Senior Care in Park Ridge IL Archives

Senior Care in Park Ridge IL: What Types of Volunteer Opportunities Are Available for Your Senior?

As a family caregiver, it is important to find ways to keep your senior loved one engaged in an active lifestyle. One of the ways that you can do this is by encouraging them to volunteer throughout the community. This can help them to feel more relevant and beneficial, as well as stimulate their mind and give them more opportunity for social engagement and physical activity. The first step in your loved one getting the most benefit from their volunteer opportunity is helping them to find the one that is right for them.

While there are countless opportunities available throughout most communities, some of those that are available that may be right for your elderly parent include:

• Pet shelters. Animal shelters are always looking for caring people to volunteer in the shelter to help with the animals. Your parent can make a tremendous difference in the lives of animals by walking dogs, playing with animals, cleaning, or interacting with those who may adopt an animal into their family.

• Park cleanup. Beautiful parks and public lands make a community lovely, welcoming, and healthy. Volunteers can help with trash pickup, planting and caring for flowers, trees, and other plant life, and helping with projects such as painting. This is a fantastic opportunity for elderly adults who enjoy being outside and are active.

• Reading buddies. Many schools love to help young students with their reading skills by having them read stories to “adopted grandparents”. By listening to little ones read, these elderly adults can help the children feel more confident with their reading skills and give your parent an emotional boost.

Starting senior care for your elderly loved one can be one of the most compassionate, nurturing, and effective decisions that you can make for them during the course of your care journey with them. Regardless of the level of care that your aging parent needs, a senior home care services provider can create a highly personalized set of services designed specifically to address their individual needs, challenges, and limitations in a way that is right for them. This means that your parent can continue to pursue the active, independent, and fulfilling lifestyle that they desire and deserve, while also staying safe, healthy, and comfortable. Their customized schedule means that your parent will have the care, support, and assistance that they need, when they need it, and that you can stay at the forefront of their care arrangement. As their family caregiver this can give you confidence that whether your parent only needs periodic assistance and support, or ongoing care 24 hours a day, they will have everything that they need both when you are with them and when you are not. One way that a senior care provider can help your loved one enhance their quality of life and enjoy a more active, engaged lifestyle as they age in place is to encourage them to volunteer. This care provider can help your loved one find opportunities that are meaningful to them, and then support them in following through with these opportunities by providing reliable and safe transportation, giving companionship and emotional encouragement, and even going along with them to make volunteering a more social and enriching experience.

If you or an aging loved-on are considering senior care in Park Ridge, IL, please call the caring staff at A-Abiding Care today. Serving North and Northwest Chicago and the surrounding area for over 30 years. Call 847-698-1400.

Senior Care in Park Ridge IL

Toileting can be a dangerous and vulnerable time for your elderly loved one. Making sure that she can do what she needs to do safely is easier to do when you have the right kinds of assistive devices available to her.

Elevated Toilet Seats or Toilet Risers

Elevated toilet seats sit on top of the existing toilet seat, replacing it with a higher version. Toilet risers, on the other hand, install between the floor and the toilet to increase the height of the toilet overall. These items aren’t permanent, but they do secure to the toilet. Elevated toilet seats and toilet risers are useful if your loved one finds it difficult to raise and lower herself from the toilet.

Safety Rails for the Toilet

Toilet safety rails fit around or onto the toilet itself. Some can bolt to the floor or the wall while other versions secure around the toilet itself to hold them in place. These rails give your loved one a stable place to grab for balance and to help support her weight as she raises and lowers herself onto the toilet.

Handheld Urinals and Bedpans

If your elderly loved one has difficulty getting up from bed or from a seated position to go to the bathroom, especially at night, then handheld urinals and bedpans can be very helpful for her. Many of these types of devices are built with spill-reducing features, which help to avoid big cleanups later. They’re also made from materials that are easy to keep clean and sterile for your loved one.

Bedside Commode Chairs

Commode chairs are usually made with a metal frame and use a plastic commode within the fame. This type of device can sit beside your loved one’s bed, recliner, or couch. It’s perfect for a loved one who can get out of bed but possibly not to the bathroom in time. the chair is portable enough that you can move it to wherever your elderly loved one needs it at any given time.

Ask your elderly loved one’s physician to help you determine which devices would be most useful for your elderly loved one if you’re having trouble narrowing down the choices.