Let us take the worry and risk out of tasks that become harder with age. Eliminating these tasks that cause instability and overexertion can prevent falls, injuries, hospitalization, and long painful recoveries.
The Health in Aging Foundation states: “With a growing number of older adults living independently, it’s increasingly important to make sure that they’re safe at home. Falls, burns, and poisonings are among the most common accidents involving older people. Older adults who live alone may also become the victims of criminals who target older people.”
Elderly people should NOT or limit:
- Climbing on step stools or ladders
- Get down on their hands and knees
- Overexerting themselves with long tasks
- Do deep cleaning projects (move furniture, shake rugs, vacuum stairs, etc.)
- Reach above their heads (may lose balance or become light-headed)
Rocky Mountain Home Watch has a great program that can help elderly couples, widows, and single seniors stay in their homes as long as possible. If you are a child of an aging parent that has limited time or lives far away, our "Aging at Home" program can help. We can manage some of the tasks that create risk, so that you can spend less time doing and worrying and have more quality time with your loved one.
Choose from the following non-medical tasks and we can regularly schedule visits to keep your parent(s) from worrying about things that need done and enjoying their home and family. Customized to fit your needs, we can do as little or as much as you need.
- Drive to appointments (additional insurance policy in place)
- Change light bulbs and furnace filter
- Add water softener salt
- Test smoke alarms and carbon monoxide detectors
- Change batteries in smoke alarms, remotes, clocks
- Make sure doors and windows are locked
- Change batteries in clocks/ adjust time
- Take trash cans to/from the street
- Run errands – grocery shopping, prescriptions, mail packages, etc.
- Prepare meals
- Carry heavy items up and down stairs
- Move furniture and clean
- Clean and organize closets
- Change and wash bedding/sheets
- Wash and/or shake rugs
- Rotate and/or vacuum mattress
- Vacuum or sweep stairs
- Clean out refrigerator/freezer
- Housekeeping (weekly, bi-weekly, or monthly)
- Lawncare – mowing and/or watering lawn
- Seasonal yard work (rake leaves, shoveling snow)
- Water indoor and/or outdoor plants
- Going for a walk with parent, get some exercise
- Advocate for seniors
- Companionship - is vitally important to the Elderly. Having someone to talk and visit with, can raise their spirits, and give them something to look forward too.
Senior Living.org states: “The biggest benefit of senior companionship is that it improves the quality of life of seniors. Companionship goes beyond just caregiving and is a symbiotic relationship that enables the senior to thrive. On a social level having friends and companions enables people to talk about challenges, express grief, and to find resources to solve problems. On a personal level, a quality companion is someone that the senior not only looks forward to visiting with, doing things with but also is someone on which they can rely. Older people worry about many of their challenges that for you and I might be very small such as going to the grocery store or transportation to and from doctors’ appointments. Companionship helps to remove the worry and burden, so that seniors can focus on living a quality life.
The impact of a companionship for seniors is often a longer and healthier life with improved wellbeing. When we are alone, we suffer and are at higher risk of dementia and forgetfulness. There is a lack of ambition, and it can be associated with depression and the loss of the will to live. The worst of all criminals are placed in isolation as a punishment. Companionship for the elderly is so important because it is the fuel that brings meaning back to their lives and with that comes the willingness to do more.”