Tips for Helping Your Favorite Senior Stay in Great Health

The Social Benefits Of Home Health Care Professionals

13 November 2017 by Florence Morrison

When you invite a home health aide into your loved one's home, you are welcoming much more than a caregiver. In many aspects, you are also inviting in a friend. Among older adults, nearly one half of them would classify themselves as lonely. Not only can a caregiver meet many of your loved one's primary health needs, but they can also offer so many other social advantages.

Keep Skills Sharp

Although it might not technically be a muscle, the brain performs very much similar to one. In short, if you don't use it, you can lose it. When older adults are lonely and have declined social interaction, it's not unheard of for many of their cognitive functions to start to decline, including memory loss.

For example, simple conversations with a caregiver about a television show your loved one may have watched the night before is a great way to work on memory skills. Having someone nearby gives your loved one an opportunity to use their cognitive skills increasingly each day, which can help keep them sharp.

Feel Important

Every person wants to feel like they are needed and desired. This idea is true no matter the age of the individual and seniors are no expectation. With your own personal and professional demands, it's sometimes challenging to entirely give your loved one the attention they need throughout the day.

A caregiver is just one more person standing by to ensure your loved one knows they are important. For some people, just knowing that someone is willing to come by and sit with them each day is enough to make them feel like they are special and cared for.

Improved Emotional Well-Being

When a person is lonely, it can have a significant impact on their emotional well-being, and a person in a declined emotional state may be more susceptible to conditions like depression. A poor emotional state may also make an individual less willing to meet many of their basic needs, including taking medications as necessary and prescribing to any additional treatment, such as physical therapy.

As part of the regular interaction and the enhanced feeling of importance, your loved one's emotional well-being can improve and spill over into other areas of their life.

When you invite a home health care professional into your home, these are just some of the benefits you can expect to pass on to your loved one. Make sure you aren't overlooking the benefits these advantages can afford your loved one in both the short and long term. 

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