If you live far away from a loved one who needs your care, you might often feel frustrated and anxious. Your deepest desire may be to move closer to your loved one, but this may simply not be feasible. If such is the case, you should at least take comfort in the fact that there are many services and technologies that can help you care for your loved one remotely. Here are a few:
If your loved one needs extra help with daily living activities, medication management, or housekeeping, you might consider employing a home care service in DeRidder. An aide could stop by a couple of times a week to do some cleaning, prepare a meal or two, and provide some company, or your family member might need daily assistance with grooming, medication reminders, or transportation to appointments and errands. Most home care companies will design a personalized package that is just right for your loved one and will give you peace of mind.
You should also research and employ local service professionals in your loved one’s area. Perhaps the yard needs some sprucing up. You can hire a landscaper to take care of weekly mowing. You could also hire in-house cleaning or maid service. If your family member has a fireplace, consider hiring chimney cleaning services and have it inspected to make sure a build-up of soot and debris is not causing a fire or smoke risk. An inspection can also catch dangerous structural problems and will be well worth the usual $100 to $300 fee.
Don’t forget that your loved one’s friends can be among your best resources. Make connections with your family member’s friends and neighbors, and ask them to check on them. Friends may also be willing to help out with everything from bringing meals to cleaning to providing transportation, and they are experts at giving your loved one much-needed support.
Communication technology can be a useful tool to help you connect with your loved one. Consider buying your family member a computer, tablet, or smartphone. Call in a local computer professional to help your loved one set up the device and teach them how to use it. Also, draw up a step-by-step list of instructions for convenient reference. Then you can meet with your loved one over video chat.
Finally, if your loved one’s health is poor, you might invest in a medical alert system that will contact both you and local authorities if there is an emergency. Some of these systems even detect falls and continue to work when your loved one is away from home. Do some research into smart home technology, including cameras, that can help you stay connected to your loved one and keep them safe.
While caring for your loved one from a distance isn’t easy, home health care, local services, friends, and technology can help.
Image via Pexels