Introduction The goal for most people as they grow older and into senior years, is to remain independent and in their own home. However with more senior citizens remaining in their home and some living alone, safety becomes a big issue. Many items that we may find harmless, such as an unsecured rug, can be a hazard for an elderly person. In this paper I will introduce you to my senior mentor and explain the findings of the home assessment I conducted for him. Getting to Know… To fully understand the content of this paper you will first need a little background information about my senior mentor. He is an 83 year old retired, non-Hispanic, Caucasian veteran. He was married for some time before his wife passed of colon cancer when she was 51 years old. Together my senior mentor and his wife had two children, a boy and a girl. The son is married with one college age son of his own and lives in Indiana. His daughter is married with five adult children. The daughter and three of her children live in the area and offer to provide help as much as needed. His family is very involved and even those who are not close physically are supportive. He has lived in the same house for 36 years and for the most part cares for himself. He does his own shopping, prepares his own meals and cleans the house himself. He requires a bit of help with outside work and has a neighborhood boy come mow his lawn in the summer and shovel his driveway in the winter. Although not easily rattled by much he states that he feels he copes with emotions well enough. I have known him long enough though to know that sometimes this is not always true. Often times when feelings are hurt or he feels frustrated with a family member he will withdraw until t... ... middle of paper ... ...f safety outside of the home. He still drives himself where he needs to go if it is short distances and in town. If he needs to go somewhere that requires him to travel on the interstate he will ask his daughter or son in-law to give him a ride. He states that he always wears a seatbelt when in the car as either the driver or the passenger. Conclusion Overall what I discovered is that my senior mentor is overall healthy for his age and has done a fantastic job and making sure his house is safe. He has gone out of his way to take preventive measure, such having the bathroom renovated, to keep the house safe and accessible for himself. Although he is able to care for himself, he has a wonderful support system available to him should he need it. Based on my assessment and interview I think my senior mentor will be enjoying more years to come in his own home.
Falls in nursing homes residents are associated with morbidity, mortality, and healthcare costs. The centers for Medicare and Medicaid indicate falls as the quality indicator. (Leland, Gozalo, Teno, Mor, 2012). Factors such as new environment, medication, cognition, and non-compliance contribute to falls. A significant number of falls occur from wheelchairs. (Willy, 2013). Newly admitted residents to long-term care facilities are confused with the change. The new environment and the new unfamiliar faces increase the level of anxiety. Pain may also contribute to falls. In order to take tailor made preventative measures, fall risk factors for each resident should be evaluated periodically. Tools scoring risk factors can be utilized.
From the literature researched, the writer thinks that environmental modifications along with multifactorial interventions can make a difference for falls that an elderly can receive. Still, he thinks that there should be more research done on environmental assessment tools, flooring, and effective behavioral interventions. On his last thoughts, he believes that strategies should be patient focused and environmental modifications should be developed for that individual.
Have you ever been away from someone so long and then with them for so short of a time, but in that time you see how wonderful this person is, and they leave a mark on everybody they meet, see or touch. The thing is this person has a big problem despite how many people they touch on the outside world, the truth is their family is falling apart …you’d never think this beautiful person has a dysfunctional family. This is a story about a lady I can call grandmother her name is Ms. Carolyn Ruth Norwood. My grandmother is a no nonsense person when it comes to her small family she always wants us to do our best in whatever we’re doing no matter what; I’ve always enjoyed having someone to motivate me with humor. It amazes me how the world works because
Rosa and Miguel are experiencing relationship problems due to developmental and financial stressors. This has created a turbulent home environment. Miguel’s verbal abuse and open hostility has Rosa emotionally overwhelmed. He is not physically abusive; however, his anger is upsetting the household. The children are also displaying emotional and physical stress related symptoms. Rosa and Miguel come from emotionally unstable homes, which has impacted their ability to communicate and manage their emotions. Due their inability to communicate in a productive manner, they have sought help to resolve their problems. Both have expressed the concern that they are repeating the harmful behavior they experienced as children. They
Skubic, M., Alexander, G., Popescu, M., Rantz, M., & Keller, J. (2009). A smart home application to eldercare: current status and lessons learned. Technology and Healthcare, 17, 183-201.
This meeting lasted about 1 hour and I felt very welcomed in this warm compassionate setting. Attending this meeting, I knew that I wasn’t going to be judged or looked down upon because of my situation or issues. Everyone who attended this meeting has a story to tell and that is why they choose to come. I choose to attend this meeting because of my past struggles, so I felt that I could relate to the material that was presented. The ...
As the interview came to a close, the resident remained comfortable and seemed to be open to yet more questions. I feel that the interview was a success not only for myself but for her as well. She learned a few simple safety tips and most of all, enjoyed the company.
The long term care course was very interesting and helped me learn more about what is involved. In the LTC are not only nursing homes, but also adult day care, hospice and home health service. Long-term care is service and supports that a person would need for their own care. A lot of long-term care is not medical care and is considered assisting on everyday personal tasks. I learned that long-term care services are determined by chronic disease and disability. There will always be a need for long-term care.
Today was our first day at the nursing home, and wasn't as bad as I thought it was going to be. My resident is in room number 6 bed 2. There is a do not resuscitate is place for her, she is a very sweet lady that doesn't need help with a lot of things such as eating. Showers are only one Wednesdays and Saturdays today I gave her a bed bath. Starting with her top half everything looked fine and normal until I started peri-care. As I'm washing her we talked about her Thanksgiving and family. She told me she has a daughter and 3 grandsons which includes a pair of twins that are 7. Anyways her legs are contracted so try to wipe the peri area was a little harder. I also notice she had a cover on decubitus ulcer I think. The cna Shamoy helped me along the way. The resident could reposition by herself which helped me also.
Older adults are a very knowledgeable population and have had a lot of life experiences. As people age, things start to change physically, mentally, and socially. It’s important to understand the process of aging, so that older adults can be taken care of properly. I interviewed P.R. who is a 71-year-old male that lives alone in his home. P.R. is a retired coal miner, and is currently living off his social security and savings. He lives close to both his daughter and son, who frequently help him out with things that are needed. P.R. was able to give me a lot of insight about specific challenges that he has experienced in his life that is associated with aging. I will be discussing challenges that P.R experienced physically, mentally,
The purpose of this essay is to use the Activities of Daily Living (ADL) assessment to identity the needs of a patient called Ernest (pseudonim). Ernest is a 74 years old man who was admitted in hospital with “off legs” due to infection. He has Chronic Kidney Disease (CKD) and haemodialyses three times a week. He has been diagnosed with dementia which makes him sometimes confused, although he has been able to live on his own at home with the assistance of his two daughters. After three weeks in hospital he was discarged to his home with a package of care. The assessment will be focus on three ADL: eating and drinking, mobilising and communication.
The population of the United States has a rapid growing populace of older adults. It is said that by the year 2050, there will be 80 million people that are older than the age of 65. While many may just consider this to be a factoid it is an important glimpse into what the healthcare field will require. Although there are many healthy older adults, the longer a person lives the more likely there are to have ailment. These ailments can be small or they can painstakingly chronic. These health disparities will increase the expenses of this nation. Elderly Americans simply require more healthcare; therefore, it makes sense that their care costs three to five times of that than a younger person. As a person ages, the healing process slows, so they take longer to rehabilitate and have more chronic conditions. People are living longer because there are better treatment regimens and a higher selection of medications, but the economic standing of many elderly people does not meet the needs of their daily living and their medical costs (Allender, Rector and Warner, 2014). The elderly are a vulnerable population due to a lack of resources and an increased rate of health problems.
The subject has had several recurring problems in her life and these include mental problems, alcoholism and drug abuse. Her family members have their lives described in the following paragraph. Her father passed away at the age of 55 and was a police chief. He was schooled and attended school for a total of 12 years. Her (the subject), mother was in the medical profession and is currently retired.
Throughout my four hours of service that I completed there I spoke with a woman named Irene, who was recently admitted into the nursing home about a month previously. She had suffered a bad fall while she was home alone after her husband passed away and hurt her shoulder as a result. Irene told me that she never wanted to come to a nursing home, but her niece insisted that she be relocated there to minimize the risks of another detrimental fall. She continued by saying that she missed the independent aspects that came with living at home. This was because numerous restrictions were placed on her life once she moved. For instance, she now cannot even leave the facility without the permission of a family member, rather than on her own accord. However, whenever she would complain about her current situation, she would say that she must keep as much of a positive outlook on her own life. I found this very interesting. This is not only because it related to my own life and the struggles that I am presenting facing. After hearing stories from her childhood and early adulthood, I understood that she evidently had a strong spirit that was not easily broken by the hardships she experienced. I admired her willingness to overcome the obstacles that she has faced throughout her life, and I believe that I need to imitate such
Another danger that may harm the elderly living alone is driving. Since eyesight, hearing, and reflexes decline gradually as you age, driving becomes more and more difficult. When seniors live alone, there’s no one to give them a lift to wherever they want. They have to drive. This may cause dangers to other people and to themselves. On my way to school last year, I was behind a car moving somewhat erratically. First, I thought that the driver was drunk or asleep. However, when driving past him, I recognized he was an elder, maybe 80 years old or more, and his hands were shaking holding the wheel! I was very worried about him. In one case in February 2018, Santia Feketa, 18, and Britney Poindexter, 17, were killed after their pickup was hit