Routine care in French Settlement gives older adults the ability to maintain their daily routine while providing companionship and helping with everyday tasks. Care Pros can help with errands, meals, and household tasks if it is included in the care plan.
When thinking about care activities for a person who predominately cares for themselves, we should ask, “What are the parts of the day that are stressful or no longer enjoyable?” Instead of focusing on how to keep them occupied.
Structuring Activities with Routine Visits
Routine care activities allow older adults to structure their day, and give them something to look forward to. These planned visits give older adults the ability to schedule activities like having company while they do an errand or helping them prepare a meal.
Some older adults like to have structured activities while others like to have the flexibility to decide what they want to do. It is always good to give older adults the flexibility to structure their care activities in the manner that best meets their needs.
Living alone doesn't mean a person needs company all the time. Independent people don't necessarily need help for company all the time. The Care Plan needs to focus on which part of the day the person needs most help with.
For example, an adult may be able to manage the start of the day on their own, but may need help for the next steps to take.Maybe motivation to take the next step is the biggest challenge. Or maybe a task in the to do list is completed and the adult is waiting for the next task to do.
Many visits throughout the day may not be of much help to the adult. One visit in the afternoon may help to break the lethargy of the adult to take the next step.
Visits should help the adult build a routine to do activities of their choice rather than helping build a routine chosen by the adult's family members.
Accompaniment, Activities, and Outings, Helping around the House.
There are different ways of helping and visiting, and not all visits should include different activities.
We offer other home care services to help the adult accomplish activities identified in the care plan. It could include errands and household tasks.
Think of two hours of companion care and the activities it could accomplish. Perhaps it could include a short outing.
The Care Pro greets the older adult and takes a seat to visit with them for a few minutes before moving on to the next activity. Conversation during this time may be based on the older adult’s interests.
Help with meal preparation may be included in the Care Plan. The older adult may assist with meal prep, or the Care Pro may assist with a task, based on the agreed-upon plan. During this time, conversation is initiated and carried on by the Care Pro.
Once the meal has been prepared, the plan may include helping the older adult with a task. The plan may also include helping the older adult with an errand.
If there are no errands or tasks to do, and the older adult is willing, conversation may continue.
Conversation may be a part of the plan, but it may also be a way to structure the visit based on the older adult’s wishes.
In the absence of a plan to direct the older adult’s time, they may feel as though the visitor has a list of tasks to do and is there to accomplish a long list of activities, rather than visit.
Rather than interrupting the older adult’s day to take them through a list of activities, a Care Plan should focus on the things they truly need help with.
If a plan needs to be developed in order to direct the older adult’s time, it should focus on the older adult’s interests. This may involve taking the older adult out to their favorite store or restaurant.
Not everybody wants the same things from this care setup. One person may wish for the care worker to talk with them for an hour. Another may wish for the care worker to assist them with preparing their lunch and then give them time to eat it quietly. Others may simply wish to have the care worker in their presence while they complete a task that they are used to performing.
There is nothing wrong with any of these preferences.
It is important to not mistake companionship for constant engagement. Just because there is a care worker in the house, doesn’t mean that the care worker has to come up with a hundred different things to do and engage the client in all of them. The care worker isn’t there to police and manage the client’s every choice.
Just because the care worker is there to assist the client with a task, doesn’t mean the client can’t read a book or watch TV without the care worker talking to them about it. The client may wish to go out to do an errand and talk about other things the rest of the time the care worker is there.
The care worker shouldn’t feel they always have to be pushing a plan in front of the client to engage them. It is perfectly okay for a client to decide they don’t want to do anything the care worker has planned for them to do.
This should especially be the case if the plan is to engage the client in activities that aren’t necessary for the client’s health and wellness.
Management style care in this situation doesn’t work and can lead to an oppositional client.
This is especially true if the client has always been an independent person.
When Something Else Might Be Wrong
Although people can spend a good amount of time by themselves and not be experiencing a medical condition, abrupt changes in behavior, like not being to do ordinary tasks, could mean something is wrong.
Somebody who is normally involved in different activities in the household or community can become less involved and not need to be solely supported by a family member or friend.
There can be valid reasons for behavioral changes, and it may even be caused by a medical issue for which the family should seek the help of a qualified health professional.
A non-medical home care aide is not permitted to make a diagnosis, and a care aide will not take the place of a clinician.
Families should contact a clinician, like a physician or nurse, to assess a new or changing condition of a family member that may affect a person’s health, like memory, mood, or physical condition.
Of course, the family can also employ a care aide to assist the family member in the interim while they are awaiting an assessment and/or treatment by a clinician. The care aide will not assess, treat or diagnose the person. The care aide will provide support and assistance, like assisting with activities of daily living and/or provide companionship.
It is okay for the family to also get help making meals for their family member.
If a family member is no longer eating, the family should reach out to a clinician, like a physician.
FAMILIES OF HAMPTON AREA: Discuss your needs for Non-Medical Care with your Home Instead team.
Q: What is companion care?
A: Companion care is any non-medical assistance as outlined in a person’s Care Plan. It may be helping with errands, meal preparation, or other activities. What is in the Care Plan should be based on what the person needs rather than what is on a Care Pro’s to do list.
Q: Is companion care for people who are lonely?
A: No, not always. Some people may prefer to be alone. However, they may need assistance with errands, meal preparation, or other activities.
Q: Is a companion care provider required to help with all activities?
A: No, companion care providers are not required to entertain or help with activities to their limitation. A companion care provider can assist with a task and then help with other activities.
Can Care Pros help with errands and meal prep?
This would depend on the care plan. Prior to care beginning, we ask families to discuss with us the types of support required. This is to ensure the care team is fully aware of the supports required.
My parent says they don't need companionship. What should I do?
Find out if there are any activities they don't like to do on their own. Often, people don't like to do things they consider "boring" or "time consuming" (like meal prep.) Many people do not like to do things alone and may appreciate having a companion to help them do things.
Can companion care help with medical issues?
Companion care is to help with activities of daily living (ADLs). It is not to replace medical personnel. Care Pros cannot help with things that require medical training. If your parent is experiencing new or worsening symptoms, consult their medical team.
Is routine companion care adequate?
To assess this, consider what an older adult needs to accomplish in a day. Does the older adult need assistance to do things that help them maintain an independent lifestyle? Do their daily needs include social interaction? If the needs assessed are of a social and companionable nature and do not include the need for clinical assistance or more physically demanding help, then routine companion care may be the appropriate level of support. If the older adult is in need of support to perform activities of daily living and/or clinical assistance, then alternative, more appropriate levels of support need to be determined and implemented.
Are you or someone you know in the French Settlement area experiencing the circumstances described above? If this is the case and the older adult is not in need of or does not want 24-hour care, contact our office to learn more about the Home Instead services available in the Hammond area. You will have the opportunity to discuss the development of a plan to determine how to best meet the needs of the older adult while allowing them to live as independently as possible.
About the Author
Matt Cohn has spent more than 25 years helping older adults and their families find the right support to remain safe and comfortable at home. He is an owner of Home Instead locations serving Hammond and other communities and has worked closely with families, caregivers, and care professionals through many of the decisions that come with aging and in-home care.
