Notes To Leave For In-Home Senior Care Providers For A Spouse With Alzheimer's
If you have a spouse who has Alzheimer's disease, it can be incredibly unnerving to be faced with a situation when you have to leave them in the care of an in-home senior care provider. There are a few notes that you should jot down to guide the senior-care professional while they are in your home.
Jot down a detailed plan for the medications your spouse takes.
It is helpful if you make a list of the medications your spouse takes, how much they take, and at what time they usually take them. Make a note if certain medications have to be given a certain way. For example, if one medication makes your partner sick or if they get markedly resistant to taking a certain medication, you may normally give the medication to them ground up in their orange juice or along with food. The goal is for the caregiver to make your loved one feel just as comfortable with their medication routine with them as they always do with you.
Leave notes about how you keep your spouse safe around the house.
It is always good if you can have several meetings with the in-home senior care provider a few times before they take full charge of caring for your loved one. Even if this is not a possibility, make sure you leave notes about safety measures you take around the house to make sure the person with Alzheimer's is safe. A few examples would be if:
- You usually keep exit doors locked with a key from the inside to prevent them from wandering off
- You normally keep medications tucked away in a safe place so your spouse doesn't take anything without you knowing it
- You keep the oven, range, or other heat-generating items unplugged so they do not get turned on and left burning
Write down a general schedule that your spouse usually follows.
Individuals who have any type of dementia can become disconcerted if they do not follow a good daily routine, and with you leaving the home, their schedule really shouldn't change all that much. It is best if you take a moment to create a schedule so the in-home care specialist knows how the day usually goes. Include an outline of when your spouse usually eats, when you take them outside to enjoy some sunlight, and when they like to watch television or what they like to watch.
For more information, contact a senior care service.
