Managing Incontinence

Incontinence Assistance
 

For many, incontinence is a delicate subject. Unfortunately, the percentage of seniors who have some degree of incontinence is high. In fact, according to a 2014 study by the U.S. Department of Public Health, of seniors 65 and over living in a residential care facility, 39 percent had an episode of incontinence in the seven days prior to the survey. The study also showed that incontinence isn’t entirely gender neutral. Women are more likely to have incontinence than men. 39 Steve Maskrey, a retired vice president of sales and marketing personal care with Medline Industries, frequently conducts presentations on how to live with incontinence. Maskrey insists there is good news for those suff ering from incontinence, whether dealing with a little leakage or more signifi cant episodes. “All of the developments in undergarments and disposable incontinence products have really given people a lot of freedom,” he said. “People are more comfortable (now).” On the other hand, Maskrey said that before these new products, seniors with incontinence felt as though they were prisoners in their own homes. That holds true even if your home is a shared house for seniors. But, Maskrey said that incontinence is more than a potential embarrassment. It also poses a serious health risk. If incontinence isn’t dealt with promptly, a senior who remains wet and/or soiled invites disease and, possibly, even death. In other words, incontinence is nothing to take lightly. This is why it is essential in the home you’re considering, or considering for a loved one, that members of the staff are past masters at helping seniors deal with incontinence. Properly dealt with, incontinence can represent little more than a mild inconvenience. Otherwise, it can be a very seri40 ous matter, serious enough that it deserves more than your cursory interest. You should have a discussion with the staff at a home you’re considering to ascertain whether they actually have the expertise and an understanding of the importance of incontinence care. You don’t want to put down roots in soggy soil.

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How Do You Know When It Is Time.... by Theresa Maskrey

How do you know if mom or dad are getting good care in a nursing home or assisted living? Four out of ten Americans will spend an average of 835 days in a long- term facility. That is over two years. At a cost of over $90,000 per year with 37% private pay covered by families. It is important to know that you are getting the best possible care for your older loved one. How can you be sure of good care? Ask your loved one. Are you comfortable? Do you feel safe? Do you get help when you need it? Have you gotten to know the other residents? How much time do you spend in your room? Who is your favorite caregiver? Ask your loved ones caregivers? When is he/she up each morning? Are meals prepared according to your loved ones dietary needs? Is medication being given on time? (Timing of medications should be documented) Is there a reason to change medication? Is he/she moving? Are appropriate physical activities being offered? Is he/she social? How much time does your loved one spend in their room? Inspect surroundings. Get a feeling on your own about the overall environment. Is it homelike? Are personal cards and notes displayed? This means the staff took the time to do it. Look for safety hazards. Are bruises on your loved one caused by inappropriate lifting? Is the staff affectionate? Use your nose? Odor can be a sign of poor incontinence care. Listen. Do you hear music, laughter or birds? Or do you hear creaky floors and clanging pipes? Constant annoyance can affect a person’s mood and day –to- day demeanor. Does the care center meet federal and state patient care requirements? (Check CMS.gov for survey results in your area) How often should you check in? What if you can’t? Schedule care conferences with the staff If you live in another area ask for photos and videos. What does the caregiver need from you? Share personality quirks, interests and preferences of your loved one. Be respectful of caregiver’s time. Make sure caregiver knows how to reach you at all times. Being an advocate of your loved ones care can make a big difference in their life quality. Be there for them. Participate in caring for them as much as possible. Make sure those that care for your older loved ones know that you are grateful.

Challenges Commonly Faced By Children Caring For Their Parents by Theresa Maskrey

Caring for older adults is challenging especially if it is a parent. We’ve done it twice now at our house. We learned a lot on our journey and my husband and I have a huge heart for the unique challenges a family faces when assuming responsibility for older adults. At times we thought it would take over our lives. That’s why we have partnered with Brandon Schwab. The founder of Shepherd Senior Living Homes. It’s a "heart thing” as much as a business enterprise. We believe strongly that we are teamed up with healthcare resources and our residents families to create and guard the best possible life quality of our older adults family members. That is a worthy calling for anyone. What I didn’t know at the time can help other families today. Key points you should consider: • A loving son, daughter or grandchild is not an automatic default to the right choice of caregiver. At our house we learned that caregiving is a calling. Not every family member can or should take on this role. Trained care given in the right setting can prolong the life of an older adult. • After the age of 65 the older adults need for healthcare products doubles in the next two years. This includes incontinence products and aids for daily living such as canes and walkers. You may also need fall mats near the bed and grabs bars in the bathrooms to prevent falls. Acquaint yourself right away with the local durable medical equipment store in your area. You can also find online resources • There is a big difference between being old and being ill. We learned the later stages of aging can start with illness or it can start with old age. Treating an older person as if they are ill makes things worse. So does treating an ill person as if they are just aging. You owe it to your loved one to know the difference. Seek guidance from your primary care doctor. If necessary get an evaluation from a geriatrician. • Older adults with early stages of dementia will benefit from memory care service provided by trained individuals in the proper setting. This could prevent rapid acceleration of dementia symptoms. • There is a myriad of services and resources available in McHenry County designed to help you and your family. Not the least of which is the first Shared Housing Establishment in McHenry County. Check online for the senior advocacy agencies in your area. We felt strongly that keeping our loved one out of an institutional care facility was important. We believed that we owed that to our loved ones. So we attempted to figure it our at home. As a result we did not provide best possible care to our loved ones. We would do things differently today. We could have moved our loved from “home" to “home” in house operated by Shepherd Senior Living Homes.

Baby Boomers will OVERLOAD Senior Housing by 2020

Aging Baby Boomers putting additional strain on senior services and senior housing If someone was born between 1946 and 1964 they’re considered members of the Baby Boomers generation. During that period, according to the United States Census Bureau, an estimated 78.3-million Americans were born. Between the years 2011 and 2029, those Baby Boomers will reach the age of 65. Currently, there are approximately 45-million Americans over that age – almost one in six Americans. Having all these Baby Boomers entering the senior years over the course of 18 years translates to a serious strain on already strained senior services. We’re not prepared. As Brandon Schwab, founder and owner of Shepherd Residential Care, puts it, “By 2020, we’ll be out of beds for seniors from coast to coast. The country, and our senior services, just aren’t prepared for the wave of Baby Boomers that are coming this way.” Schwab lives in McHenry County, IL, where the problem is already serious. There are 37,181 seniors over the age of 65 in the county but there are only nine senior residences licensed by the Illinois Department of Health in the county and only 588 beds. As Schwab put it, that’s 4,131 seniors per location and 63 seniors per available bed. The problem, as Schwab sees it, isn’t just a matter of finding beds; it’s also a matter of finding homes for seniors where they’re not stripped of their dignity. In other words, the solution needs to go beyond finding places to put people while they wait out the last years of their lives. For Schwab, the solution is to create more homes. But, in Illinois, most senior residences house large numbers of seniors – often 100 beds or more. With those kinds of numbers, he said it’s difficult for seniors not to get lost in the shuffle. Other states, such as Florida, for instance, have opted for smaller senior residences with six or seven beds. These are often established in converted single-family homes. That’s what Schwab has done with Shepherd Residential Care. The home they’ve opened in Ringwood, IL, is a 4,880-square-foot home with seven bedrooms and seven-and-a-half baths. Residents receive personal care with CNAs in the home around the clock. Shepherd Residential Care is also opening a group of homes in Florida. But, in Illinois, they’re following the model developed in Florida. In Illinois, that type of home is classified as a Shared Housing Establishment. The home Shepherd has opened in Ringwood is the first of its type in the county. As Schwab put it, we’re going to need creative solutions to ensure quality care for seniors. I think the Shared Housing Establishment model is one of those creative solutions.

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McHenry County Senior Housing Options by Brandon Schwab

INDEPENDENT LIVING Is typically the next step once a senior or the family of a senior realize it is unsafe for mom or dad to live alone. You may have seen "Golden Girls" TV Show which was a great example of independent living enviornment. The idea is live independently within a community of others in the same situation. This extra layer of safety is there in case of an emergency happens. Cost of these type of apartments start at $1500 per month. Typically they include very little beyond basic utilities and space to move in your loved ones belongings. McHenry Villa is a place to consider if this option located 3516 West Waukegan Road, McHenry, IL 60050, (815) 344-0246www.McHenryVilla.com HOME CARE Staying in your home for as long as possible is very common thought among seniors. This can be accomplished through the use of home care companies such as Visiting Angels, Brightstar Home Care, among others within the community. They offer services ranging from companion care on an hourly basis (typically 4 hour minimum) starting at $22 per hour all the up to live in services which is invoiced on a daily basis starting at $265 per day. This industry is getting regulated by the government more and more so we anticipate the home care companies merging or raising rates. REHAB FACIILTY A Rehab Facility is often where the hospital will discharge patients from hospitals that cannot or should not go directly home. Here the team of nurses and thereapists will work with patients on a temporary basis (typically 45 days) to recover from a surgery or an accident prior to going home or another location. They do not offer long term housing options. Daily rates start at $250 to 500, sometimes these costs are absorbed by Medicare or your insurance provider. ASSISTED LIVING Assisted living builds on the above independent living option by adding 24/7 monitoring from a Certified Nursing Assistant. This is a great option when you or your loved one needs more health care services not found at the independent living level. Price points start at $3500 per month and go up to $6,000 per month depending on bedroom configuration and caregiver to resident ratio. Please note the lower caregiver to resident ratio the higher quality care and higher cost. A common caregiver to resident ratio is 1:12 up to 1:20. A lot of these locations have ala carte items that are added on in addition to the base cost. In McHenry County there is options to choose from including: -Sunrise of Crystal Lake with 58 beds Phone 815 444 6600 -Bickford of Crystal Lake with 56 beds Phone 815 477 4200 -Fox Point of McHenry with 97 beds Phone 815 385 9840 -Three Oaks Assisted Living with 83 beds Phone 847 516 6016 (Ask for Joy) -Hearthstone Village of Woodstock with 74 beds Phone 815 338 2110 -Fountains of Crystal Lake with 135 beds Phone 815 455 8400 NEW SHARED HOUSING ESTABLISHMENT- In the same licensing catagory as Assisted Living there is a smaller version called Shared Housing Establishment in Illinois. In other parts of the country they are called Residential Care Facilities (RCF) or Residential Care Facilities for the Elderly (RCFE). This option is NEW for Illinois however in other parts of the country such as Florida or California they are very popular for a variety of reasons including cozy home setting, 24/7 CNA supervision, 3 home cooked meals per day, housekeeping, security and low caregiver to resident ratios (max of 1:6). Illinois has 25 of these throughout the state compared to Florida having 2,800. McHenry County has only one Shared Housing Establishment available in McHenry County. Costs start at $4500 and go up to $6000 per month. -Shepherd Residential Care of Ringwood (Northern McHenry) with 7 beds Phone 224 333 6247 website www.ShepherdSeniorLivingHomes.com

MEMORY CARE- Some common diseases such as Alzheimers and Dementia are treated at Memory Care Units such Fox Point Manor in McHenry or Autumn Leaves in Crystal Lake with 36-40 beds each. These locations are specifically designed for seniors with wandering risks and memory loss. The staff is trained specifically to handle caring for seniors with memory loss. Costs vary but typically start at $6000 per month Fox Point Manor of McHenry- 40 beds Phone 815 385 9840 Autumn Leaves of Crystal Lake- 36 beds Phone 815 459 7800 HOSPICE CARE Hospice care can visit any of the above locations to care for a senior. They can visit their own home, assisted living, shared housing establishment, or memory care unit. This service is to facility the comfort while concluding the final chapter of life.