Your Guide to Dementia
In-Home Care
If you have a parent or loved one who suffers from dementia, it can feel very stressful and frightening.
Many times you find yourself losing the parent you once knew and loved, as they become increasingly agitated and begin to forget basic things about themselves and you.
As dementia progresses, in-home care becomes an important consideration for your ailing parent.
Our long term dementia care coordinators and caregivers use this information to build specific and individualized dementia care plans for daily care. To help you throughout the process, we make you a part of our rigorous caregiver selection process and one-on-one consultations. And to ensure that our dementia care services are always evolving to provide the best possible family experiences, we continually evaluate its effectiveness with client satisfaction surveys, client and caregiver focus groups, and advisory councils.
What is Dementia
In-Home Care?
In-home care for dementia can take many different forms. Some dementia patients simply need someone to check in on them periodically during the day. Other patients need full-time non-medical care. Sometimes there is an existing caregiver who simply needs a periodic break – in-home care for dementia patients can provide that.
Dementia in-home care providers offer a variety of services, including companionship, escort to appointments outside the home, shopping outings, light housekeeping, and more. Dementia in-home care can also give you peace of mind knowing that your parent is reminded about important medication and personal hygiene.
Who Needs Dementia
In-Home Care?
When you feel that your parent or loved one has become too much to handle, or you simply need some additional help, it’s a good time to look into dementia in-home care. Some caregivers feel guilty asking for help, but there’s no shame in needing a break or arranging full-time care for your parent. It’s often the best thing if you live far away from your parent, or if you have obligations that keep you from caring for your parent full-time.
You’ll start to notice signs that it’s time to look into getting dementia in-home care. Your parent may be moving into the middle or advanced stages of dementia, and may be more combative, confused, or anxious than ever before. You may find yourself exhausted with primary care. Many times at this stage relatives begin to fight among themselves about who is responsible for helping the ailing parent, with everyone feeling overwhelmed at the situation.
At times like these, it’s best for both your parent’s health and your own family’s well-being to look into dementia in-home care. Whether it’s one day a week or full-time, an in-home care provider can be there for your parent and the rest of your family, helping you all sleep better knowing everything is taken care of.
First, it has to be someone that your parent or loved one can trust and get along with. Never hire a dementia in-home care provider without first introducing them to your parent and seeing how they get along.
Secondly, the provider should carefully screen all employees and check references. It’s best if the caregivers are actual employees of the in-home care company, rather than contracted care providers. That way you can rest assured that the reputation of the company is supported by the work of their employees.
Finally, all caregivers should be extremely well trained. There should be an initial training, of course, but the dementia in-home care provider should be committed to ongoing training, along with consistent CPR and First Aid refreshers. Although dementia in-home care is non-medical, it still requires specialized training because dementia patients have unique needs.
How to Choose a Dementia
In-Home Care Provider
For more information about dementia in-home care, or to schedule a consultation, call Specialized Senior Care at 330-758-8740 ext 1. We are here to serve your parent and family in the best way possible.
When choosing a dementia in-home care provider, there are several factors that are important.