive enough Josh is also is the founder and CEO of Solinity a senior living development and management company that is helping to reshape the industry to help better meet the needs of the aging and create intergenerational communities.

If you want to learn more about Josh and Solinity visit Solinity.com.

Episode 37 -

While the winter season brings us certain things we love – frosted windows, hot chocolate, Christmas lights, and cozy pajamas – it can be difficult to stay cheerful through the shortened days and colder weather, especially after the holidays - when the months between January and March feel endless, without much to look forward to. With the pandemic’s added limitations, this winter could feel like the hardest one yet. For many, the winter blues can be downright paralyzing. For seniors, the stakes are even higher – as a lack of mobility limits their options even further.

 According to Live Well, “around 500,000 Americans suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder, or SAD” every winter and “older adults can be more vulnerable.”

Episode 36 - 

The future of our health, and our parents’ health, is often unpredictable. Of course, family history might indicate what we’ll be facing as we reach our seventies and eighties, but there really is no way to know for sure. It’s likely, though, that long-term care – in a private nursing home or assisted living facility, or even at home with a private caregiver – is on the horizon.

According to AARP, 52% of people over the age of 65 will need some type of long-term care services in their lifetime. While the days of nursing homes and assisted living facilities might seem far in the distance, it’s important that a plan for long term care is established years ahead of time.

There are many reasons to consider buying long-term care insurance. According to a 2016 study by the Urban Institute and the US Department of Health and Human Services, 14% of people in need of long-term care will require that care for five years or more.

Long-term care can drain a retirement nest egg pretty fast. AARP states that “the national median daily cost for a private bed in a nursing home in 2019 was $280 a day, or $102,200 a year…A yearlong stay in your own room at an assisted living facility runs $48,612.” Fidelity Investments reports that the average 401(K) balance was $105,200 in September 2019. In short, most people will need long-term care insurance in order to pay for their care.

Episode 35 - 

On this episode we will be talking about something that you may have experienced while caring for a loved one or maybe you're experiencing it right now and that’s caregiver guilt.

This is a component of caregiving that many caregivers have dealt with at some point while caring for a loved one and some still do.

We will discuss tips and ideas for caregivers who are caring for family members or loved ones to help them feel their worth and to let them know that their best is all they can expect of themselves.

Caregiver guilt can and does affect everyone differently. For some it can cause issues with weight, appetite, or any number of negative affects. The guilt can also manifest itself in physical, emotional, and psychological ways.

Episode 34 -

On today’s episode, we will dive into the types of scams that are most commonly targeting elders, discuss the warning signs and proper responses, as well as what to do if your parent or grandparent has already fallen victim to a scam.

We all want our parents and loved ones to feel safe and protected – we want to know that their finances are secure, so that they can have a comfortable and happy retirement – and will never have to face detrimental financial losses. Seniors and the elderly deserve to be protected, which is why it’s especially heartbreaking to know that, as senior citizens, they are the targets of sophisticated, dangerous scams that threaten to take thousands from them and target them because they are elderly.

 Elder scams are all too common, and they’re no joke. According to the Senate Special Committee on Aging, senior citizens are cheated out of an enormous $2.9 billion annually. On an individual basis, according to a 2020 study by the Federal Trade Commission, elders lose an average of $500 per scam – although this number varies depending on the age group. Seniors 80 or over, for instance, lose a staggering $1500 per scam. These numbers are harrowing – but there are steps we can take to protect our parents. 

 It is essential that we educate the elders in our lives on the various types of scams that they could fall prey to. When they know the warning signs and know what to do if they suspect something is not right, they are far less likely to fall victim to a scam.

Episode 33 –

On this episode we will be discussing tips to help families who have loved ones with dementia find ways to help them have a better nights sleep.

If you’re caring for a family member or a loved one with dementia, then you may be experiencing what many families experience when it comes to your sleep. When a loved one with dementia or Alzheimer’s doesn’t sleep well, you’re probably not getting enough sleep either and after a while it can begin taking a toll on you and your loved one.

Episode 32 -

Today we have an important topic to discuss with you, and at first it may not sound important or maybe you’re not quite sure what it is or it’s benefit and that’s the care plan. We will be going through what a care plan is and how it’s not only important for your loved one, but how it can also benefit you and the family as well.

First, we need to explain that the type of care plan we will be discussing is the one that is used for home care. There are several different types of care plans and each one of them are important to the care that your loved one receives. 

Episode 31 -

In this episode we discuss a topic that comes up quite often and that’s oral care for loved ones with dementia. We discuss tips that can help you make sure your loved one is getting the proper oral care that they need.

We understand that there are many challenges families face when caring for a loved one with dementia and taking into account their behaviors can change day-to-day it can make it especially difficult if you’re also faced with being able to get them to brush their teeth.

Episode 30 - 

This is undoubtedly a difficult time, but it is also a time where we have to be smart, responsible, and safe. So, we have prepared some tips and suggestions for a safe and healthy Thanksgiving.

From all of us here at All Home Care Matters we want to wish you and your family a heartfelt Happy and Safe Thanksgiving. This is our 30th episode at All Home Care Matters and we want to offer our gratitude to everyone for watching, listening, and supporting us.