Who Will Be the Caregivers for Aging Baby Boomers?

A large percentage of baby boomers are caregivers to their elderly parents. But the question arises about who will be the caregivers to the baby boomers. Most baby boomers had smaller families, childless homes or divorces, which makes the number of available family members to be caregivers very small. Children of boomers may not have the time nor live near the aging parent to provide care. As most baby boomers know, caring for an elderly parent can be very stressful and put a burden on the caregiver and they would not want to put that responsibility on their children. So when the need arises for skilled care, the care will fall on the public sector. Skilled care can come from home care nurses, an assisted living facility or nursing home.

Many baby boomers have multiple chronic diseases which will increase the demand for skilled care. As baby boomers age and their diseases progress, there will be a shortage of nurses available to provide skilled care. Increasing health care costs and lack of long-term care insurance, paying for skilled care can deplete a baby boomer's retirement funds quickly. Medicare does not cover long-term health care and Medicaid only covers after the patient has depleted all their assets and has low income.

If you can afford it and are able to stay in your own home, home health care would be the option for you. A skilled nurse would come into your home on a daily basis and administer your medicines and provide any care you may need. Some home health care companies can arrange for a full time caregiver to be in your home 24/7 if needed. It would be a lot more comfortable for you to be in your own home receiving care.

If you decide that assisted living is an option you want to look at, you have to be able to take care of yourself most of the time and just need assistance with your medicines, meals or getting to your doctor appointments. In an assisted living facility you have planned activities to help you keep busy, and you have a private room where you can bring some of your own personal belongings to make the room feel more like home. Assisted living facilities have a dining room where you can go and enjoy your meals with other residents of the home. If you need to go to the store or want to go shopping, most facilities provide bus trips to go shopping once a week. They have a nurse on staff that makes sure you get your medicines. They also have staff that clean your room and do your laundry.

If your health condition requires more specialized care, the next level is a nursing home. In a nursing home you have round the clock nursing care. Most nursing homes have semi-private rooms, which are much smaller than rooms in an assisted living facility. Your placement in the nursing home will depend on the level of care you need. You may be in a section of the home with patients like yourself or you could be in with people with Alzheimer's or other serious diseases. Each home will have a dining room so you can eat with the other residents. They also have planned activities you can participate in on a daily basis. If you require any type of therapy, they have a licensed therapist on staff.

As baby boomers age, planning for long-term care is a necessity. Assisted living and nursing home facilities will have to increase to accommodate the number of boomers who will need skilled care. In planning for your long-term care, you may want to start looking at what facilities are available in your area or close to family members. If you must go into a facility, being near family might make that transition easier to handle. It would also enable your family to visit more often. Some of the better facilities usually have waiting lists, so the sooner you can check them out, the better you can plan for your future.