Even though we are not fully through the COVID-19 pandemic, we are already seeing some of the changes to senior care that it has brought about. Although the pandemic has taken a terrible toll on seniors, especially those within nursing homes, we’ve learned a lot about how to provide care in a better way as a society. It’s been a very difficult year and a half for all of us, the positive side of it because of the improvements to how care can be distributed to more seniors.
These changes are designed to be safer and more effective at the same time. For starters, care professionals are cracking down on two main areas of care: social isolation and help for those with chronic conditions. When looking at those who have passed away because of COVID-19, one of the big things that we notice right away is that the majority of them had some sort of chronic condition already impacting their quality of life. This goes for both the elderly and younger individuals, too.
When chronic diseases go unchecked, it doesn’t just impact susceptibility to COVID. It decreases the overall quality of life that someone lives.
Social isolation has been a problem when it comes to the quality of life that seniors experience. Not only is it difficult to live alone, it also can exacerbate other health problems. If someone lives alone, odds are they are going to struggle with mental health issues and have unmanaged comorbidities, too.
To help improve things, senior care services are relying on a variety of measures to help. Virtual communications are being used with far more frequency than ever before, with about 87 percent of care services saying they now use this. 25 percent of care services are now using home visits to stay in better touch with seniors. And 23 percent are using some sort of remote monitoring system to ensure safety and health. These numbers have all risen since the beginning of the pandemic, and all have proved to be helpful in some fashion.
Paying more attention to these two aspects of senior care won’t fix everything on its own. They will help thousands of seniors live better lives, though. What this looks like when it comes to formal care will look different from person to person and family to family. Some will benefit strongly from a volunteer family caregiver stepping up and helping a few days per week. Others will need a professional to assist from time to time. Some others might need more intensive help, like through an assisted living facility or a nursing home. Luckily, there are a lot of different options out there.
If you’re trying to help a family member get connected to the right kind of care, you have a lot of choices. The more options you have, the more likely you are to find the one that will meet your loved one’s needs more effectively. Let us know if you need help finding just the right one; we’d love to help your family get the perfect care to meet their needs.
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