Chicago's Geriatric Care Manager Center of Excellence – Since 1991 • in home care for seniorsChicago's Geriatric Care Manager Center of Excellence

Distance Caregiving Through a Wall
I’ve written numerous times about distance caregiving, and one of the observations I have offered is that distance is...
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May 19, 2020
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Tips for Distance Caregiving: Up Close and Personal at a Distance
If you think being a caregiver to an older loved one is hard–with all the trips to help them...
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February 4, 2020
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GOOD NEWS FOR CHRONIC CARE
Associate Care Manager Gregory is a Certified Senior Advisor (CSA), Certified Dementia Practitioner (CDP), and Medicare Counselor, whose work...
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August 6, 2018
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Long-Term Doesn’t Mean Put It Off Until Later
Gregory Peebles is a Certified Senior Advisor (CSA), Certified Dementia Practitioner (CDP), and trained Medicare Counselor, whose work focuses...
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June 24, 2018
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In the Caregiver's Words

Recent Client Praise

There may be as many as 50 million caregivers in the United States today, so the odds are that we all know at least one person who cares for an older adult or someone else with special needs. And we all can help to care for the caregiver with little things that may not take a lot of time or even cost any money. These little random acts of kindness can both help the caregiver and help the person who depends on a balanced and healthy caregiver. What can the rest of us give to the caregiver?

1.    Give the caregiver an excuse. Caregivers can get really caught up in the "have to's" so that they do not even take a coffee break. Be their excuse to get away if only for the hour to share a cup of coffee and conversation with you.

2.    Give the caregiver an ear. We often tend to focus on the older or special needs loved one with questions about "how is your mom?" The caregiver deserves a chance to just vent to someone who can empathize and not judge them as too hard on the "poor mom" who depends on them.

3.    Give the caregiver some familial support. In most families one of the siblings has become the default (or conscious) caregiver, and in my experience it is mostly one of the daughters. Encourage a family conference either in person or on a call to discuss what everyone can do.

4.    Give them something specific. It is really easy to just ask what one can do to help in a general sort of way, and caregivers may simply demure by asking for nothing. But if you are going to the grocery store and call to ask what you can pick up, they can tell you what is running low. Or if you are a neighbor, shovel their walk when it has snowed overnight without being asked. Be creative, but remember to be specific in your offers.

5.    Give the caregiver some time off. Everyone needs a break, so volunteer for specific times or days so that the caregiver actually can make plans for something they need to do - hopefully for themselves.

6.    Give the caregiver a reason to laugh. Most caregiving revolves around helping someone who is in declining health. Change the subject to something they will find more uplifting or something positive in their future. Optimism is a great antidote for the burden of caregiving.

Charlotte Bishop is a Geriatric Care Manager and founder of Creative Case Management, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families in metropolitan Chicago. Please email your questions to ccbishop@creativecasemanagement.com.
What is the one thing that almost all of us have had more of than before the COVID-19 pandemic…time! We may have been industrious and launched into home improvement efforts, we may have binged any number of offerings on our screens, we may have read War and Peace, or we may have spent way more time on-line than we had before the pandemic. Well, this last one cuts across age segments with adults 65 years of age and older spending a fair bit more time at their computers as well. Unfortunately, the cyber criminals have been hyper-industrious as well. The result has been a new type of Malware appropriately called “CoronaVirus”…seriously. For those of you with a Windows operating system, you may be familiar with WiseCleaners.com. It’s an application that provides free utilities that help improve a computer’s operation. There is a phishing website that poses as WiseCleaners.com, but it is called WiseCleaners.Best. The unsuspecting individual who looks to download the advertised disk clean up utility or the defragmentation software during this downtime will actually be opening the door to cyber thieves. The malware will download from a computer the unsuspecting user’s logon information, cookies, contact emails and a host of other “secure” information. Other hackers are sending emails that present as safety alerts from a company where your older loved one may have an account, and the alert contains a link to the new protocols that the unsuspecting can click to visit. Globally, there have been emails from a purported doctor with the World Health Organization that share where there are COVID outbreaks near the user. The same invasion and harvesting of sensitive information follows. Please consider these “health tips” for your older loved one during this time of COVID:
1. Don’t click on links; instead, type the address directly into the browser.
2. Don’t download attachments; especially from sources that you cannot verify.
3. Beware of promotions; this is especially for those that are too good to be true.
4. If it says CLICK NOW, don’t.
5. Don’t give personal info; credit cards, social security, medical information, etc.
6. Safety first; use strong passwords and password management tools.
7. Keep your computer current; all apps and devices should be up to date.
Charlotte Bishop is an Aging Life Care Advisor, Geriatric Care Manager and founder of Creative Care Management, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families in metropolitan Chicago. She also is the co-author of How Do I Know You? A Caregiver’s Lifesaver for Dealing with Dementia.
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Choose the Senior Home Health Service That's Right For You

Home Health
Home Health involves licensed medical professionals (often nurses or physicians) trained in providing aid to those who need health monitoring and assistance. This service is ideal for those who have recently been hospitalized, are in need of rehabilitation or medication assessment, or have suffered a decline in physical mobility.

Home Care
Home care provides services for those who need help with ADL (Activities of Daily Living) tasks. For instance: transportation to doctor’s appointments, grocery shopping, house cleaning, and other every day needs. This service is ideal for a family caregiver who needs someone they can trust to take care of their mom or dad while they are away. It is also helpful to those who need short-term assistance after a hospital stay or during physical rehabilitation.
Everybody forgets something! There is a heightened awareness - even fear - of Alzheimer's or other forms of dementia especially as we all advance in years, but simple forgetfulness does not inevitably lead to a dementia. And if you are a caregiver, the older adult in your orbit may be very self-conscious or worried at having misplaced the car keys. Or maybe it is blanking on a favorite author or the name of a friend that they happen upon on the store. No one of these events means that dementia of any sort is encroaching on their faculties, but sometimes it is not enough to reassure an older adult that it is not what they fear. It can be helpful, however, to take specific actions that are known to help keep one's brain healthy and sharp.

            Let me share five helpful tips from a well-regarded neurologist named Dr. Majid Fotuhi. You may have seen him on Dr. Oz, if you follow the program. Some say Dr. Fotuhi's advice can even prevent Alzheimer's; you be the judge. At the very least, these steps can help to strengthen the brain of virtually anyone who puts in the effort.

1.    Cross-Train: Anyone who exercises routinely knows that it is important to trade off the activities of your work out; they call it cross-training. Try changing which hand you use to comb your hair or take a different route to the store or use a soup spoon with your non-dominant hand. It is not easy, but it challenges your brain to learn something new, and as the brain adjusts to this shift it rises to the challenge by using areas of the brain that may have been under-utilized before.

2.    Relax: Stress is not just bad for your cardiovascular system; it is harmful to the brain because it releases a stress hormone called cortisol. So, several times each day, go to a quiet, darkened room and practice deep, slow breathing. Change out of clothing that may be restrictive and remove your shoes to signal your brain you are serious about relaxing. Do this for seven minutes.

3.    Mnemonicize Something: Okay, so the real word is simply "mnemonic. Challenge your brain to remember five spices from a recipe by making a word out them: Salt, Pepper, Oregano, Tarragon, Sage. See how long you can make the word or use the first letters to make a silly sentence.

4.    Increase Blood Flow: If your doctor says you are sufficiently healthy, walk up and down the stairs a few times, do ten push-ups, or do twenty sit-ups. All of these will raise your heart rate and increase blood flow to the brain, and that will grow new brain cells.

5.      Infuse DHA: There is a nutritional supplement called docosahexaenoic acid which is an omega-3 fatty acid which just happens to make up a large part of your brain matter. You can get it from fish that come from colder sea water, and it also can be purchased in your drug store or health food store. It has been shown to promote a healthier, even younger brain.

If you want to learn more about any of this, Please check out Dr. Oz's web site.

Charlotte Bishop is a Geriatric Care Manager and founder of Creative Case Management, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families in metropolitan Chicago. Please email your questions to ccbishop@creativecasemanagement.com.
We can no longer deny that the seasons are changing and for older adults still living in their own homes, the transition to cold weather can represent a number of unique safety hazards. If you have an older adult for whom you are a caregiver or if there is someone you simply look in on occasionally, here are some tips to help make them safer in their homes as the temperatures drop.

1.    Have furnaces and their chimneys checked to be sure that they are burning cleanly and venting properly. Carbon monoxide is a gas that is colorless and odorless, yet lethal. It is a byproduct of combustion and can accumulate in an older home that is closed up tight against the cold in the fall and winter.

2.    Check the hot water heater for the same reason you would check on the furnace. Be certain it, too, is venting properly. And while you are checking, look to see that the temperature setting is 120 degrees or less. As with the other senses, older adults’ sense of heat is less acute as they age, and they may scald themselves before they feel the heat when climbing into an overheated bath.

3.    We have seen fairly stable energy costs lately, but there is talk of a spike in home heating prices as we move into the winter. Be alert to your older adult who appears to be rather bundled up in heavier clothes around the house. They may be conserving the heat, but they also are at risk for catching fire while cooking in bulky clothes over a stove top. Heavier clothing also can be trip hazards throughout the house.

4.    Portable heaters can seem like a cost-effective way to heat small areas, but they represent a number of hazards. If they burn fuel, they can be carbon monoxide hazards, and if they are electrical, the cord can be a trip hazard. In electrical heaters, the coils are a fire hazard if they touch clothing or papers.

5.    Finally, the change to standard from daylight saving time for those of you who reset their clocks twice a year is a reminder to check two other appliances any senior home should have. Replace the batteries in both the smoke detectors and the carbon monoxide detectors, and be sure they are strategically-placed throughout a house. Also, detectors on only one floor of a multi-level house are not sufficient protection. Your local fire department personnel will be glad to come out for an inspection and offer recommendations; some even offer free or discounted detectors.

Now that you have made home safer for the older adult in your orbit, button up your coat and enjoy the change of season.

Charlotte Bishop is a Geriatric Care Manager and founder of Creative Case Management, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families in metropolitan Chicago. Please email your questions to ccbishop@creativecasemanagement.com.
In earlier posts I have talked about some ways to broach difficult subjects with an older parent, talks that are about life changes, one of the harder among them was giving up the car keys. This is going to be the first in a two-part series in which I will offer perspectives on some of the changes in life where you as the child of an older parent may be required to step up to help your parent or see that proper help is available. The second part will be devoted to conversations about preparations for end of life, life's final transitions. It may surprise you to learn that the former can be a lot more difficult than the latter. Harder because everybody expects to die someday, but many people have greater difficulty in addressing their potential loss of independence along the way.

Power of Attorney. You may want to talk with your family attorney before this conversation so that you can keep the details straight. There are two types of power of attorney (POA): one for health care and one for finance. The legal system has defaults in place to handle decisions for a person's finances or health and well-being if they are deemed unfit to do so on their own. However, those decisions have to go to a judge and the process can be time-consuming and costly. If one of your older parents is unable to make financial decisions - and they own property jointly with their spouse - it becomes difficult to liquidate the house if funds are needed for long term care or other health care issue. Health care POA can offer similar relief in the event your older parent requires some choices in where and how they will be cared for. In both cases, it can be easier to broach the subject if you, yourself, have had the papers drawn up for your own situation and offer your own experience and questions as an example to your parents. At any age, there is benefit in knowing that decisions will be made in our best interests if we cannot make them ourselves.

Long Term Care Insurance. Assisted living or home health care can be expensive, and the right long term care (LTC) policy can make life a lot easier to the bear financially. But be aware that there are a lot of different types of policies with an array of benefits and payout mechanisms. And the cost to buy LTC insurance will depend on the age at which you sign up as well as some other variables. To be sure you are getting your or your parents' money's worth, look for an independent broker who is not captive to a single insurer. But before you talk with a broker about your older parent, check out an authoritative source. The American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance has a consumer information section you may find helpful. And as with the conversation about POAs, you may investigate a policy for yourself as a foundation for having the conversation with your parent. Part 2 will post on Thursday.

Charlotte Bishop is a Geriatric Care Manager and founder of Creative Case Management, certified professionals who are geriatric advocates, resources, counselors and friends to older adults and their families in metropolitan Chicago. Please email your questions to ccbishop@creativecasemanagement.com.