As many seniors are now living well into
their 70’s and beyond, more adult children are faced with making decisions regarding
the kind of care their elderly parents need.
And to further complicate matters, families with multiple siblings do
not always necessarily agree on the course of action to take when parents require
assistance to ensure their continued safety and wellbeing.
When this happens, the experts advise
families to thoroughly discuss the various care options available before the
situation reaches a critical stage. Neal
Cutler, PhD, dean of the American Institute of Financial Gerontology and the executive
director of the Center on Aging for the Motion Picture and Television Fund in
Woodlawn Hills, CA, suggests families "Anticipate that these are decisions
and choices that are best made before a crisis happens." He further adds, "Sit down with everyone
together, and talk about what you want to do, whether it's a financial issue or
geographical issue. The key is conversation rather than crisis
management."
The WebMD site has several tips to
help families plan for the care of an aging parent. If possible they recommend starting a
discussion regarding long-term care with a parent while they are still in good
mental and physical health. In addition
this is an ideal time to talk about appointing a health care proxy and creating
a living will.
If one family member is going to act
as the primary caregiver for the parent, the rest of the siblings will need to
figure out how they can provide support - be it financial, by doing paperwork
or to help with the physical care. Keep
in mind that there are many excellent home care agencies such as SYNERGY HomeCare that provide a broad range of physical care services available on a
daily basis or as often as the need arises.
SYNERGY HomeCare is one of the most trusted agencies in the Greater Austin area for
non-medical home care. Our affordable,
reliable and compassionate services provide families with everything from
live-in care to short term wellness visits.
Contact us for a complementary home visit to discuss the ways we can
provide your family with the best professional care.
Source:webmd.com/healthy-aging/features/role-reversal-caregiving-for-aging-parents?page=3
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