Home Instead Senior Care, Birmingham

Cute Quotes From Clients

Monday, May 24, 2010

When we asked a client if she was comfortable with her CAREGiver, she said,
"I'll adopt her. I want her all to myself."

Another client, when asked the same question, said,
"I would giver her a million dollars if I had it."

We have the sweetest clients and the best CAREGivers!!!

10 Reasons Seniors Hang On To Stuff

Friday, May 21, 2010

10 Reasons Seniors Hang On To Stuff and What To Do About It

Following, from Home Instead Senior Care and Vickie Dellaquila, certified professional organizer and author of “Don’t Toss My Memories in the Trash,” are 10 reasons seniors can’t or won’t give up their stuff and what to do about it.

1. The sentimental attachment. The beloved prom dress represents the history and memories of the event; it’s not the dress itself. Save only a piece of the dress to make a quilt or display in a shadow box. Scrapbooking and converting photos to DVDs are other ways to save treasured keepsakes without all the extra mess.

2. The sense of loyalty. Older adults who’ve received gifts from family and friends may be reluctant to part with them. Encourage your loved one to give unused gifts back to the giver or grandchildren.

3. The need to conserve. Seniors are the original green people. Appeal to a senior’s desire to help others. Counter a senior’s inclination to conserve by appealing to their desire to give back.

4. The fatigue. A home with a lifetime of memories can easily become too much for an older adult to handle. Help seniors manage clutter by establishing online bill paying. Also, get your senior off junk mail lists, which can put them at risk of identity theft, and buy them a shredder.

5. The change in health. Seniors who have suffered a brain trauma or stroke, who are wheelchair bound or who are experiencing dementia may no longer be able to manage household duties, which could contribute to clutter. If you see a health change, encourage your senior to visit his or her doctor and consider a professional organizer and caregiver to help your loved one.

6. The fear. Seniors often fear what will happen if they give up their stuff, like the older adult who saved three generations of bank statements. Use logic and information to help seniors understand it’s O.K. to let go.

7. The dream of the future. Those clothes in the closet don’t fit anymore, but your loved one is sure that some day she’ll lose enough weight to get into them. Ask seniors to fill a box with clothing they don’t wear much and make a list of the items in the box. Agree that if they have not gone back to the box in six months to wear the item, they will donate that to charity.

8. The love of shopping. Today’s seniors have more money than any other previous generation of older adults and they love to shop. Clutter can become so bad seniors can’t find things and they repurchase items they already have, contributing to the clutter cycle. Try to convince seniors to cut back and to say “no” to free stuff.

9. The history and memories. Keepsakes represent history and memories. Encourage seniors to take old photos to a family reunion and share with several generations. Let seniors know they can contribute to the history of their time and leave a lasting legacy by donating to museums and historical societies, a theater and library, or churches and synagogues.

10. The loneliness. Stuff can become a misplaced companion. Loneliness may also lead to depression, which makes it difficult for seniors to get organized. Consider the services of a professional organizer and caregiver.

For more information, go to the National Association of Professional Organizers at www.napo.net or visit www.homeinstead.com. Other experts contributing to these tips include Katherine “Kit” Anderson, CPO-CD, president of the National Study Group on Chronic Disorganization; University of Kansas Professor Dr. David Ekerdt, who is coordinating a “household moves” project to determine the role that possessions play in older people’s housing decisions; and University of New Mexico Researcher Dr. Catherine Roster.

Senior Driving: Safety Tips, Warning Signs, and Knowing When to Stop

Wednesday, May 19, 2010

Senior Driving
Safety Tips, Warning Signs, and Knowing When to Stop

Driver safety is an important and often sensitive issue for seniors. The changes of normal aging can sometimes interfere with the ability to drive. Learn to reduce these risk factors. Drive safely longer by taking care of your health and incorporating safe driving practices. However, safety must come first. If you need to reduce your driving or eventually give up the keys, it doesn’t mean the end of your independence. With help from family, friends, community resources, a positive outlook, and personal action, you can remain mobile without driving.

Facts about driving and aging

Everyone ages differently, so some people can continue to drive into their seventies, eighties, and even beyond while others cannot or should not. However, the statistics on older adults and driving can be sobering.

Older adults and accidents
Statistics show that the elderly are more likely than other drivers to receive traffic citations for failing to yield, turning improperly, and running red lights and stop signs—all indications of decreased driving ability. It is a fact that older adults are at higher risk for road accidents than other age groups. Older drivers are more likely to get into multiple-vehicle accidents than younger people do, and the accidents are more dangerous for them than for younger drivers. A person 65 or older who is involved in a car accident is more likely to be seriously hurt, more likely to require hospitalization, and more likely to die than younger people involved in the same crash. Truth is, fatal crash rates rise sharply after a driver has reached the age of 70.

Environmental factors
There are environmental factors as well. These affect people of all ages and include signs and road markings that are difficult to see or read, complex and confusing intersections, older vehicles that lack automatic safety features, and newer dashboard instrument panels with multiple displays. Such factors are often amplified in those seniors who experience a decline in their ability to drive, and become very risky. For all of these reasons, you want to stay alert to your own driving experiences and be willing to admit and discuss any difficulties and concerns with a relative or someone else you trust.

Lessening aging risk factors that affect safe driving
It is easy to overlook problems that develop slowly over time because we typically accommodate our daily activities to what we can comfortably do. Consequently, issues like vision or hearing loss, decreasing physical activity, growing forgetfulness, or the impact of prescription and over-the-counter drugs are hardly noticed. Any one or a combination of these conditions can make driving hazardous.

Decrease risks by taking control of your health
The most important and positive action you can take is to decrease the driving risks associated with aging. Do not wait until problems become serious. Tending to your health and well-being on a regular basis can help in your efforts to stay independent and mobile. The most common risk factors related to safe driving are listed below along with suggested steps you can take:

Helping yourself drive safely

Visual decline
Get eyes checked every year and make sure that corrective lenses are current. Keep the windshield, mirrors, and headlights clean, and turn brightness up on the instrument panel on your dashboard.

Hearing loss
Have hearing checked annually. If hearing aids are prescribed, make sure they are worn while driving

Limited mobility and increased reaction time
An occupational therapist or a certified driving rehabilitation specialist can prescribe equipment to make it easier to steer the car and to operate the foot pedals.

Medications
Talk with a doctor about the effects of medications you are taking on driving ability.

Drowsiness
Sleeping well is essential to driving well. If there are problems, try to improve nighttime sleep conditions and talk with a doctor about the effect of any sleep medications on driving.

Dementia and brain impairment
If there are any signs of dementia or brain impairment, limit driving and consult a doctor.

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Difficulties of US Health Care Going Forward - CNBC.com

Tuesday, May 18, 2010

Home Instead Senior Care CEO Paul Hogan appears on CNBC to discuss the economic and social implications of caring for aging US population














Difficulties of US Health Care Going Forward - CNBC.com

BBA's 2010 Small Business Award Winners - Dan Pahos, Small Business Person of The Year!

Monday, May 10, 2010

2010 Small Business Award Winners
The BBA’s Small Business Committee recognized this year’s small business winners at an event Thursday, May 7, at B&A Warehouse. Here are the winners:

•Jesse J. Lewis – Mark Jackson, Moreson Conferencing
•Centennial – Brownell Travel
Nonprofit of the Year
•Category 1 – Southeastern Diabetes Education Services
•Category 2 – United Way Food Bank
•Small Business Advocate – James Little, Five Points South Merchant Group
Small Business Person of the Year
•Category 1 - Daniel Murray, Murray Building Company
•Category 2 – Lloyd C. Shelton, Lovoy, Summerville & Shelton, P.C.
•Category 3 – Dan Pahos, Home Instead Senior Care
“My Choice” – The People’s Choice Award – Ruwena Healy, Marketing 24/7

We are so proud!

NY Times Article "More With Dementia Wander From Home"

Thursday, May 6, 2010

According to a NY Times article, "about 6 in 10 dementia victims will wander from home at least once, health care statistics show, and the numbers are growing worldwide, fueled primarily by Alzheimer’s disease, which has no cure and affects about half of all people over 85." — NYT

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/05/05/us/05search.html?ref=todayspaper

LEADING SENIOR CARE EXPERT TO HOST FREE PUBLIC SEMINAR IN BIRMINGHAM

Tuesday, May 4, 2010

Recent Study Shows Planning For Senior Care Out of Sight and Mind for Most Adults

BIRMINGHAM, Ala. -- Birmingham area seniors and their families are invited to attend a free seminar designed to explain the many care options available for today’s aging population. The seminar will be held Wednesday, June 2, 2010 from 4 p.m. -6 p.m. at the B&A Warehouse, 1531 First Avenue South. The featured speaker at the event will be Paul Hogan, co-author of the recently released book Stages of Senior Care: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Making the Best Decisions.

A leading senior care expert, Hogan will review a number important topics including: financial planning for senior care, being a caregiver to an elderly parent, insurance options, and the state of senior care in America.

“With more than 78 million Baby Boomers on the verge of retirement, America is facing monumental social and economic challenges in the ways in which we care for our seniors.” Hogan said. “If families are not prepared, navigating the care continuum can become a complex process that sometimes involves misinformation and injects unwanted stress into our most important relationships.”

A recent Home Instead Senior Care survey showed that planning for senior care is out of sight and out of mind for most adult children and seniors alike. In fact, half of all seniors ages 65 to 75 have not thought about their own future care needs, and nearly a quarter of 35- to 64-year-olds could not name a single senior care option available today. Even more startling: both seniors and adult children have the misconception that Social Security and Medicare will pay for senior care, while many are unfamiliar with the costs of today’s care options.

"Senior care options have expanded almost beyond recognition in the last 20 years, yet most Americans are still only familiar with nursing homes or family care at home," adds Hogan. “With tens of millions of Boomers starting to retire, it’s critical that people start thinking about this.”

Hogan’s book, Stages of Senior Care: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Making the Best Decisions serves as a comprehensive guide for the ever-expanding world of senior care, breaking down the process by addressing the shared concerns of seniors and their family members. Featuring more than 30 sources from the most credible major healthcare organizations, universities and nonprofit organizations, the book thoroughly explains each and every aspect of senior care, including the array of available care choices, being a caregiver, planning for your own future, aging in place, family and professional care options, how to chose an option and what to look for, financing care, insurance, legal matters, dealing with stress, communication and family relations.

Proceeds from the Stages of Senior Care will benefit the Home Instead Senior Care Foundation, which provides financial support of activities designed to improve the quality of life of seniors.

Reservations for the June 2 seminar can be made at www.stagesofseniorcarebirmingham.eventbrite.com or by contacting the local Home Instead Senior Care office at 205-822-1915. The first 50 guests will receive a complimentary copy of Stages of Senior Care.