Category: Blog

When a loved one is in the hospital, keeping track of everything is difficult but critically important. To best advocate for them and ensure a smooth transition back home, be prepared.

For the Short Term:

1. In the Hospital:
   • Do you have a journal to document the key information you receive during the hospital stay?
   • Do you have the doctors’ names and phone numbers?
   • Did you bring all the medications your loved one is taking or have a detailed list?
   • Have you prepared a list of questions for nurses/doctors prior to daily meetings with them?
   • Have you generated a list of questions relevant to returning home?
2. Is it your loved one’s wish to recuperate or age at home and is the home prepared?
   • Do you need: walker, wheelchair, cane, handles, monitors, medication managers etc…..
   • Should the bedroom be on the main floor?
   • Is the bathroom safe for any new mobility limitations?
   • Do you have neighbors who can be called to help in emergencies?
3. Does your loved one need a caregiver at home for daily visits or 24 hour or live-in care?
   • Will family members provide ongoing hands-on care at home if needed?
   • Is a professional caregiver or Personal Support Worker needed?
   • If needed, is there a bed and a bathroom for a live-in caregiver to use?
   • Have you contacted and signed up with a caregiving firm to ensure quick support when needed?

For the Long Term:

1. Is your wish to age at home as long as possible and have you prepared for that?
2. Has a full Living Will been discussed or prepared?
3. Have the Powers of Attorney (POAs) for Care and Property been determined? Are those documents in the right hands?
4. Have your wishes been discussed with your family, doctor, lawyer and POAs?
5. Has a Do Not Resuscitate Order (DNR) been discussed and prepared if desired?
6. If a couple is aging at home together, have you considered what happens to one if the other is hospitalized? Consider what happens if the healthiest spouse falls ill.
7. If you’re out of town, and a loved one needs help, is there a contingency care plan?

If you have any questions about any of these concerns, please call us.

At Caregiver Services, the safety and well-being of our clients and staff has been our top priority since 2002. In these uncertain times of COVID-19, we are committed to going above and beyond our client’s needs to ensure maximum precaution while continuing to deliver best-in-class care.

Our Response to COVID-19

To ensure the maximum safety of our clients and caregivers, we at Caregiver Services are taking the following extra precautions.

Focusing on Fewer, More Full-Time Oriented Care

CGS specializes in full time and 24/7 care which gives us several advantages in keeping staff and clients safe:

Scenario Planning

When caring for seniors, there are many unforeseen events that may affect care or access to care. To mitigate risk, we work with client’s, their families and our staff to go over various scenarios that may occur to make sure all are prepared for situations including: suspected COVID exposure; sudden changes in client behaviour or symptoms; or last minute changes to the caregivers’ availability or client’s location or needs.

COVID-19 Resources

Looking for the latest information on COVID-19? We’ve got you covered.

See the Difference Curated 24-Hour Care Makes

Enhanced protection from COVID and Influenza are just one of the few benefits of a curated 24-hour care plan for you or your loved ones. 24-hour live-in care is a dedication towards a better quality of care and quality of life we at Caregiver Services embrace. It allows our clients and their families to live with dignity and peace of mind, while ensuring the best possible care. 

Have additional questions? Call David Bernstein directly at 416-994-6096

When family is available but not the best solution for the day to day challenges of aging with health issues:

Many aged seniors live in large homes which become impossible to manage themselves. They want to age in this home and maintain their current lifestyle for as long as possible – and the only way to do that is with help. Although their family may live near by, helping them maintain their lifestyle is a full time job and they do not want to burden their kids with having to be around all the time.

Many individuals in these circumstances hire uninsured, often insufficiently trained private caregivers and either pay them cash or make them employees and manage their taxes and required source deductions etc….. Although many people do this, it can be risky, quite time consuming to handle the scheduling, and very stressful if ultimately multiple caregivers are needed to manage a 7 day, 24 hour requirement.

Most importantly, as the client’s needs change, and risks increase, they are reluctant to change caregivers even though the current one may no longer be a good fit for the health, safety and care needs that inevitably come.

One of our longest term clients has worked with us for almost 8 years. The client lives in a farm home in Vaughn (one of the last hold outs from the development mania). She has a lovely home, barn and garden and loves to keep them all in working order. She has a condo in downtime Toronto so she can spend the night after a long day in the city. We started with traditional daytime support and she slept alone overnight. That evolved to 24 hour live-in care for a number of years where the caregivers could sleep at night as well. More recently, due to additional mobility challenges and the need to get up often at night, care has evolved again to awake overnight care.

One of the most important considerations when providing caregivers for 24 hour/7 day a week care is to develop an excellent team who can stay together over the years – and 24/7 care, even for generally healthy people, takes a team and scheduling. Caregivers get sick, their own families have needs and last minute changes occur. The client’s needs may change temporarily and a new team member needs to be added. The best way to manage this so that the client’s changing needs are met and the core team stays involved, is to use a professional care provider.

Someone you love is almost certainly going to need caregiving at some point as they age. The need for care may be short or long term; at home, in a hospital or facility. You may be their spouse, child, friend – or, it may be you. There are some critical conversations that must happen sooner than later – before a crisis occurs.

Although these conversations can be stressful, I guarantee having them before any crisis will reduce the stress you and your family will experience once the care is actually needed. As an owner of a caregiving business, I have a unique view into what families experience as their loved ones age. It has taught me a few very profound lessons regarding what conversations to have before circumstances force urgent decisions. As your or your loved one’s health gets worse, these conversations get harder, not easier. Have them while everyone is 100%.

Here are the basic discussions you should have (and if you are over 50 and don’t know what these things are, find out!):

1. Are Living Wills in place including the selection of Powers of Attorney (POA) and a Do Not Resuscitate order, if that’s your wish?
2. Do your Powers of Attorney truly understand your wishes in detail?
3. Have you given copies of these documents to your POAs, Doctor, Lawyer and family?
4. Is your wish to age at home or in a seniors oriented facility?
5. If a couple is aging at home, have you discussed what happens with one if the other’s health changes?
6. Are family members willing to provide ongoing, hands-on care if needed? Do they appreciate what that may involve?
7. If immediate family doesn’t live close by, in a crisis, is there a plan to meet your loved ones’ urgent needs? If you’re out of town and a loved one needs help, is there a plan in place?
8. Are regular visits from professional caregivers an affordable option to enable living at home as long as possible? Have you considered 24 hour or live-in care?
9. Do you know of a company you trust to explain how private care works and your options?
10. Do you know who to call to get a professional caregiver quickly? Are you set up with them to enable this support on short notice?
11. If you want to age at home, is there a plan to get it ready? Things to consider: bedroom location, bathroom accessibility, navigating stairs, where a caregiver might sleep, and devices to maximize safety.

The biggest challenge I see families face is when one of the most common crises, a fall, leads to an injury that is very hard if not impossible to fully recover from. The recovery process often leads to more and greater problems. Preventing falls is probably the single greatest extender of quality of life as we age. Preparing the home and possibly having a regular caregiver can meaningfully reduce the risk of falls.

I talk to the children of seniors constantly about the challenge of arranging care for a parent who doesn’t think they need it. Ironically, notwithstanding the tremendous benefits from having a caregiver, the idea of having one makes people feel they will be less independent, less dignified, vulnerable and scared about the “slippery slope” having care represents (to be fair, it’s more often the men who feel this way). In my experience, the opposite is true – having a caregiver enables much more independence, a safer home environment, and tremendous relief, on multiple levels, for your family.

For an excellent explanation and example of a Living Will,  click here.

To learn more about using professional caregivers, call Caregiver Services Ltd. at 905 642 9494

Seniors are more at risk for falling on stairs than younger adults, and more likely to suffer severe injuries. In fact, seniors 65+ account for 70% of the deaths resulting from stair accidents.Take a few minutes to review the safety of your stairs and how you use them.

1. Do you remove your reading glasses when using stairs?
   Be sure you remove your reading glasses for walking or climbing up or down stairs. If you use bifocals, adjust your glasses so you can see the stairs clearly.
2. Is there a light switch at the top and bottom of your stairs?
   Install lights and switches to ensure all your stairways are well-lit.
3. Are all your steps in good repair?
   Make sure there are no uneven surfaces, cracks, bunched-up stair-covering or protruding nails.
4. Are the steps all of the same size and height?
   Have a carpenter correct uneven steps. They are a major hazard.
5. Are you able to see the edges of the steps clearly?
   Paint a contrasting colour on the edge of wooden or concrete steps (or on the top and bottom steps), or apply special strips you can buy to enhance the visibility of each step.
6. If you have a covering on your stairs, is it fastened securely?
   Stair carpeting can cause slips. Consider removing it or replacing it with well-secured rubber stair treading.
7. Is the handrail well attached to the wall and easily grasped?
   Make sure the handrail is well-secured and that you can get your full hand around it.
8. Is the handrail at a height of 36 to 39 inches (90 to 100 cm)?
   There should be a handrail on at least one side of all stairways. The height should allow you to use it comfortably when your arm is slightly bent at the elbow.
9. Are your stairs free of clutter?
   Avoid storing things temporarily on your stairs. Always check the stairs as you walk up or down.
10. Have you removed loose carpets or throw rugs from your stair landings?
    Loose floor coverings are a hazard. If you have rugs make sure they are non-slip, or have a rubber backing.
11. Do you take your time when going up or down the stairs?
    Best way is slowly—hand on the handrail. Rushing is a major cause of falls.
12. Do you make sure your vision isn’t blocked as you go up or down your stairs?
    If you’re carrying something, make sure it doesn’t hide the stairs and that one hand is free to use the handrail.

Source:  Public Health Agency of Canada website