Month: February 2022

How to care for a bedridden patient?

If you are a busy person who must run house and office errands then having a nurse at home who is available 24/7 to take care of your elderly, from looking after their personal hygiene to ensuring that they feel comfortable is a positive advantage to your pacing lifestyle.

Being a working guardian and juggling to balance your work and personal life becomes difficult and tedious at times. Taking care of your bedridden elderly is a huge responsibility and should be done with utmost care and patience. Having a nurse at home to take care of your elderly is the best way to help yourself and your bedridden elderly. It’s extremely painful and disheartening to see your elderly parents bedridden. But ensuring that they are stable and comfortable is solely our responsibility.

Looking after their grooming and hygiene is extremely important to avoid any fungal infections, allergies, or diseases. A trained nursing caretaker will look into their daily bathing, dental care, making them wear their fresh clothes, keeping a check on their trimming of fingernails and toenails, haircut, and grooming. Bedsores (also known as pressure ulcer) are extremely common in bedridden patients, but the good news is that it is preventable. If the elderly spends majority of his/her time on the bed, ensure that you reposition them every few hours. If they can move on their own, then encourage them to move and readjust themselves quite often. Also make sure you stay alert on the common parts where bedsores are likely to occur e.g., ankles, heels the hip area and the tailbone.

Ensure that their bed linens are regularly changed and laundered. The trained nursing caretaker will take care of the proper nutritional care. They will monitor and record the meals to ensure they are getting in proper nutritional value and having balanced meals. Make their environment lively, comfortable, and fresh. So, they feel good in that environment around them. It is also extremely important to deal with the bedridden with utmost patience and care. Having a male ward boy nurse at home will help your elderly feel comfortable while taking them to use the washroom if they can make movements. A man’s physical strength is undoubtedly strong which will make them comfortable while relying on their strength for movements.

Let your children often visit your parents, talk to them, which will lighten the mood and make in a happy atmosphere for the bedridden elderly. A happy and positive and cheerful atmosphere is extremely important for them. Take some time out of your daily schedule and talk to them bout your day. If possible, try having a meal next to them or with them. Even you can read out the newspaper to them or play on their favourite songs. Never zone them out completely, don’t let them feel lonely. Make sure the place is reasonably well lit as per the need, the necessities are right at their bedside, and the place is well ventilated at all times. Reduce noise levels as far as possible. Take extra precautions during this pandemic. Always ensure their and your safety.

Apart from the above-mentioned points, one should also take expert advice, medical opinion, or help from professional home nursing services in case any other challenges are faced in caring for the elderly parents or other family members at home.

Why Choose Nurse At Home Instead Of Old Age Home?

Family is that one bond that lasts forever. No matter how old you become, no matter what your achievements are, no matter how far you are from them, your parents will always love you for who you are. When you cannot always be available for your old parents that is the time when you trust someone. And that someone will take your place when you are not available for your parents. That’s where caregivers/ caretakers come into the picture.
A sudden need of any urgency and you are relieved, your caregiver is there at that moment to ensure their needs are being met which will be lacking at an old age home. Because your caregiver is available 24/7, making you and them at ease. Also, it is very natural for you to worry about your parents, as they grow older, you think about how they will get along from day to day.

There are numerous advantages of having a trained, trusted, and responsible caregiver at home. They can make the elderly recover from an ailment, injury, post-surgery hassle-free and easy. This caregiver will also help the elderly with physiotherapy sessions at home. An elderly who is bedridden or unable to move freely will find it difficult to use the washroom or maintain personal hygiene which is taken care of by a trained nursing caretaker. Having a trained caregiver will ensure any mishappenings like falls, injury and ensure their safety in that feeble age of theirs. In addition, the elderly who stay at home tend to be physically and mentally healthier compared to old age homes.

For the elderly who are suffering from dementia, it is challenging to take care of them which requires knowledge, patience and understanding. Families, generally, lack the experience and skills to understand the age-related conditions and fail to care for their beloved ones properly. Also, it is quite painful to view your beloved parents deteriorate mentally. A Qualified nurse at home can provide a lot of support, as they understand the condition and have all skills and experience to deal with dementia patients rightly.

A medical survey has revealed that people who have a home nursing services facility at home live a longer life. Receiving emotional, physical, medical, and specialized care in their comfort zones helps senior citizens live healthier and longer life. Because no comfort zone can replace one’s own home. Especially your parents may be attached to a particular couch, a favourite chair, a favourite routine, or a favourite view from a specific corner in the house. Besides, relocating can be very stressful. Also, they are left with all the memories of us in that place, when remembered would make them feel nostalgic and happy which will lack at an old age home.
Because ‘IT FEELS LIKE HOME’, with a responsible and trusted nurse at home. You will definitely want to give your parents the best just like they did when you were young! So, consider these points before making a decision.

How can you help your senior family member bond with a caregiver?

Building a bond and relationship between your caregiver and your elderly is extremely essential. Establishing this bond and relationship will encourage open and honest communication which will work both ways out. Firstly, when you decide to bring in a nurse at home, it is very important to hire a professional from a Home Nursing Services Agency, who has experience in taking care of the elderly. If your elderly is suffering from dementia, ensure you hire a professional who has dealt with such patients rather than a newbie.

Caregivers often observe things that no one else does. So, make sure you listen to their observations and points with an open mind. The positive energy that you give to a caregiver that relationship will be awarded back! As it is important that even your caregiver feels at ease in the surroundings and when they deal with the elderly. You may also engage with some personalized activity session frequently between your caregiver and your elderly like watching some movie classics together, reading out their favourite book or poem to them, if your elderly can walk without support then going out to outdoor garden walks together, observing nature together etc., also the hobbies can always vary according to the elderly’s lifestyle and choices. This will create a bond of friendship and openness between the two and make their bond grow stronger. Because having a good companionship is a huge part which is required to fill the gap between the two.

As it is said, “Building relationships encourages independence, which has a positive impact on overall happiness.” Having cheerful and positive energy between the nurse at home and the patient, in turn, will aid in a fast recovery if your elderly are suffering from certain ailments or post-surgery recovery. Respecting and understanding each other’s personal space is also very important. It’s important for one to understand that caregiving or having elderly care services at home is one of life’s most difficult jobs. So, one must respect the person who is assigned to take care of the elderly and make sure you be polite to them. As they deal with these patients with the utmost care, empathy, and patience. They go through a lot more than you think.

The bond and the connection between a caregiver and the elderly can be achieved only over a period of some time. No relationship happens in a day or two so patience and time are the factors that one must keep in mind. As Pablo Casals says, “The capacity to care is the thing which gives life its deepest significance.” When handled in the right way, caring for a loved one can bring meaning and pleasure to you, your nurse in service and your elderly. Staying calm and relaxed and taking time to connect and know each other will release stress-free hormones which will reduce stress and aid to a good mood and speedy recovery. As one’s environment is also an important factor while creating that bond between your caregiver/nursing caretaker and your elderly.

Once that bond is made between your elderly and your caregiver, it will make them at ease and create a relationship of trust, empathy, and transparency.