6 Reasons Why You Should Consider Home Health Care Services

Home health aides are available all day, any day. Even if you want to be as involved as possible in caring for your loved one, you may have a job, kids, or other responsibilities. But, no matter the time of day or night, a home care aide will be there for you. Your loved one will be safe, and you’ll have the flexibility to handle your own life while retaining the ability to be present whenever possible.

The CDC estimates that 4 in 5 seniors live with at least one illness or chronic condition. At the same time, approximately 50% suffer from two or more. Not all of them are easy to manage, such as osteoporosis, heart disorders, dementia, and Parkinson’s. Even when you’re available to provide care, you may not fully understand how to do so best. Regardless of what your loved one is facing, trained home care aides know precisely how to provide support, administer medications, and monitor vital signs.

A large percentage of seniors live by themselves. Beyond making support difficult, it also leads to loneliness and depression. A home health aide is not just there to take blood pressure and put the groceries away: they are also companions. People who can listen to stories and share their own. Someone to take a walk with or discuss what’s new on television. Companionship reduces stress and boredom, and a home health aide is both a caregiver and a friend.

Getting older does not signal an end to daily responsibilities. Seniors living at home still need to eat, clean, shop, and care for all the little things that life demands. While those requirements don’t disappear, the ability to handle them may diminish. A home care aide can support all of the day-to-day tasks your loved one may face. They can drive to the store, make a trip to the park, or even provide transportation to religious services.

Home health caregivers also serve as personal dieticians and fitness trainers. The importance of diet and exercise cannot be overstated for ANY of us. Still, they are even more important for our elders. Maintaining a special diet, especially deemed medically necessary, is among the services an aide can provide. And they can also ensure proper levels of physical activity, even if just a stroll in the fresh air.

For our senior community, something as small as a minor slip may cause serious injury. The second pair of hands, or someone to make a quick run up the stairs, may mean the difference between safety and a call to 911. In this regard, a home health aide is indispensable. Some tasks cannot be managed safely by an older loved one. A home health aide will shoulder that burden whenever necessary.