Adult Day Care: A Caregiver's Guide

As we get older in our life, so do our parents. If you recently started helping your elderly dad or mom get used to their retired way of life, you suddenly were inundated with all types of services, especially tailored for taking care of senior citizens. You could come to find out that your parent is used to being with people during the day and you cannot be with them because of a job. The thought of an adult day care is often recommended as an answer to this dilemma.

Obviously the words "adult day care" can be distressing since it sometimes supports the idea of your grown up parent turning into a baby and causing them to be cared for like a baby. Therefore, when you advise your parent that you would like to find a location that they can spend time at throughout the day; do not call it an "adult day care" center. Instantly, mom or dad will think that you just want to "put them away" someplace so that they will not be a bother to you. Of course, you do not want them to think that way.

However, a lot of older folks are very open to going to a church program for seniors or a senior citizen's center that basically operate the same way.

The best method to locate the perfect place for your parent during the day is for you and your parent to take a tour of what is available and decide together on a place. In order to do that, you will want to be ready with some significant questions in order to feel comfortable in allowing your mom or dad to spend the day there.

Some questions you might consider asking are:

• Does the center supply transportation to the other senior citizen centers in town? Does that transportation go on all day during normal hours? You will not want your parent going to the center and then being stuck there. If there is proper transportation, that will not happen.

• Does the center have skilled and competent medical staff on the premises in case a medical problem occurs?

• How many senior citizens are there at the center on a usual day? If there are not very many, it could mean that the center is not giving good service. If there are too many, your parent could get lost in the crowd.

• Does the center give out drinks and food if your parent is there all day? Do the food services understand any diet specifications your parent may have? Be sure to check with them if your parent is diabetic or have other diet limitations prescribed by his physician.

• What are the prices they charge?

Naturally, the activities that are scheduled at the center will matter a lot to your mom or dad. This will also affect their eagerness to want to go to the center. For example, during football season, if there is a place in the center where the men go and cheer and watch the games? That would be a great deal more fun for your dad than sitting by himself at home and watching the games.

If the adult day care center has an assortment of activities that interest specifically each gender and other activities that all can get pleasure from such as puzzles or card games, then it might be a cheerful and fun place for your parent to spend the day. It would be a great idea to spend a bit of time at the center. You should be able to feel the temperament of the employees and the universal environment of the center. This will help you decide if the center would be a friendly and cordial place where your parent will enjoy meeting new people and have some fun too or a place where he might feel out of place or by himself.

If you are able to locate a good dependable adult day care center for you parent, it can sure take a big load off of your mind. Also, if you realize that he is having fun every day and socializing with other people, you know that this will be healthy for him. If your parent is enjoying life more, he will sleep better at night and eat better during the day. If this happens, then it will resolve a lot of troubles all at one time.