According to the latest Istat research on the world of disability, in Italy 1 million and 400 thousand elderly people are not self-sufficient, and most of them are over 75 years old. These are people who cannot take care of themselves or perform daily activities such as washing, getting out of bed, sitting or getting out of a chair, getting dressed and undressing, or eating. In addition, almost half of people over 75 (about 4 million) are unable to carry out other practical activities of daily life on their own, such as shopping, preparing meals or cleaning the house.
ARE YOU LOOKING FOR A CARER?
In such a context, more and more families are using the services of a home care professional. In fact, most elderly people prefer to continue living in their own homes for as long as possible. For them, this is only possible thanks to outside help. Whether we are talking about assistants, carers or caregivers , the concept does not change: we are talking about a professionalism that does not fall within the health sector but has to do with the care of elderly people, facilitating the lives of many families who cannot keep up with the needs of their loved ones.
If you too are looking for a reliable professional to help you reconcile the needs of your family with the needs of an elderly family member, in this article you will find advice on how to make your choice and which requirements to prioritize.
Why rely on an elderly care professional
Nowadays, many Italian families live in a context where it is difficult to take care of older people: the pace of work, the education of young children, commuting to the city and emigration are just a few. factors that prevent sufficient time from being devoted to caring for dependent elderly family members. It is therefore normal to try to find solutions that allow the elderly person to be well cared for and their family to live their care needs more peacefully.
Finding a reliable person who can take care of an elderly family member with professionalism and empathy is a relief not only for the person being cared for but for the whole family. There are many benefits that derive from hiring a caregiver or caregiver, including:
- Find a more stable family routine that reconciles your commitments and those of your family.
- Receive professional help for the daily tasks related to the health of the elderly person (hygiene, meal preparation, care , etc.).
- Avoid tension and guilt.
Hiring a caregiver means that the elderly person can receive assistance in many aspects of their daily life, such as:
- The planning, preparation and administration of meals.
- The purchase of foodstuffs.
- The purchase of medicines and accompaniment to medical examinations .
- Company and support in daily activities or in errands outside the home.
- Assistance in hygiene and personal or home care.
- Assistance in clothing daily and laundry care.
How to choose a home care professional for the elderly
Once you have defined your needs, you can move on to the practical part. & nbsp;
What do you need to consider when choosing a person to care for an elderly family member at home?
Here are 5 useful tips:
1. Assess the specific needs of the person being assisted.
The first thing to do before contacting a caregiver is to understand exactly what the person being treated needs.
Needs non-medical personal care, such as help with washing, dressing, going to the bathroom and preparing meals? Or is assistance limited to the company at certain times of the day?
Does the assistance service also have to include house cleaning, grocery shopping and other fees like paying bills?
2. Make a list of the basic requirements that the professional should have.
In light of the previous point, putting the requirements of the assistant you are looking for in black and white will help you identify the right person more quickly.
Be sure to specify:
- Health training if necessary.
- If a driving license is required. If so, does the professional also have to own a car of his own?
- If the professional has to carry out physical exertion such as lifting the elderly person or using special equipment.
- Hourly availability: is it a few hours a day or just certain days of the week? Or do you need 24/7 assistance?
3. Prepare your interview in advance.
When contacting professionals for the interview, it is important that you already have a fairly clear idea of what you want to ask them, apart from the requirements in the previous point.
Ask questions about their past experiences, to find out if they have worked with older people before, and what kind of jobs they did for them.
Also ask for references, if possible, so that I can then check them out one by one.
4. Watch your body language.
Ideally, the interview in person should take place together with the elderly person to be assisted. In this way you will be able to observe more closely how the professional relates to the person who will receive her care.
What tone of voice and what words do you use?
Are her manner gentle and gentle or do you notice a certain coldness?
Do you think the professional is comfortable with the older person?
5. Periodically monitor the quality of assistance.
The person you choose will have to inspire confidence: this is a key aspect.
However, it is important that, during the collaboration, you make your presence felt, both to help the professional’s work in case he / she has doubts and questions, and to monitor that everything is going well. Check for signs of negligence or bad behavior and don’t hesitate to report any suspicious activity.
Asking for a periodic report, for example, can be a good idea: this way you can understand if there are any aspects of the collaboration that can be improved for the benefit of the professional and the elderly person being cared for.
Finally, remember that it’s always good to have a back-up plan in case problems arise. On Jopla you will find many different profiles of care professionals for the elderly that you can consult at any time.
Have a nice job!
