Ask the Seniors Home Care Expert
May 2012 Article
TAKE CARE OF YOUR FEET!
Foot care is a common concern and need for seniors. Research has concluded that three out of four people develop serious foot problems as they age – putting their independence and health at risk.
Foot problems can result in;
• Pain
• Balance problems
• Falls
• Injury
• Hospitalization
To keep your feet healthy we suggest the following;
• Check your feet every day. Don’t wait until your feet hurt. Take a few minutes every day to look for cuts, blisters, bruises, sores, infected toenails or swelling. See your doctor is there are warning signs of a serious health problem such has pain, colour changes, temperature changes and soars that do not go away with proper care.
• Wash your feet every day. Use warm water. Don’t soak them longer than 10minutes, or your skin will get dry and start to crack. Dry well between your toes.
• Keep your feet soft and smooth. Use unscented cream on the tops and bottoms of your feet (not between the toes).
• Wear comfortable shoes and socks. Many people have foot problems because their shoes don’t fit, don’t give proper support or don’t have enough grip on the ground. The right shoe fit matters! Wear good shoes indoors as well to prevent falls.
• Keep Active. Walking to prevent blood clots and keep your bones and muscles strong. You can also do chair exercises and ankle circles.
• Take care of your toenails. Cut or file your nails regularly with appropriate nail care tools. Trim them straight across and never shorter than the end of your toe.
Do you need some help?
For help with checking your feet, washing and caring for your toenails, putting on and taking off shoes or compression stockings or staying active call Bayshore Home Health at our local office or toll-free at 1-866-227-3259. We are happy to help you stay health and independent in your own home.
Make the Experience a SPA- Like Experience!
We can make a basic foot care visit into a special SPA like experience and provide a little extra pampering. This service makes a great Mothers Day gift for a regular monthly or weekly at home appointment. It can be the gift that keeps giving all year for your loved one.
April 2012 Article
Life is busy with work, kids, home management and finding an opportunity to enjoy some time alone, with a spouse or with some friends but it is relatively under control. This is, until your mom or dad or other loved one suddenly needs help with their health and activities of daily living. Now you have this added responsibility.
One of the most startling conclusions drawn from a recent Ipsos-Reid survey titled Living for Today – Ready for Tomorrow, commissioned by Bayshore Home Health, found that Canadians’ are not making plans for caring for aging loved ones and found that the majority of Canadians won’t be ready to take on the responsibility.
I little plan and a little help can make a big difference.
1st Talk to your Parents
Ask your parents how there health is and what chronic illnesses may concern them or their doctor. Discuss what they would like to have happen as they age and as their health deteriorates. Do they want to stay in their home, live with family, live in a senior’s community or residence? Talking about these matters and understanding their wants, needs, hopes and concerns can greatly reduce the stress on everyone.
2nd Know the Alternatives for Care
Alternatives for help include home health care, family and friends, seniors’ home or long-term care. Contact your Alberta Health Services, talk to your doctors or visit a seniors community centre to find out more about options in senior’s services. A little bit of help can go a long way towards maintaining an independent lifestyle.
3rd Evaluate the Current Living Arrangement
Is your parent’s home easy to maintain and free of hazards that could cause a fall. Fall Prevention is key to ensuring a senior can stay safe and healthy in their home. A home care agency, like Bayshore Home Health, could send a Registered Nurse to the home and provide a Falls-Prevention assessment and make program suggestions.
4th Get Happy, Active and Healthy
It’s no surprise that those afflicted with a chronic condition can experience feelings of anxiety, loneliness and depression. You can help them combat these feelings by encouraging them to stay socially active and to talk about their feelings. If possible, get them walking, stretching or doing simple exercises. Staying active not only helps lessen the current symptoms of chronic pain, but can help generate additional energy and stave off other illnesses.
5th Pay Attention
Learn to identify new symptoms or side effects from medications and act on them immediately by talking to their doctor, a telehealth line like Alberta Health Link or a seniors home care provider.
March 2012 Article
The overwhelming majority of people aged 65 to 85 want to lead independent lives for as long as possible. But a recent survey from Bayshore Home Health and Ipsos-Reid shows that few are actually taking the necessary steps to help ensure they can remain in their own homes.
How can you help a loved one avoid the move to a nursing home or delay it as long as possible? Here are a few suggestions courtesy of Bayshore Home Health:
• Talk openly with family, friends and health care professionals about future needs and possible living arrangements.
• Evaluate current living arrangements. A smaller house that requires less maintenance or one that has fewer stairs might make sense. Or consider making home modifications.
• Most falls occur at home, especially in the kitchen, on the stairs or in the bathroom. Make sure stairs are well-lit, eliminate throw rugs and use a non-skid bath mat.
• Consider hiring help for housekeeping, grocery shopping or traveling to medical appointments.
• Investigate the possibility of having a nurse visit to help with on-going care or recovery from a recent hospital stay.
February 2012 Article
Living at home instead of transferring to a care facility has become the first choice of seniors living in Canada leaving the responsibility and stress of providing care to close family member. Statistics Canada estimates that nearly 80% of Canadian seniors live in their homes or with family and that 70% of primary elder care is performed by close family.
Many gerontologists and health care professionals agree that remaining in the comfort of their home is the best option for seniors physically mentally and financially. However, the emotional strain on family caregivers can be avoided. A little bit of help can go a long way toward seniors maintaining an independent lifestyle. Consider hiring help for housekeeping grocery shopping, travelling to medical appointments or even companionship says Tyla Jones the Calgary Area Director for Bayshore Home Health. Jones adds that it s important to have conversations early on and talk frankly with aging relatives about their finances and feelings on professional in home assistance.
Home health services can be funded privately or publicly through government care programs, personal and group insurance plans and workplace safety insurance making it a financially viable option for many families.
For help on talking to your family members about important issues including aging and home care call Bayshore Home Health at 403-348-1007 and ask for Patricia, Manager of Clinical Practice. I will be happy to help you with how to talk to family members about these important issues.
January 2012 Article
Learn more about you home care funding options
Some common questions that arise when considering home care for a family member or yourself are:
• How much will it cost?
• Do I have to pay for everything out of my own pocket?
• Are there other sources of funding that are available?
Bayshore Home Health can help you understand and access alternative ways to pay for home care – whether it’s nursing, personal care or home support services that are needed.
Experts from our local office and National Care Team can investigate if you are eligible for care funding through your personal or group insurance coverage. They can also help you contact a representative from your local home care program, if your hospital liaison or doctor hasn’t already put you in touch.
Through established relationships with national insurance companies and experience in navigating the health care system, we can:
1. Quickly investigate if your insurance policy provides home care coverage.
2. Help find out what level of funding you are eligible to receive.
3. Conduct a free, in-home assessment of your care needs.
4. Prepare a recommendation for your insurer that specifies the level of care you need.
5. Follow through with a range of care services delivered by our highly trained staff.
6. Continue to assess your needs on an ongoing basis.
Looking into alternative sources of funding for home care is worthwhile because it can lead to an increase in care and give you and you loved ones more comfort and peace of mind.
December 2011 Article
Personal care and attention are a vital need for people who live in retirement and long term care homes, or are on extended convalescence in hospitals. While these facilities generally offer in-house care resources, their residents and patients sometimes find themselves needing extra care in addition to what’s routinely available.
Bayshore Home Health works with many residential care facilities and hospitals across Canada to deliver a wide range of nursing, personal care and home support services. Depending on the arrangements made with the care facility, these services can be arranged directly by the individual or through the facility.
Our Shared Care Program is ideal for individuals who require care for short time periods – such as for dressing or bathing – and want to share the cost with other residents with similar needs. It allows a group of residents to privately contract a Bayshore Home Health caregiver on a scheduled basis, giving them flexibility, convenience and more affordable personal care.
To ensure our clients receive the best care, we employ nurse-supervised caregivers who are licensed or certified in their field, carefully selected and screened, and fully insured and bonded. They are supported by our national clinical standards and ISO 9001:2000 quality management system.
After developing a personalized care plan for our clients, we work closely with them and their families, care facilities and health care professionals, to ensure their needs are consistently met.
November 2011 Article
While falling may not seem serious, falls can disable, cause physical and mental distress, and seriously diminish the quality of life, especially for seniors.
Research shows falls are the result of a complex interaction of risk factors, one of which is age. The risk of falling and being injured increases as people get older. One in three persons over 65 will fall at least once a year.
In Alberta about 62,500 seniors fall every year. In 2006, fall-related injuries among seniors resulted in more than 6,900 hospital admissions and 18,700 emergency department visits.
The hospitalization costs for fall-related injuries currently are estimated at $96 million per year not including visits to emergency departments, physicians, physiotherapists, the costs of medication or home care. Hospitalization costs will reach $228 million by 2033 unless something is done to counter the trend.
Many falls can be avoided and researchers have identified numerous simple but effective falls-prevention strategies. Health Care Aids in Homecare work every day with seniors helping them to stay health, independent and help them avoid a fall. They do this though checking for safe walking paths through the home, safe bathing procedures, medication management, exercises and many other ways.
The Alberta Centre for Injury Control & Research in the University of Alberta’s School of Public Health and the Alberta Medical Association have developed an information and advocacy campaign called Finding Balance focused on reducing the number of falls among seniors in Alberta. Bayshore Home Health is a Bronze Sponsor of the campaign and is actively participating in the planning and implementation.
November is Falls Prevention Month and Finding Balancewill be launched early in November targeting independent, well seniors. The campaign’s themes are based on current research and evidence-based practice.Finding Balance is guided by an Advisory Committee of multi-disciplinary health care professionals from all over Alberta.
The themes of the informational materials are:
• Check Your Medications: Talk to your Doctor or Pharmacist
• Keep Active: Exercise for Strength and Balance
• Watch Your Step: Wherever You Are
Seniors and caregivers will be able to find falls prevention programs in their communities throughHealth Link Alberta and the Finding Balance website at www.findingbalancealberta.ca.
Bayshore Home Health will be having a Coffee and Cake Event
DATE: November 29, 2011
TIME: between 10am and 12pm
LOCATION: Café Vero (Apple Drugs – Eastview), 3831 – 40th Avenue
We invite the public to join and learn about how you can help prevent a fall for yourself or a family member through some fun activities and presentations. Please RSVP at 1-866-227-3259. We look forward to seeing you there.
October 2011 Article
Is the Time Tight for Home Health Care
You’ve likely heard of the “sandwich generation”: the children of aging parents who are still raising their own families and working full time jobs on top of it all.
This situation may even describe you. It’s the profile of thousands of Canadian families, and the numbers are increasing as our population continues to age.
With so many seniors living longer, healthier lives today, the right mix of nursing, personal care, home support and companionship services is allowing them to live comfortably in their own homes for a longer period of time. Home health care can be paid for privately, or funded through government care programs, through personal and group insurance plans, and with workers’ compensation insurance.
Talking openly with aging parents about options and services is an important first step in arranging for the best quality care that will meet the needs of the entire family. It may not be an easy subject to broach, however. We suggest that asking yourself and your parents these questions is key to deciding what kind of care is appropriate:
• Do my parents have a large home to maintain?
• Is it necessary to use the stairs frequently?
• Are they eating properly?
• Do they require additional care for a health issue or following a hospital stay?
• Are they isolated or do they see other people?
Home care is designed to deliver just the right support to keep your parents independent, happy and healthy in their own home.
September 2011 Article
Today nearly three million Canadians receive care at home – a number that will continue to climb as our population ages. Knowing what to look for and the right questions to ask is an important part of choosing the home health provider that is right for you.
Home health care lets seniors who want to stay in their homes remain independent for as long as possible. But hiring the right help can be confusing, so we suggest you ask all of the following questions to be sure you find the right provider for you.
• What kind of services do you provide?
• What type of training has your staff received?
• How do you ensure the quality of your service?
• How do you evaluate the skills and abilities of your staff?
• How long have you been in operation?
• Do you provide a personalized care plan?
• Will you consult with my doctor?
• Will my caregiver be supervised by a nurse?
• Will you assist in investigating my home care funding options?
Do you ensure your staff are bonded, insured and professionally licensed or certified?
August 2011 Article
Advice from the Care Experts at Bayshore Home Health
For seniors with health issues, home health care could mean greater independence. But is it a viable option? To help you better understand if home health care can meet your needs, here are answers to some frequently asked questions:
What is it?
Home health care is an alternative to a hospital, long-term care facility or a retirement residence. Services are varied and include nursing care, personal care, home support and companionship. These are services that can literally change people’s lives.
Where is it available?
Services are delivered right in the home or care facility. No travel is required by the individual.
Who is it for?
Home health care is for people with a wide range of health conditions who live in their own home or in an institutional facility. Home health care is available for people of all ages including seniors, the chronically ill and people living with disabilities.
Why will it make a difference?
Staying in your home preserves independence and dignity while enhancing quality of life. It can also reduce the pressure felt by family members to provide care during challenging times.
When is the right time?
The need for home care is generally triggered by an on-going health issue, release from the hospital or a sudden event such as a fall or stroke. It can also be used by seniors who need help with daily activities or companionship.
How is it funded?
Payment can be made privately or funded through government care programs, personal and group insurance plans and workers’ compensation insurance.
To learn more about the benefits of a personalized home health care plan, please call our Red Deer office at 1-866-227-3259 or visit www.bayshore.ca
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