Mon. 5th Mar. 2018
As a public speaker, I often get asked: “when is the right time to step in to assist a senior who is aging in place.” Aging in place is gradual, and we do not recognize or admit it, to ourselves so how can we expect others to act differently.
The KEY is to notice CHANGE. Changes are often covert, and when we see someone frequently, we often do not notice the changes. However, when the time is stretched to weeks or month, the change becomes more apparent. Often tellers, financial managers, and nonmedical professionals see changes before we do. They have episodic meetings and notice the subliminal changes.
Changes that might be noted include things like:
- Change in appearance – Those who always had their nails polished and their hair done weekly are demonstrating chipped nails and hair that needs to be restyled. This is an indicator of self-neglect for a person who prided themselves on their appearance.
- Change in personality – One of the early and frequent changes with dementing illnesses is a change in character. The social person is staying at home more and not interested in socializing outside of the house. The person who was on the phone all day talking to friends does not call anymore.
- Change in ability to manage the home – Women who were pristine housekeepers are no longer able to maintain their home. There is clutter, dust, and unmade beds. Fatigue or disinterest may be the response to questions, but if there is a change do not overlook or minimize it.
- Change in ability to handle finances – While paying bills does not seem to be a challenging task; it requires complex thinking and mental processing to pay bills, balance a checkbook and recognize what is junk mail and what is important. Watch for unpaid bills, collection calls and checkbooks with check numbers out of sequential order. Financial exploitation is a huge risk for the elderly with or without cognitive impairment.
- Change in ability to navigate outside the home in a car – Listen for clues about the senior getting lost or not being able to find their way to lifelong sites. The navigation difficulty may also indicate a visuospatial deficit which puts them at risk for auto accident and driver safety risks.
If you note these changes, do not ignore, deny or procrastinate. Earlier is always better. Waiting will only make the situation worse. The cause may be something that is reversible. However, if it is not, you are able to make the changes in systems to keep the senior safe from themselves and others. Please contact me if you have any questions or concerns about this.