Elderly Care: Companion Care Vs. Personal Care

companion care vs hands on care

Many questions arise when determining your aging loved ones care needs and the answers can vary as much as the unique day-to-day condition of an individual. Todays post will explain two basic types of care: companion care and personal care.

What is senior companion care?

Basically, companion care is not hands-on i.e., no medications and no assistance with ADLs (activities of daily living). As the name implies, companion care offers companionship to a senior who doesn’t have the same access to the social activities he or she once did. In short, companions are good for people who are self-sufficient but may want a little company or someone to run errands with, etc.

Studies show that social isolation has many ill effects on the elderly. As such, mentally stimulating activities such as playing games and engaging in lively conversation help give elderly people a link to the outside world that has diminished as they have slowed down, either in old age or due to a debilitating condition. In some cases, companion care can even prolong or prevent the need for long-term care.

What is personal care?

Personal care is usually completed by a Certified Nurse Assistant who can give medications, assist with ADLs and provide hands-on care. Assistance with all necessary personal care needs are met for seniors who are unable to complete them on their own, from getting up, getting dressed and taking care of personal hygiene to eating, drinking, administering medication and going to bed, etc. In short, personal care assistants are hired by an individual or family when a person is no longer self-sufficient and needs help with day-to-day living.

Which one is best for my loved one?

It depends on personal needs of your loved one. It’s best to consult with a senior care provider who will work closely with you and your loved one to determine which option is best, or perhaps a combination of several different options.

Physicians Choice Private Duty currently serving Omaha, Eastern Nebraska and Western Iowa provides seniors and their families a complete understanding of geriatric care options and helps families maneuver through the challenges of the system.

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“Physicians Choice Private Duty solves the problems families face in finding home health care providers they can trust. Providers who will focus on strategies that keep parents in their homes. To learn more about our health care services, call us today.

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The Secrets of Living to 100

3080004036_1050ff90f2It’s no secret that Americans are living longer than ever before. Still, it’s considered quite a feet to live to be 100 or older. A recent survey by United Healthcare asked a group of centenarians and baby boomers about various aspects of their health and their thoughts on longevity.

Here are some of the takeaways:

  • No regrets. 50% of 100-years-olds surveyed said they would not change anything about the way they lived their lives. Only 29% of baby boomers (ages 60 to 65) said the same.
  • Money not important. Only 6% of centenarians said they wish they had more money in their lives.
  • Great expectations. 29% of 100-year-olds said they expected to reach 100. Only 21% of baby boomers thought the same.
  • Staying active. More than half of the centenarians had moderate exercise (walking/hiking) each week and 33% engaged in some form of strength training weekly. 98% thought staying physically fit was important to living a long life (about the same percentage of baby boomers agreed).
  • Staying healthy. 86% of the 100-year-olds thought eating a nutritious diet was a big factor in their longevity and 66% thought getting a good amount of sleep was important.
  • What about sex? Less than a third of centenarians said maintaining a healthy sex life was key to healthy aging and living longer, as start contrast to the beliefs of 80% of boomers.

Number of centenarians on the rise

In 2010, there were 53,364 Americans age 100 and older, 80% of who were women. In comparison, the U.S. Census Bureau only recorded 32,000 centenarians in 1980. Estimates suggest there will be 600,000 Americans 100 and older by 2050.

Physicians Choice Private Duty  currently serving Omaha, Eastern Nebraska and Western Iowa ” provides seniors and their families a complete understanding of geriatric care options and helps families maneuver through the challenges of the system. 

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“Physicians Choice Private Duty solves the challenges families face in caring for aging parents, with a focus on strategies that keep them in their homes. To learn more about our solutions, visit us today..”

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Senior Care: The Benefits of Senior Caregivers

8571496124_de720e3b5aWhile caregiving at any age is undoubtedly noble work, important aspects of an aging persons social life can disappear if they’re receive care from someone decades in age their junior. In other words, it can be kind of hard for a 27-year-old health care aide to have a good conversation with a 70-year-old with early onset dementia. That’s why caregiving organizations are seeing success in pairing ailing seniors with caregivers who are of a similar age, reported the CBC.

Here’s an example of how it works: Organizations such as Seniors Helping Seniors in the U.S. and Seniors for Seniors in Canada send older caregivers, say a recent retiree in good health, to the home of an elderly person who needs help with daily tasks such as cooking, cleaning, errands and medication management. And since the person receiving care is of relatively the same age as the caregiver, the two can converse and swap stories about a similar history, providing much need socialization for the ailing senior. This can help ward off loneliness and, in some cases, even ease the symptoms of depression.

“I think that for the older people who are giving the support, it is reinforcing their purpose in life, that they are socially engaged, Janice Keefe, the director for the Centre for Aging in Nova Scotia told the CBC. And people who are socially engaged and active are healthier and they have a longer life.

Able to use a lifetimes worth of skills and knowledge to help others, these so called junior-seniors also benefit from fulfilling post-retirement employment on their own terms. This is a win-win, benefiting both those giving and receive the care and society in general.

What are some other benefits to older caregivers can offer? Let us know on Twitter or in the comments.

Physicians Choice Private Duty currently serving Omaha, Eastern Nebraska and Western Iowa provides seniors and their families a complete understanding of geriatric care options and helps families maneuver through the challenges of the system. 

Subscribe (sign-up to your right) to our monthly newsletter and stay in touch with us.

Get your free Cost Comparison guide.

Or contact us for a Free Consultation or just to say hello!

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“Physicians Choice Private Duty solves the problems families face in finding home health care providers they can trust. Providers who will focus on strategies that keep parents in their homes. To learn more about our health care services, visit http://www.encompass-home-health-care.com.”

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A Blood Test for Alzheimer’s?

8057597193_aca7e47999Imagine if doctors could take a simple blood test to determine if an individual is at risk for Alzheimer’s and other dementia. This may be a reality one day soon, as Australian scientists have made advances in developing a screening test for detecting Alzheimer’s early on, reported Science Daily.

Australia, like the United States, has an aging population. And with a large number of seniors comes the ills of old age — namely debilitating chronic diseases that will be treated by an army of doctors, nurses, care facilities and caregivers alike. Among the many chronic conditions, dementia has proven to be the most costly in the U.S., with direct costs topping out at $109 billion for 2010. As such, it’s encouraging news that a simple blood test could potentially help detect the dementia years before any symptoms occur, which is critical to better treating the disease as well as keeping costs lower in the long run thanks to preventative care.

How the Alzheimer’s blood test works

Researchers from the Australian Imaging and Biomarkers Lifestyle Study of Aging (AIBL) looked at blood-based biological markers associated with the build up of amyloid beta, a toxic protein found in the brain which can appear years before the occurrence of any symptoms and brain damage — the latter of which is irreversible. The AIBL team also showed that amyloid beta levels become abnormal at upwards of 17 years before any symptoms of dementia occur, giving doctors ample time to start treatment that slows the progression of the disease.

“We hope our continued research will lead to the development of a low cost, minimally invasive population based screening test for Alzheimer’s in the next five to ten years,” Dr. Samantha Burnham from CSIRO‘s Preventative Health Flagship told Science Daily.”A blood test would be the ideal first stage to help identify many more people at risk before a diagnosis is confirmed more specialised testing.”

Physicians Choice Private Duty  currently serving Omaha, Eastern Nebraska and Western Iowa” provides seniors and their families a complete understanding of the available care options and helps families maneuver through the challenges of the system. All Encompass services are directed by registered nurses or social workers with no long-term contracts. Contact us today for help with your senior care needs.

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“Physicians Choice Private Duty solves the challenges families face in caring for aging parents, with a focus on strategies that keep them in their homes. To learn more about our solutions, visit us today..”

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