What is Elder Care?
Elder Care describes the issues and care concerns for the frail elderly who make up 5% of the over 65 population. This means that of the approximate 45 million seniors currently in the U.S. 16% of the 2003 general population), 2.25 million are frail. Frailty is defined as chronic functional impairment in one or more of 6 activities of daily living (ADL’s) requiring the help of another person. These ADL’s include: • bathing • dressing • grooming • eating • transferring • toileting While small in percentage terms, this group is also the cohort that utilizes the most healthcare resources including inpatient medical hospitalization, home care, and long-term care in nursing homes and other residential care facilities. It is important to recognize and keep in mind that 80% of the care provided to frail elderly in this country is provided by family members. Read more…
Americans are living longer and living well for longer periods of time. This has created a relatively new and growing area of health care and provider services, known as elder care. Elder care encompasses a wide variety of issues, including choosing an appropriate physician to care for an aging patient, and making decisions about moving an elderly person from the home environment to a residential care setting. Persons age 65 and older are the fastest growing segment of America’s population. Many elderly people are living healthy, active, and independent lives. However, as more people reach their 80s and 90s, the number of elderly needing assistance with daily living increases, along with the responsibilities of those who provide care for them.
Elder care involves being responsible for the well-being of an older or disabled parent, spouse or relative. The elderly dependent may live with the caregiver or live separately, even quite far away. Caring for an elderly dependent includes help with many of the following: • Personal needs – washing, dressing, eating • Financial needs – paying bills, bank deposits • Household needs – shopping, cooking, cleaning, laundry • Transportation needs – rides to and from the doctor and/or hospital The number of working adults providing care for an elderly or disabled parent or relative grows every year. With community resources both scarce and expensive, those providing care are often left fully responsible for providing assistance and care before and after work, on weekends and during vacation. There are many workers providing more than eight hours of care each week as well as holding down a full-time job.
Elder care is health and personal care which is specifically designed for the elderly. The level of elder care varies, from a live-in facility which caters to older people with special needs to a day nurse who drops in on older patients for a few hours every day. Since older people are prone to special health problems, the people who work in elder care typically participate in training programs which are designed to address these issues, ensuring a high level of care. On the more basic level, elder care involves looking after older people who may have trouble moving around and getting out of the house. An elder care service might drop by a few times a week to drop off groceries, deliver other supplies, and help tidy up around the house. The care provider might also pick up letters for mailing, help clients keep track of bills, and generally ensure that someone is healthy and living in a clean, pleasant environment. Even at this level, the care provider provides a very important service
Elder care is a relatively new and growing concept that combines domestic services and limited health care services for the rapidly growing, aging population (most often persons 65 and older). The primary focus of elder care companionship services is to enable otherwise physically healthy elderly adults to remain independent in their own homes as long as possible. Elder care can evolve into providing limited health care services to recovering, disabled, chronically or terminally ill adults who would ordinarily be cared for in a nursing home, not hospital, environment. Families find that elders suffering from Alzheimer’s Disease and related dementias can remain in their home environment, especially with other family members, with the services of Home Health Aides, a type of elder caregiver. Generally, elder care is appropriate whenever an individual prefers to stay at home but needs ongoing care that cannot be readily provided solely by family members. Elder care helps seniors live inde
