Care Perspectives From Senior Solutions

Sleep is important for everyone, no matter our age. We all know that feeling we get when either lack of sleep or poor quality sleep has derailed our day. 

As our parents age, the logistics of their day-to-day care become a realistic concern that many of us face. How do you start making primary caregiving decisions for the one who has loved, cared for, and supported you your entire life? 

Many of us struggle with the day-in-day-out needs of our elderly loved ones, which can increasingly pile up over time. It is never too early to start considering the signs that your loved one would benefit from around-the-clock support that a senior living community can provide. Luckily, we can help! Our professional and trained staff care for our residents every day while providing a fun and supportive environment. 

One of the best ways to find out what a senior living community can offer is by taking a tour.  We would be happy to walk you through any of our facilities and give you a first hand look at the benefits of choosing assisted living.  You can find out more about our communities and schedule a tour here.

If you haven't heard much about "wearable technology" yet, you soon will. As the tech-savvy baby boomers are beginning to reach retirement/elderly status (but don’t tell them!), they are likely to embrace this technology. Briefly, wearable technology is a broad term describing devices that can monitor key health functions; they are typically worn on your body and are intended to enhance the health of seniors by improving their safety and monitoring chronic health conditions remotely so that their physicians can take faster action.

These innovative products offer a number of potential benefits for seniors, their family members and caregivers. For example, if family members don't live near their elderly loved ones, some of these products can help you to check in on them remotely and assess whether their daily routines have significantly changed. Seniors who use a caregiver, perhaps a family member or a paid health care worker, may see a reduced need for caregiver time with the use of a remote health monitor; this can provide peace of mind to both the caregiver and the care receiver and can help save money on outside caregiving costs. Even within a senior living community, when your loved one wears a sensor, health emergencies may be caught and acted upon sooner.

Here are a few promising wearable technology products:

People who choose the caregiver role, or who are thrust into it due to family circumstances, can become overwhelmed by the responsibility and begin to suffer from caregiver role strain. Increasingly, elderly dementia/Alzheimer's patients have as their sole caregiver another elderly, fragile spouse who is at risk for his or her own medical problems due to the stress and strain of being the caregiver.

Eldercare researchers have noted several key predictors of strain among dementia-patient caregivers, including care receiver problem behaviors and functional limitations, and a perceived lack of support from others. On the other hand, caregivers who find effective coping tools are better able to see their role in a positive light, recognizing the significant impact they have on the loved one in their care.

Recently, Senior Solutions has been scrutinized by publications that deceptively use media to exploit their anti-flu vaccine belief. Recent articles published by Health Impact News and Natural News reported that 5-6 (each article reports a different number) residents of Hope Memory Center, a Senior Solutions community, died after receiving the flu shot. These articles posted outrageous claims including a statement claiming that the number of deaths were unusual for the time period, that residents were manipulated into receiving the flu vaccine, and that all deaths were a result of the flu vaccine.

Influenza, commonly known as the flu, is a common and often serious disease that can cause many unpleasant symptoms, hospitalization or even death. According to the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) estimates, flu deaths in the United States over a 31-year seasonal period have ranged from a low of about 3,000 to a high of 49,000 people. And here's a fact that seniors really need to take note of - during a regular flu season, about 90 percent of deaths due to influenza occur in people who are 65 years and older. Additionally, between 50 and 60 percent of seasonal flu hospitalizations occur in those 65 years and older.

There are many things to consider when deciding if senior home care services (aka in-home care) are a good fit for your aging loved one. First and foremost you need to consider if it’s safe for him or her to remain in his or her home, taking into consideration both the mental and physical health of your parent and the location and condition of the home itself -- in the short term and the long term.

It's that time of year again - time to get your annual flu shot. Each year, the Centers for Disease Control (CDC) recommends a seasonal flu shot for nearly everyone. The CDC emphasizes how important this shot is for seniors. Why? Because seniors (people aged 65 and older) have an elevated risk of developing more serious forms of the flu, with more severe complications. The flu, or influenza as it's properly known, causes over 200,000 people to be hospitalized each year, and is fatal for about 24,000 people. Sadly, 90 percent of those fatalities from the flu are senior citizens. Don't become an unnecessary victim of flu, when there are a variety of good vaccines for seniors. There's even one that has been designed especially for seniors.