The covid-19 pandemic has, over the last couple of years, highlighted the necessity and importance of elderly care. Unfortunately, the virus has proved to be indiscriminate in its ability to infect humans, and our elders have been the most prominent targets.
Before the pandemic, elderly care had primarily been the responsibility of the immediate or extended family. However, during the covid-19 lockdown, there were many instances where elderly people and their families were separated, and there was a dire need for alternate arrangements.
The pandemic highlighted the need for an elderly care system that was not solely dependent on family to provide support. In recent times, the importance of elderly care is being defined where society rises to meet the elders' needs in the absence of family.
This woke feeling has instigated a demand for holistic senior care services that do not only address nursing help or assisted living but also provide unique care services tailored to each elder's requirements.
What Is The Importance of Elderly Health?
Aging cannot be stopped. However, you can try to understand the challenges of our elders' declining health. This can help identify opportunities and solutions for the problems with old age.
As their age advances, all elders start slowing down and begin feeling the limitations of their advancing age. A few instances of these limitations are:
- Many elders suffer from severe cognitive illnesses, comorbidities, physical disabilities, and many more problems.
- Poor elderly health also causes hindrances like slow movements, spotty memory, unsteady hands, etc.
- Potential falls are another cause for concern with elderly health. They are one of the leading causes of injuries in elders.
Efficient elderly care can help prevent instances where these obstacles of old age can prove fatal.
Importance of Comfort Level
Comfort levels change as our elders grow older. Their reliance on outside help increases, whether it is gentle reminders for medication, assistance in walking, or even just a listening ear to share their worries.
Advancing age brings psychological changes that often impact how our elders respond to different scenarios. And good elderly care must support and provide comfort to our elders without negatively affecting their lives.
Importance of Quality of Life
Quality of life is defined as the ultimate standard of health, happiness, and comfort that people experience. As our elders advance in age, it is essential to ensure that the inhibitions and limitations that come as a part of elderly health do not affect their quality of life.
Going from someone who did all their chores themselves, it is quite difficult for our elders to depend on others for going through their daily activities. Elderly health is often fragile, and the time we spend with them in their advancing years becomes exceptionally precious.
It is vital to provide elderly care by extending a helping hand whenever needed.
Importance of Mindful Help
When you are with your elders and provide them with the help they need, you feel a sense of peace and accomplishment. Similarly, elders also feel at peace as they realize that they have people who are looking after them and their needs,
Nevertheless, career stability and modification in family units, from joint families to nuclear homes, prevent the younger generation from physically being present for their elders. In this situation, it is critical to ensure that you make alternative arrangements to provide support in your elders' time of need.
Highlighting the Value of Elderly Care
Our elders have difficulty asking for help no matter how frail their health is. Yet, our elders have worked their entire life to provide us with the means for a good education and encourage us to succeed in life. It is now our prime responsibility to support declining elderly health with love, care, and compassion.
Before engaging in professional care services, you can utilize a few in-home changes to make homes comfortable for your elders. Here are a few ways how:
Keep Open Communication Channels
Keep communication open between your elders’ physicians, specialized doctors, and even the housemaids and housekeepers. Keep contact information readily accessible so that even when you are not present, your elders’ can get immediate attention in emergencies.
Include Your Elders’ Socially
The feeling of isolation is one of the most distressing feelings that could impact our elders’ quality of life. Therefore, it is crucial to include our elders in any event, small or big, to make them feel included and part of the family.
Include Your Elders’ In The Tough Conversations
It is essential to include your elders in any decisions you make about their lives. For example, if you plan to explore options regarding your elders’ care, you must communicate the same to them and involve them in the decision-making. It is also necessary to talk to your elders regarding any distressing medical reports frankly and gently.
Make Your Homes Safe
Since the effects of old age or any other severe illnesses would physically impact their bodies, it is critical that you make your elders’ immediate environment safe. In addition, you need to make sure you protect them from unexpected bruises or falls by effectively baby-proofing the edges and pointed ends.
However, even if, with all these safety measures, you would prefer to have a more hands-on approach to caring for your elders, you can engage with professional care services that can help your elders when they need aid.
Personalized Senior Care Services At Your Doorstep
At SenoCare, we understand the importance of elderly care. However, as working professionals with other commitments, we also understand that you might not have the bandwidth to provide personal care to your aging elders.
That's where SenoCare comes in!
At SenoCare, we provide 24x7 personalized elderly care at your doorstep. We have a wide range of specialized services to suit each elder's needs, and our care managers can also help you create a customized care plan as per the elder's requirement.
If you have any more questions regarding elderly care and how we can provide your elders with a happy aging experience, email us at [email protected]. You can directly give us a call at +91 8800 003 046.