Involve All Family Members in Care Planning for Best Results

“Mom had a stroke in May,” Carole explained. “And she’s so strong that I guess we all thought she’d just bounce right back to being her normal self. But that didn’t happen.” Carole’s mother has struggled to become independently mobile again; currently, she relies on a walker to help maintain her balance. She’s also had significant changes to her vision.  “It’s not a situation that requires nursing-home type of care – not that Mom would ever tolerate that anyway – but she does need some help.”

Carole has three sisters. “We never agree on anything anyway, so I was dreading the conversation we had to have about Mom’s care. A friend at work recently went through this process with her parents. She suggested we work with a geriatric care manager, and I’m so glad we did.” A geriatric care manager specializes in the care of older adults, coordinating health care and other needed services. “The whole process started with Arlene – that’s the care manager – assessing Mom’s condition and living situation. She knew the goal was for Mom to stay in the house on her own, so she created a plan that would make that possible.”

Arlene’s recommendations included working with an aide who comes in for a few hours each day to help Carole’s Mom. “She does things like bring her to her doctor’s visits, which is a huge relief,” Carole said. “Because with her eyes now, Mom can’t drive. And she pointed out the fact that Mom’s been sleeping in her living room recliner because she was afraid to climb the stairs to her bedroom.” One quick call to the Bruno Stair Lift dealer remedied that situation. “Now that Mom’s sleeping in her own bed again, we’ve seen a real improvement in her condition. She has more energy and her mood has improved a lot.”

“My sister is one who is never satisfied with anything I do,” Carole said, “so you could have knocked me over with a feather when she said she was glad that I included her in all the decision-making for Mom. It just goes to show you can never tell!”