Pamela D. Wilson - The Care Navigator

When some people hear the word adult day care or adult day centers they think child care.  This perception is far from the truth.  An adult day center may be just the bridge you need to prevent or delay your loved one from moving to a care community.  Imagine having 12 hours to yourself at least 5 days a week for as little as $80 per day.  In what other manner could you have such a break, knowing that your loved one is totally cared for relative to meals, medications, personal care or activities?  If you are a caregiver needing time to yourself or support to delay moving your loved one to a care community or if you’re an older adult wanting a little more life in your life, a day program offers something for everyone no matter your physical or cognitive needs. Some provide educational programs through computer sessions, opportunities to socialize, watch movies, outings, participate in craft programs and more; other centers have beauty, podiatry, dental, physical therapy services and access to medical care.  Most day centers have a nurse on staff.  If you haven’t considered a day center it may be time to investigate this care option.  

Your mother has memory loss.  Everyone else sees it but you don’t want to accept that she can no longer balance a check book or that she should no longer drive.  You think the doctors are making a big deal about all of this.  Maybe it’s time to consider that the doctors and other acquaintances may be right.  How much time do you spend with your mother?  Are you really seeing what goes on day to day?  Are there issues with not taking medications, not eating or other health concerns?  It’s much better to take a proactive approach than having to rush to the hospital when a health emergency has occurred or receiving a call from 911 when your parent has had a car accident that injured other people.  It’s time to listen and consider that there may be value in the information others are providing.

More and more men are caring for their mothers.  Some even living with their mothers.  This sometimes results in reverse discrimination with the general public or neighbors believing that these sons are living off their mothers.  When does caring for a mother cross the boundary of personal dignity?  Is it appropriate for sons to provide personal care like bathing and incontinence care for their mothers?  It depends on the mother - son relationship and also how comfortable the son is in providing this care.  Another question is the level of detail or attention the son can and is willing to provide.  This is where the boundaries get a little gray.  Will a son thoroughly clean the private parts of his mother?  Will he apply lotion so there is no skin breakdown.  Thoroughly care for finger and toenails?  If any of this is in question it may be better to hire a female caregiver to provide this type of personal hygiene and care.  This is an important area of good caregiving that must not be neglected.

How many of us remember President Obama making this statement?  It’s a statement that will likely be proven as false.  Corporations, looking at the healthcare reform bill, are realizing it’s less expensive to pay a $2,000 penalty per employee than pay more to provide health insurance for the employee and their family.  So, if you like your insurance you may lose it.  Did the goverment make this provision knowing that it will force millions of Americans into the individual insurance market or onto government exchanges?  Do we have a government more interested in their own self interest than in the people of our country?  It’s not too late to express your opinions to state legislators.  The problem is that many of them, even in Colorado, have engaged in back door deals offered by or through a president who offered transparency and change.  The American people are now seeing that the promise of transparency and change isn’t the change we want.  Attend our event on June 13th, “How Will Healthcare Reform Change Your Life” to learn the facts.  Visit www.thecaringgeneration.com for more information about the event.

All of us will need help at one time or another as we age and our physical or cognitive health weakens.  Many of us have friends who will help. Some have friendships through groups like a church.  In a perfect world these helpers will be able to set their self interests aside, meaning that they seek no reward in return for helping.  This is not always the case. Friends from church very often feel entitled to money, household goods and other personal items of the person they’re helping. The person needing help, feeling guilty that someone is helping them often give access to friends and acquaintances to bank accounts, money and personal treasures.  The entitled person uses the church as the foundation for the donations because the person needing care has a deep belief in their faith.  Many older adults needing help are willing to give money and property to their “church”.  However they don’t realize that the person they trust to transfer the gift keeps it for themselves.  Be careful of helpful friends and acquaintances who want to help in return for money or gifts.  You’ll save yourself time, grief and loss by hiring professional caregivers.  

A report by the President’s Cancer Panel was recently released.  Common things that we use and do every day have the potential of causing cancers.  Pesticides sprayed on golf courses to keep them green, dry cleaning solvents even re-using plastic bottles can be hazardous.  Naturally occurring arsenic or electronic waste filled with lead that seeps into our drinking water is hazardous.  Access this report at www.thecaringgeneration.com, “as heard on” and then “articles”.  You can also hear Dr. Richard Clapp discuss this report Sunday 6/6 on The Caring Generation.

What is it about sports figures that society places them on a pedestal; that is until they fall.  Young children idolize and dream of Shaquille O’Neal, they want Michael Jordan tennis shoes, LeBron James t-shirts.  What happened to valuing education, wanting books instead of trinkets?  Have the values of society become so slanted that we’re valuing the wrong things.  Look back 60 or 70 years.  Education and employment were valued.  People did everything they could NOT to go on unemployment.  Today people expect it.  The United States has one of the highest high school drop out rates in the world.  Are we paying attention to and valuing the wrong things?  Listen Sunday 5/30 to The Caring Generation, www.thecaringgeneration.com

Are you a family who disagrees about the care of your parent or a loved one?  Most families who disagree don’t have all the facts.  One person does this, another that, there’s little or no cohesive communication about day to day tasks or abilities.  It’s easy to disagree about the care of a loved one when you really don’t have all the information.  Is your loved one forgetful, incontinent, awake at night, a fall risk - are you aware of all the health and care issues?  If you’re disagreeing with a loved one be sure you have the facts and aren’t making assumptions or giving opinions with no reasonable foundation.  Have a family meeting with a facilitator and you’ll be able to resolve disagreements about care for your loved one.

Nancy Pelosi said, ” we have to pass the bill so you can see what’s in it”.  Now we’re finding out that what’s in it isn’t good for the economy.  Businesses will start dumping their employee sponsored health insurance and pay penalties of $2,000 per employee to lower their costs.  Small businesses employing entry level personnel will suffer penalties of $3,000 per employee because of the “unaffordable coverage provision”.  Join me June 13th from 1-3 for a non-partisan panel discussion “How Will Health Care Reform Change Your Life? The location, The Heartlight Center in Denver.  More information available at www.thecaringgeneration.com

What happened to opening doors for other people, to politeness, to thank you cards?  Has society lost its values?  Listen to interviews on The Caring Generation 5/23 with the Emily Post organization including two etiquette mistakes commonly made by men and with Rear Admiral Richard Young.  We’ll compare morals and values of general society to that of the military where morals and values are instilled on a daily basis.  If you missed the program visit www.thecaringgeneration.com, click on as heard on and then listen to past programs.