Long Distance Care Giving – Security and Financial Safety Concerns

It’s a challenge to be a caregiver.

According to the National Family Caregivers Association, “More than 65 million people, 29% of the U. S. population, provide care for a chronically ill, disabled or aged family member or friend during any given year and spend an average of 20 hours per week providing care for their loved one.

That is a real challenge, but here at Keeping In Touch Solutions, we realize that many caregivers are long distance caregivers and that makes everything even more difficult. Not only are logistics an obstacle, but caring for an aging loved one many miles away takes a tremendous emotional toll on the well-being of the caregiver and their immediate family.

Several visits every year sometimes cause more stress because caregivers recognize signs and see clues that there has been a change. But those visits are also a time to take some steps and put into place some plans to provide care to benefit your loved one, especially if they are living on their own. Some actions you might take:

• Make sure to use the “Do Not Call” list so telemarketers can’t have access to your very vulnerable senior citizen.
• Make arrangements for one designated person to do household work – from trimming trees to unclogging sinks to working on the furnace.
• If your aging loved one is forgetful, make a sign with large letters and tape it to all doors as a reminder. It should say: Do you know the person you see on the porch? If not, don’t open the door.”
• Ask your loved one to add your name to their bank accounts. Not only can you pay their bills online if needed, you can also see if your loved one is signing checks for unusual reasons or to unknown people.
• Install security lights. If that is too costly, purchase signs to place in windows and doors, stating that the home is protected by security. Also post “Beware of Dog” signs in the yard and on fences.
• Get your elderly loved one a cell phone with large numbers. Teach her to use it. If she uses a walker or wheelchair, make a bag to hang on it. That way, the cell phone is easily accessible.
• Arrange for a daily telephone call from a Keeping in Touch Solutions Care Caller to check on your loved one and confirm their well-being.

Distance makes care giving and checking in a challenge – especially when parties live in different time zones and have very different daily routines and schedules. That’s why daily calls – on your loved one’s schedule – provide such peace of mind. You know someone is reaching out to Mom or Dad or Grandma or Grandpa EVERY DAY. If something is amiss, you are notified as soon as possible – and that means you don’t have to worry every hour of every day.

A daily check-in call could be the lifeline, the joy you give someone that makes the biggest difference in their perception of what old age is like.

Contact me at 317-480-1038 today. Let’s make a difference together.

I’m Diana Beam, Founder of Keeping in Touch Solutions. It is my heartfelt desire for every person to live a happy and healthy life in the place they call home, no matter what their age. You can’t put a price on peace of mind for your parents and yourself. It’s priceless . . . and significant.

For that reason, the goal of every Keeping In Touch Solutions program is to provide a caring connection and service that both the elderly and their caregivers can rely on to make living that good life easier.