How to Coordinate Your Assisted Living Home Care

People who require assisted living home care frequently miss opportunities to improve the efficiency of their staff and their daily lives. Deteriorating health inevitably slows down our days, eating away at how much we can accomplish in any given day with increasing frustration. Yet, several strategies and the ability to coordinate these strategies with your assisted living home care staff can reclaim some of your former efficiency.

Easy Sacrifices that Pay Huge Dividends

Whether disabled or elderly, the need for assisted living home care is often accompanied by some easy sacrifices on the part of the resident. Some of these sacrifices may feel unnecessary at first, but they can pay off enormously once implemented. As your life continues its transition into a place that requires greater assisted living home care, it’s important to hold onto your self-identity and individual dignity, but you can’t resist every day-to-day change that holds promise to improve your quality of life…

• Forget about your cabinet finishing and put inventory lists on the front of all your cabinet doors. This simple step can make it dramatically easier for your assisted living home care staff to locate items in the house, restock cabinets through grocery shopping and errand-running, and keep your home clutter free. Your cabinets may no longer be able to showcase their wood grain and stain, but the added efficiency makes this step a no-brainer.
• Begin remodeling your home for a long-term, aging-in-place strategy. Too many people believe they need to drop tens of thousands of dollars to remodel their home: Maybe one day when your mobility becomes so limited that you need to add a residential elevator, but usually a handful of smaller projects can make a huge difference with only a modest financial sacrifice. A shower bench can allow you to bathe yourself. Ramps for your home’s exterior and chair lifts for your home’s interior can ensure full access to your home for years. Voice-activated home automation systems can allow you to control lighting, electronic equipment, and the thermostat from the comfort of your bed or your favorite recliner. These remodels may also reduce the level of care you need from your assisted living staff.
• Install low-maintenance interior surfaces. Many people who enter the assisted living workforce are attracted to the direct care and human interaction of home health care. Many find themselves uninspired when they find the majority of their days are consumed by vacuuming the carpet. Laminate flooring is cost-effective and will reduce the number of hours your assisted living home care staff spends cleaning the floors. You shouldn’t feel compelled to change your home to reduce your staff’s work routine, but for every hour they spend vacuuming the carpet is another hour you need not pay for. Managing these hidden home care costs is important to stretching the financial resources for your retirement and future home health care.

Coordinate Your Assisted Living Home Care

These sacrifices and strategies to improve your quality of life only work if you’re able to coordinate your home care staff to follow them. Let them know that you put those lists on your cabinets to help ensure the cabinets stay stocked with necessary food items and specific household items. Let them know that the automated thermostat is designed to give you control over your home and that they should ask you before making any adjustments. Let them know that the laminate flooring isn’t to be used as an excuse to lay down on the job or completely neglect the flooring maintenance that is so critical for people with limited mobility. This type of coordination should help grease the wheels of your household function and the working relationship with your staff.

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