Hello everyone! This is my very first blog and I hope to engage the public to be educated and act accordingly when taking care of a loved one that may need some supervision or assistance because they have either physical or cognitive deficits.
I am the Director of Visiting Angels of Auburn, NH and have the fortune of helping many families in the Greater Derry and Manchester areas. I have come to assist many in the area including the Doctor that delivered me when my mother, Ann DesRosiers, gave birth to me. I have learned so much from my clients over the years.
I have grown to help teach our staff many tricks of the trade and they too educate me on many they have learned as well to keep the dignity and pride of our clients. We need to think on our feet and adjust to each of our clients and their envirnoment they reside in. Many of our clients need to be supervised and make sure they are safe, eating, taking medications and have good hygiene for their overall health and well being.
When we are with a client many times they make statements that are not totally truthful. They may believe it's the truth. We then need to follow up and inspect the issue we are questioning. Did you have your shower today? Many older adults do not like to take showers for many reasons so we do not pressure the issue but take a lighter approach and investigate. Were there any wet towels in the laundry? Are they wearing the same outfit as the day before? Check out the bathroom for signs of a shower? Another detective like secret we use is put a small dab of liquid soap in the shower and when you notice it is still there or not then you have another clue about the shower situation. We use humor all the time when approaching clients on sensitive subjects. Mr. Smith hear you have a hot date tonight. Ready for your shower?
Medication planners or medication management devices are great for monitoring doses taken. Check the planner every time you are in the home and view all compartments to see if doses are being taken as prescribed and have not been altered. When cleaning up the floors check for pills that might have not made it into the client's mouth as well.
Eating, when in doubt check the refrigerator and then the trash. Check for spoiled food and see what is in the trash for items they might have prepared themselves. Always converse with them without being direct and appearing nosey. Have casual conversations and then build into the conversation, "So what was for lunch today?" or "Did you eat all the meatloaf I made for you?" Please check the cabinets for dates on all products, you might be really surprised on how old and outdated some maybe. I have come across many products that could be used in science projects over the years. Some even dated back to when I was born. These are accidents waiting to happen.
Clothing, we use the sniff test very frequently in tidying up and performing laundry. Many older adults tend to wear clothes more than once and if Dementia is present could be daily for quite some time. Clients tend to hang up clothes and are not aware they may have food or incontinence issues that require them to be laundered. We tend to be honest and advise our clients when we see they are soiled. We have them join in activities so they can feel useful and wanted. This is very important to them instead of coming into their homes and taking over. It is their home, not ours.
Financial issues are very hard to handle. I recently went to a home and discovered piles of mail which also included social security checks not yet cashed. Some six months old. You need to observe the surroundings. Go shopping and see how they handle paying for groceries. I assisted a client and she lost the ability to know how to write a check. This is when they can become vulnerable to other individuals that could take advantage of their situation. Watch their accounts for activity or duplication of paying bills. It happens all too often.
Our caregivers are constantly learning and growing with our clients. Since we are in the homes and not always fully aware of how their day is we need to observe and inspect the environment to fully assess all situations.
They are truly Angel Detectives!
Hope you found a few useful techinques to use for your loved one.
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