Caring for an Elderly Family Member and Feeling Overlooked? Here’s What to Do.

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Elderly Family MemberThe National Academies of Sciences, Engineering and Medicine has reported that family caregivers are “routinely marginalized and ignored within the health care system.” With about 18 million family members providing care for senior loved ones, this report is alarming, as it points to the possibility that these seniors are at risk for harm due to possibly inadequate, uninformed family care.

Here’s what can be done to ensure you are seen, heard, and given the right information and tools to help care for your elderly family members and keep them safe:

  • Be sure to list your name and phone number in your senior family member’s medical records as an emergency contact.
  • Tell your elderly loved one’s physicians what you are and are not capable of handling pertaining to his or her care.
  • Set realistic expectations for care – i.e., if your work schedule leaves your loved one without care for a period of time, that needs to be addressed.
  • Ask for training in the senior’s specific care requirements, such as dressing wounds or catheter care.
  • Look for and access resources like disease-specific associations, the local Area Agency on Aging, and a trusted professional Arizona home care agency for supplemental/respite care.

It’s also important to clearly understand HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act) regulations. There is a common misconception that as a result of HIPAA, family members are unable to obtain access to their older loved one’s medical records. The truth, however, is that if the older person has designated someone to serve as durable power of attorney for health information, it’s the obligation of doctors and hospital staff to share all medical records with that relative.

The final conclusion? Make certain you stand up for yourself and your elderly family member. Richard Schulz of the University of Pittsburgh suggests, “Advocate for your rights and make sure your caregiving contributions are recognized and supported to the extent they can be. You’re an important person in the health care system.”

Call on Endeavor Home Care at (480) 535-6800 for additional suggestions about providing the best care for your senior loved one, as well as support in filling in the care gaps with properly trained and skilled in-home senior caregivers.

Pill Reminder Boxes: Effective for Seniors or Possibly Dangerous?

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Pill Reminder Boxes On average, a senior takes between 15-18 different prescriptions each and every day, so one can understand how easy it can be to miss a pill here and there or take an incorrect dosage. However, the health hazards that happen because of those medication mistakes are substantial. Enter the pill reminder box: such a simple concept of placing the correct meds into the appropriate little boxes each day. Problem resolved, right?

Startlingly, research recently points to a considerably different outcome. Mature adults accustomed to taking medications directly from the original packaging who switched to a pill reminder box were inundated with medical concerns, including falls, hypoglycemia, and in one case, a person unable to get out of the bathtub until a rescue 12 hours later.

The research involved 29 older persons over age 75 who were not using pill reminder boxes and were, inadvertently, not taking their prescriptions as directed by their physicians. For two months, half of the seniors began using a pill reminder box, while the other half continued taking their prescriptions as they always had.

The health concerns, surprisingly, were realized only in the seniors who had just started to use the pill reminder boxes. The theory behind these unexpected results comes from the thought that the seniors were skipping doses or taking their prescriptions incorrectly prior to using the pill reminder box, and were suffering from side effects from taking full doses of their drugs.

Lead researcher Dr. Debi Bhattacharya stresses the need for those planning to change to a pill reminder/organizer system to first seek advice from their physician or pharmacist to verify dosage amounts. And she makes clear, “People who are already using a pill organizer without any ill effects should not stop using it as they do seem to help some patients take their medication as prescribed. It’s the switching stage which appears to be the danger.”

Endeavor Home Care can assist with medication reminders to ensure aging adults take prescriptions when they’re supposed to, assist with transportation to pick up prescriptions, and assist with noting any medication side effects that should be reported to the physician immediately. Contact Endeavor Home Care for important assistance with keeping your senior loved one safe and healthy. We provide home care services throughout Arizona.

Alzheimer’s Disease Medication in Final Human Trials – Hope Is Rising

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Alzheimer’s diseaseWe’re always thrilled to share the latest developments in the battle against Alzheimer’s disease, but none have looked quite so promising as the latest: aducanumab. In its first clinical study, analysts discovered that a considerable amount of amyloid plaque in the patients’ brains disappeared, and even more remarkable, “This is the first antibody tested where the people who had the greatest removal of amyloid from their brains also saw the greatest stabilization of their clinical decline,” according to Dr.Adam Boxer of the San Francisco Memory and Aging Center at the University of California.

Unlike existing Alzheimer’s treatment options with limited and short-term effects, aducanumab’s halting of further memory loss offers an amazing level of hope – and may be available to patients in as early as five years. The goal will be to treat those who are known to be at risk for developing Alzheimer’s disease before the onset of symptoms.

Even though we are excited about these developments, of course there are possible negatives to address. In those who received the highest dose of the drug in the first phase of testing, brain bleeding and swelling were noted. The next trials will include a larger amount of participants, for a longer amount of time, and careful evaluation of risks vs. advantages.

Impacting nearly 5.3 million Americans, and forecasting to increase to an estimated 16 million by the year 2050, the effect of Alzheimer’s disease on the American public is tragic. One in three seniors dies with some form of dementia, and at this point it’s the only cause of death within the top ten in our country without a cure or prevention.

Additionally, the financial stress is staggering to our nation: $236 billion in 2016 alone, with half of that cost associated with Medicare – ready to grow to a whopping $1.1 trillion by the year 2050, according to the Alzheimer’s Association.

At Endeavor Home Care, it’s our dream to see the day when the struggles of Alzheimer’s disease become a memory. But for now, we offer specialized dementia care at home, provided by trained professionals who bring increased quality of life and wellbeing to seniors with Alzheimer’s. Whether the need is for help with personalized care such as with bathing and dressing, light housework and laundry, transportation and errand-running, or merely a kind, patient companion to engage the senior to the best of his or her ability, Endeavor Home Care can help.

Contact us at (480) 535-6800 for more resources and caregiving information, or so that we can share more about how we can travel with you and your loved one throughout the journey of Alzheimer’s disease.

Endeavor Offer Caregivers Online Support and Training

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Family members providing care to aging loved ones can receive support and training by accessing the Family Learning Center at the Endeavor website.

Phoenix caregiver

Endeavor Offer Caregivers Online Support and Training

For millions of older Americans in need of day-to-day care and assistance, friends and family members play an important role in furnishing the care required to allow their friends and loved ones to continue to reside in the comfort and familiar surroundings of their own homes. Endeavor Senior In Home Care of Mesa, Arizona, now has a useful tool on its website that links caregivers to the Family Learning Center where they can access courses, quick tips and videos covering a variety of topics of interest to a Phoenix caregiver.

“We built our company to bring a new level of freedom to seniors and others who through the aging process or other factors need daily assistance but do not want to lose the freedom associated with living at home,” according to Endeavor Senior In Home Care Founder Dave Rodgers. “The Family Learning Center is our way of recognizing the contribution family members and friends are making to the lives of the people they are helping.”

Visitors to the Endeavor website can access a link to the Family Learning Center listed under the “Services” tab. An easy to complete registration process gives caregivers access to more than 50 self-paced courses, videos and other resources offered at no cost to the user. Included in the course offerings are caregiver training for those caring for individuals with Alzheimer’s and dementia, safety and fall prevention, meal preparation and nutrition, and managing medications.

Endeavor In Home Care has also included materials in the Family Learning Center focusing on the needs of the caregivers who have undertaken a role that can be as stressful as it is rewarding. Visitors to the resource center will find tips and information about dealing with caregiver stress and balancing the role of family caregiver with the responsibilities of a career and family.

As some of the Family Learning Center materials mention, the stresses of caring for a friend or family member can affect the caregiver’s physical and emotional health and wellbeing. There might be times when a caregiver needs to step away from the day-to-day responsibilities of caring for another person. Endeavor In Home Care offers respite care services to provide temporary relief by giving caregivers some much-needed and well-deserved time away from their daily responsibilities. Individuals placed in a person’s home to provide respite care must meet Endeavor’s strict qualification standards and pass a background check. Caregivers are bonded and insured and subjected to the highest level of supervision.

Endeavor’s Management Staff has over 90 years of combined health care experience and is known for putting the client and family needs first and foremost. Simply put, they are Enriching Lives 24/7 one family at a time. For more information about Phoenix caregiver support and training or to schedule a free assessment, contact Endeavor Home Care Group by visiting their website at EndeavorHomeCare.com or call 480-498-2324.

 

Source: https://newswire.net/newsroom/pr/00094342-endeavor-new-caregiver-online-support.html

Nutrition & the Prevention of Alzheimers- Health Lecture Series

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Does nutrition play a role in the prevention of Alzheimer’s?

Researches across the world are racing towards a cure for Alzheimer’s disease. But as the prevalence rates for Alzheimer’s increase, the focus of research has broadened from treatment to prevention strategies. It has been discovered that it may be possible to prevent or delay the symptoms of Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias though a combination of diet and nutrition. Join us and learn more about how what you eat and what you do can reduce the risk for Alzheimer’s.

Alzheimer’s/Dementia Care Phoenix

The Endeavor Cognitive Health Lecture Series continues on Tuesday, November 29, 2016 from 10:00am–noon at Leisure World in Mesa (908 South Power Road, Mesa, AZ 85206). At this FREE morning lecture we will hear from Brian Browne who will offer cutting edge research and information from an industry expert’s point of view. This lecture is open to the public and there will be light refreshments served.

Our lecture speaker, Brian Browne MS, CSA, directs education and community outreach initiatives within the science, business and lay communities. As the Director of Education and Outreach at Banner Research and President of Dementia Care Education, he creates partnerships as he interprets dementia and Alzheimer’s science for the community.

The Endeavor In Home Care team brings this Cognitive Health Lecture Series to the public and welcomes anyone interested in receiving more information on the various topics. This will be the last lecture until we begin again in January 2017. Please contact us for the future topics that will be in this lecture series. There is limited space available for the lectures so please RSVP by calling 480-498-2324.

Asthma vs. COPD – How to Determine the Difference | Endeavor Home Care, Scottsdale, AZ

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Senior Care Scottsdale AZUnstoppable coughing. Shortness of breath. Wheezing. Sound like an asthma attack? Before grabbing an inhaler or those over-the-counter cough drops, however, it may be time to see if another culprit – COPD – could be causing the problem. With as many as 12 million Americans currently living with COPD (and just as many who likely have the disease but are undiagnosed), it’s important to determine the real cause behind the cough.

Take a look at some of the major differences between these two conditions:

Asthma:

  • Environmental factors such as cigarette smoke, dust, and pet hair can trigger asthmatic symptoms like coughing and shortness of breath.
  • Usually displays in patients in childhood, often by age 5.
  • Thought to be caused by genetics.

COPD:

  • Environmental triggers can exacerbate symptoms like coughing and difficulty breathing, but these symptoms are often present in a milder form regardless of air quality.
  • Typically diagnosed after age 40.
  • Caused mainly by cigarette smoking (in up to 90% of all patients), or by secondhand exposure to air pollutants.

Available medication options for either condition might be the same – bronchodilators or inhaled steroids – but, treatment plans between the two are very different. Asthma patients are urged to avoid known triggers, such as staying indoors when the pollen count is high and avoiding secondhand smoke. COPD patients, on the other hand, face a more intense treatment approach, often including prescribed oxygen, pulmonary rehabilitation to maximize breathing capacity, and, most importantly, not smoking.

Of course, it’s important to visit the physician if you’re concerned that your senior loved one is suffering with any type of lung condition.

Even though there’s currently no cure for either asthma or COPD, both conditions are better managed when properly diagnosed and treated. COPD results in permanent, irreversible damage to the lungs, but when treated, the progression of the disease can be slowed down, its symptoms made more manageable, and quality of life enhanced.

You can also call on Endeavor Home Care of Scottsdale AZ to provide assistance at home that can help make a chronic condition easier to manage. Some of the many ways we can help include:

  • Light housework, to ensure as much dust as possible is removed from the home
  • Transportation and accompaniment to medical appointments and to pick up prescriptions
  • Encouragement and participation in physician-approved exercise programs
  • Planning and preparation of nutritious, delicious meals
  • Friendly, compassionate companionship
  • And much more

To help your senior loved one remain safe and healthy at home, call Endeavor Home Care in home care experts at 480.535.6800 or contact us online by clicking here.

Lessons in Senior Health Care: How COPD Is Diagnosed and Treated

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Senior Health CareSometimes, learning of a diagnosis for difficult symptoms can be a relief. Finally, you can name the condition, and follow a plan to treat it! This is often the case for those suffering with COPD (chronic obstructive pulmonary disease). If your senior loved one has been impacted by chronic coughing, wheezing, and fatigue, being diagnosed with COPD may be the first step in helping to improve her quality of life.

Here’s what you can expect the doctor to review in diagnosing COPD:

  • Assessment of the senior’s health and environment, to include smoking, exposure to pollutants, symptoms, and family health history
  • Testing such as spirometry (breathing into a machine to check lung functioning), x-rays and blood work
  • Creation of a treatment plan

Since COPD symptoms can be different from one person to another, treatment plans can vary widely as well. Here are some potential ways your senior loved one’s doctor may try to help her best manage the disease:

  • Medications, to include any of the following:
    • Bronchodilators taken through an inhaler to help open airways, available in both short-term and long-term formulations, to work immediately as needed or to be taken ongoing for maintenance
    • Steroids and corticosteroids work to reduce inflammation, swelling and mucous production
    • Antibiotics to address any bacterial infections in the lungs
    • Immunizations to protect against flu and pneumonia, as those with COPD are at a greater risk for complications from these illnesses
  • Pulmonary therapy works to strengthen the lungs through guided exercise and nutrition.
  • Oxygen therapy, available through liquid or gas oxygen tanks or oxygen concentrators that utilize the oxygen already in the environment.
  • Lung surgery may be an option if symptoms are extremely severe.
  • Palliative care focuses treatment on improving quality of life, and is available to anyone diagnosed with COPD, regardless of the prognosis or stage of the disease.
  • Clinical trials help researchers determine the success of new, experimental treatments, regulated by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA). Talk with your senior loved one’s physician to see if clinical trials are an option, and check the American Lung Association’s clinical trial search page for opportunities near you.

Regardless of the doctor’s recommended plan to help your senior loved one manage her COPD, Endeavor Home Care can help with in-home senior health care that can enhance quality of life. Whether the senior requires dignity in helping with personal care tasks like bathing and dressing, assistance with help around the home, meals, transportation and running errands, or merely a kind, caring companion to talk to and share in enjoyable activities together, our fully trained and experienced caregivers are here for you. Contact us at 480.535.6800 to learn more.

2nd Annual Open House & Waffle Crush Breakfast

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This morning, the Endeavor In Home Care staff had the opportunity to host our 2nd Annual Open House. We provided a Waffle Crush breakfast for those who attended. This event gave us the opportunity to express our appreciation and thanks for all of our friends, co-workers and industry referral partners.

Waffle Crush Breakfast

It was a beautiful morning in Mesa, AZ so we enjoyed sitting outside in an informal setting. The waffles were delicious and the company was the best! We all had the opportunity to sit and mingle apart from the normal work environment. A positive attitude was projected the entire time as visitors dropped in and out and connected individually with each other.

We also opened our office for those who wanted to come in and tour the facility. The entire Endeavor In Home Care staff administration staff was there to greet our guests.

Endeavor In Home Care is committed to providing outstanding care and it is because of our staff and industry friendships that help us to enrich the lives of our clients.

Thank you to everyone who came out to see us!

Waffle Endevour Home Care

How to Live to 100 – Health Lecture Series

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How to live 100

Are you interested in living longer?

Luck and genetics pay a role in our quest for longevity. However, did you know there is evidence that the choices you make during your life will determine who lives longer and who has the best quality of life? Join us and learn the secrets to how you may be able to add time and quality to your life.

The Endeavor Cognitive Health Lecture Series continues on Thursday, October 27, 2016 from 5:30–7:30pm at the Scottsdale Mustang City Library (10101 North 90th Street, Scottsdale, AZ 85258). Brian Browne will be providing a lecture that will help you learn more from an industry expert on health and aging well. This FREE lecture is open to the public and there will be light refreshments served.

Alzheimer’s/Dementia Care Phoenix

Our lecture speaker, Brian Browne MS, CSA, has been providing medical education workshops in communities around the country to directly bring resources where they are needed most. He is the Director of Education and Outreach at Banner Research and is the President of Dementia Care Education. He has expertise in healthy aging and cultural competency in healthcare and research.

Scottsdale

The Endeavor team is happy to help bring this lecture series to the public and welcomes anyone interested in receiving more information on this topic. There is limited space available so please RSVP by calling 480-498-2324.

A LOOK AT WANDERING IN PEOPLE WITH DEMENTIA

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Elder Care

If you have a loved one who has been diagnosed with dementia, you may eventually need to seek senior in home care assistance. As dementia progresses, patients may no longer be able to feed, clothe, or bathe themselves, and they are at a higher risk of falls, illnesses, injuries, and wandering away from familiar areas. Here is a look at wandering in people with dementia.

What Increases the Risk of Wandering?

If your loved one can no longer remember things accurately, he may be at risk of wandering. Any dementia patient who is mobile, even those who are in the earliest stages of dementia, may become disoriented and confused. Once a doctor has given your loved one a diagnosis of dementia, you should begin planning ahead to lower his risk of wandering and injuries. An elderly in home care specialist can provide home care assistance that may lower this risk.

What Are the Warning Signs of Wandering?

You should also keep an eye out for the early warning signs of wandering. Speak to your loved one’s doctor about hiring a senior in home care aide if your loved one begins returning from scheduled activities later than usual, is restless, has trouble locating familiar rooms or places, appears lost in a new environment, or makes repetitive movements or motions with no purpose. Your loved one may also say that he wants to go home, or to another familiar place, when he is already there.

How Can You Prevent Wandering?

You can prevent wandering by working closely with your loved one’s doctor to track and recognize patterns and changes in behavior. You should also be aware of when it is necessary to hire a home care aide or home care assistance. A senior in home caregiver can monitor your loved one’s activities, assist with medication reminders and chores, and ensure that your loved one remains safe and cared for.

If you’re interested in learning more about in-home assistance in Phoenix, AZ, for a loved one with dementia, come see us at Endeavor Senior In Home Care. Our experienced, compassionate in home caregivers will help you determine what level of in-home assistance your loved one needs. Call us today at (877) 584-6162 to speak with a caregiver today.