During an emergency or health crisis, families often have to trust in the healthcare system to provide for an elderly loved one. The problem is that mistakes are more common than many Americans think. The Los Angeles Times reports that one out of three patients who are admitted to a hospital experience a medication mix-up, a fall, or another problem.
Added to that difficulty is the fact that caregivers often find it difficult to meet up with a parent who is in a hospital. A career and kids can take precedence, which means that a senior often has no one to advocate for his or her needs.
One of the best solutions may be to hire a home care assistant who can accompany an older adult to a healthcare facility. These professionals can also attend doctor’s appointments, so they can become familiar with the unique needs of Mom or Dad and communicate them to the hospital.
Either way, LifeGoesStrong.com reports that the key is to be “an active participant in your care.” Seniors should learn to espouse their health requirements boldly and clearly, so there’s little chance of a mistake.
March 7, 2012 at 10:30 am
It’s really imtropant that Council’s and the NHS work in partnership to use the extra money that’s has just been released in a strategic way to help imporve their Intermediate Care services and enable older people to return to their homes from hospital in a speedy but safe manner. The implementation of services such as reablement, equipment provision and Telecare should be one of the highest priorities of all Council’s at present.Council’s shouldn’t just be looking at their own services though, they should be working with the independent sector providers and third sector partners to ensure that they understand these services and modify their own service provision so that they become part of the reablement culture, aiming to help people be independent in their own homes for as long as possible.