Elder maltreatment and abuse of the elderly is found in almost all countries of the world. According to the World Health Organization, elderly abuse is expected to continue to increase, particularly as many countries experience rapidly aging populations. Throughout the world, both elderly men and women are at high risk of abuse, neglect, and exploitation. Although older men are at risk of abuse in about the same proportion as women, elderly women are at higher risk of abuse, neglect, and exploitation in cultures where women are devalued. (more…)

While assisted living is similar to home care, congregate housing, board and care homes, and nursing homes, it differs from those programs in significant ways.

Home Care.

The minimum time block for which home care usually can be scheduled is two hours. While this is ideal for help with dressing, bathing, housekeeping, and meal preparation, two-hour time blocks are inappropriate when assistance needs to be available throughout the day and evening. (more…)

In better facilities, the design of the building reflects the philosophy of promoting independence. Residents usually live either in private rooms with baths, individual temperature controls, and doors that lock or in small apartments with kitchenettes. They often bring their own furniture. The decor and scale are homelike throughout the building, often with one or more small sitting rooms that encourage residents to visit with each other and entertain guests. Many assisted living home facilities explicitly avoid fluorescent lighting, long corridors, tile floors, and the nursing stations that are associated with nursing homes residents. (more…)

Because it expresses my own orientation, I carry in my wallet a membership card to the Society for the Right to Die, which has imprinted on the back a signed statement of my living will.

When the aging process accelerates inexorably, you usually don’t just fail to wake up one morning because of old age. One of the many illnesses that afflict the elderly with increasing frequency will likely be the cause of death and dying. Here is where I feel a living will is important. (more…)

Australia’s health policy is funded and delivered by several levels of government and is supported by private health insurance arrangements. In place are systems for the delivery of health, income support, and housing and community services to support aging people. Medicare, the national health insurance scheme, is funded and administered by the Australian (commonwealth) government and provides coverage for a range of primary care services, including visits to medical practitioners. (more…)

Employment as a senior caregiver brings fulfillment beyond a paycheck. Job duties include assisting with meals, laundry, medication management, daily exercises, bathroom visits, bathing and maintaining a clean household. In addition, companionship is an important part of senior care as friends may have passed away and family members may live far away. (more…)

Something you and your doctor should appreciate is that getting older influences the way you react to drugs. Elderly patients are twice as susceptible to drug reactions as younger adults are. The aging kidneys and liver contribute to the problem. The relative quantity of water in the body decreases and thus is not as available to dilute the medication, and the kidneys are less capable of excreting drugs. The liver is also less able to metabolize drugs. (more…)

As the United States people age, the focus on the number of looked for services will have to line up with the quality of the care rendered. For many years a spotlight has been placed on how well residents who reside in a nursing home are treated. Some understand that the level of care an individual obtains is dependent on how much family members are involved. Some mature children have trouble with placing their senior parents in a nursing home because of the negative press. (more…)

Medical care for the elderly takes center stage making mental health care take a back seat, especially in nursing homes. A great deal of time is spent assessing vital bodily functions in order to ensure nursing home residents are as comfortable as possible. Because this is so time consuming, mental health care is easily overlooked even though it can add so much to quality of life. (more…)

The Costs of Senior Care Options

When planning for our retirement, most of us allocate money into a 401K or another savings program to take advantage of tax write-offs and to make sure we will be able to enjoy a nice lifestyle when we are no longer working from 9 to 5. We imagine using the money to supplement our monthly social security checks to enjoy vacations and other leisure activities while taking advantage of all those senior discounts. (more…)