Eldercare & the Economics of Aging
It is possible to age gracefully at home
By IRENE CRONKRIGHT

Aging at home and avoiding admission to an assisted-living facility or nursing home is a desire among most older people. But how to do it is a puzzle. Everyone ages differently and the needs of one person are likely to be vastly different from the needs of another. Luckily, there are as many solutions to the problems of senior citizens as there are differences in their needs. From getting assistance with household chores to finding full-time live-in care, a range of services exists that can allow people to live longer in their own homes.

Simple tasks like changing a light bulb, cleaning the house or walking the dog become infinitely more difficult for seniors with limited mobility or health issues that impact their daily living. But an inability to reach that soup can on the top shelf doesn’t have to mean your meals will soon be eaten in a nursing home’s communal dining room. Finding reliable help to take care of everyday household needs is all many seniors need to allow them to stay in their own homes. Other services can build a wheelchair ramp into a senior’s home or perform other modifications to allow them to continue living at home after developing changes in their abilities or mobility.

Staying home alone all day, every day is not only unpleasant but it can be dangerous to a senior’s physical and mental health. Without positive activities and a connection to the outside world, seniors become prone to depression that can sometimes manifest itself in physical symptoms, exacerbating an older adults’ existing health problems. But a visit, even once a week, by a trained companion can be like a lifeline for an isolated senior. Qualified companions can spot and report medical problems and other issues to a senior’s family or physician. Even more, awaiting a visit from their special friend can be a reason for an older adult to get up and get dressed in the morning, making a good companion a real lifeline to homebound seniors.

“I’ve fallen, and I can’t get up!” We all remember those low-budget commercials with a smile. But a medical alert system can give a senior both the peace of mind to continue living at home as well as the ability to do so in safety. Even for seniors who don’t live alone, such systems ensure that help is always there at the push of a button when family members are out of the house. And a medical alert system can provide help to a senior’s family, too, by allowing them to work and carry out their own daily activities knowing their family member is safe at home.

At the more intensive end of the home-care services spectrum is full-time, live-in care. Depending on an individual’s needs, live-ins can provide home services, companionship, and, in some cases, medical care. The goal is not only to address a senior’s medical needs, but also to improve his or her overall quality of life. At some $75,000 a year, full-time care is not always cheap. But with the cost of an assisted-living facility in lower Fairfield County running somewhere in the neighborhood of $350,000 a year ­ well, you do the math.

The most important thing in choosing services for seniors is the credentials of the providers and the agencies or companies for which they work. Ask what licensing or accreditation the provider or agency has. Have their workers been screened and cleared by full background checks? Will they provide references? Doing a little homework can make all the difference.

Aging gracefully at home isn’t just a pie-in-the-sky dream. It’s an attainable, realistic goal.

Irene Cronkright, R.N., is vice president of services for seniors with Family & Children’s Agency Inc., a human-services agency in Norwalk, Conn. For information, visit www.familyandchildrensagency.org.

 

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