After you make a decision that homecare is the best choice for you and your family, there are many options available including:
Housekeepers and Home Maintenance
If you are having trouble keeping up with the daily activities of caregiving for a loved one with Alzheimer’s disease (such as doing laundry, cleaning house, buying groceries, cooking and more), consider hiring household maintenance help.
Transportation
If your loved one with Alzheimer’s disease has many appointments and you find yourself short on time to taxi him/her back and forth for medical tests, physician appointment, adult day center and more, consider hiring a medical transportation company-many are even covered by insurance.
Personal Care Assistance
Assistance with personal care includes help with bathing, dressing, meals and other personal care which can be applicable for a few hours a day to a live-in assistance, depending on how many hours of care your loved one requires and how much time caregiver’s have to devote on a 1:1 basis. Personal care assistants are usually called home health aides, or home care aides. They may also help with medication assistance and/or observing vital signs when certified to perform a higher level of medical care.
Professional Home Health Care
There are many types of professional home health care assistance available for those with AD including: nursing care, physical therapy, occupational therapy, social workers, hospice care and other trained professional health care workers. Insurance may pay for many of these services.
Adult Day Programs
Offers several hours of care each day (usually available M-F), these centers are usually focused on providing socialization and supervision to those in the earlier stages of AD.
Caregiving is known to be emotionally and physically exhausting, identifying needs and accepting help is part of the process for those who are serious about going the distance and avoiding burn out. Learn how to delegate and don’t be afraid to ask for help when needed.
Learn more about caregiving topics at AlzU.org by CLICKING HERE to join our 25 topic course.
