Over the last few years, we’ve seen a lot of improvements when it comes to senior care.
But even with all of these advances, there’s still a lot more work that needs to be done if all seniors are going to receive the high quality care and attention that they deserve. For example, even though the Biden administration has laid out several advances when it comes to the assistance that seniors receive, there are also a lot of shortcomings in these proposed changes. The changes call for minimum hours worked by staff members, more regulation, and better information for the public concerning the performance of nursing homes across the country. However, there are still big gaps in the quality of care that seniors receive–even if these proposed changes go into effect.
For starters, one of the big gaps in care that was exposed by the recent COVID-19 pandemic was the ability of residents to be in touch with their friends and family members. Many nursing homes across the country took strict steps to isolate the seniors residing within their facilities in order to keep them safe from the virus. Unfortunately, these efforts proved to be largely unsuccessful as nursing homes were the places hit hardest by COVID. Additionally, the strict rules that prohibited visitors from seeing their loved ones had a costly toll on the mental health of residents and other family members. Some argue that the cure was potentially worse than the illness, in this instance.
Protections put in place to help improve senior care are a good start, but there’s still a lot of work to do.
In other words, even though we are seeing advances in how our elderly family members are being cared for, there’s still a long way to go if we’re going to ensure that seniors receive the best care possible.
Each of us has an obligation to help those around us, especially our family members that are in vulnerable positions, such as the very young and the very old. Based on our backgrounds and positions, what we can do will differ from person to person–and that’s okay. Even if your responsibility is a very small one, it is a very important one. Being an advocate and a helper for an elderly parent is no small calling. In fact, helping just one person to have a better experience when it comes to their senior years is a monumental task.
Don’t forget that you don’t have to do this alone. Just because someone is related to you does not mean that you can’t use your community’s resources when it comes to helping them. This is precisely why these services and organizations exist. No one is an expert in everything. Senior care is no exception. Caring for an older loved one is hard and presents unique challenges that require specialized training at times. Enlisting the help of professionals to tap into this expertise is often the best thing that you can do for your family.
Feel free to reach out if you’d like to learn more about what we do and how it might benefit your older loved ones. A quick phone call is all it takes to start.
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