Caring for an elderly loved one from afar can be a heart-wrenching experience for both the caregiver and senior. Family caregivers struggle to juggle their own households while managing travel and expenses. Here are ten long-distance caregiver safety tips to ensure the senior’s well-being.

Who are considered long-distance caregivers?

Long-distance caregivers are individuals who provide care to an elderly loved one who lives an hour or more away. These caregiving scenarios can include families and seniors who live in a town thirty miles away, another state, or even overseas in a different country.

Caregivers who provide long-distance care offer help in numerous ways. Forms of care include managing the senior’s financial affairs or healthcare. Family caregivers, for instance, may arrange for the senior to receive in-home care from a home care agency. Planning for emergencies is a part of long-distance care.

Tip 1: Understand the senior’s condition

Becoming familiar with the senior’s physical and cognitive challenges is one of the first steps in long-distance care. Family caregivers should know what illnesses affect the senior, all prescription and nonprescription medicines the senior takes, and the availability of local resources.

Knowing the senior’s overall condition makes it easier for the long-distance caregiver to anticipate the possible course of illness, speak with the senior’s doctor, prevent healthcare crises, and manage healthcare. The caregiver should have written permission to receive the senior’s medical information.

Tip 2: Organize healthcare information

Ideally, one family caregiver will be designated to converse with the senior’s medical team. Organize the elderly person’s vital healthcare documents (i.e., medical care, social services, and contact information) in one shared space, such as a secure online platform. Update and give other caregivers access to the information.

Tip 3: Schedule conference calls

Long-distance caregivers are advised to stay updated on their elderly loved one’s medical condition by scheduling conference calls with the senior’s medical team. Conference calls allow other relatives to participate and also receive up-to-date information about the senior’s progress and health.

Tip 4: Delegate caregiving tasks

Sharing caregiving responsibilities with relatives or professional caregivers limits the burden of care on the long-distance caregiver. Discuss caregiving limitations with the support network. Delegate tasks ahead of time to individuals who are willing and able to assist with the elder care.

Friends and neighbors can provide invaluable information about the senior’s welfare. Ask nearby friends to regularly check in on the senior and send updates. Speak with the primary caregiver, too, to find out what caregiving tasks the long-distance caregiver can provide when the latter is in town.

Tip 5: Prevent elder abuse

A vulnerable senior can become a victim of elder abuse. Long-distance caregivers are urged to become familiar with signs of elder abuse, such as unusual spending, unexplained bruises or injuries, bed sores, mood changes, and increased isolation. Hiring a qualified home care agency can prevent elder abuse.

Tip 6: Evaluate the home environment

Arrange to modify the senior’s home to meet existing needs. Older adults are vulnerable to trips and falls, which can lead to serious injury. Install grab bars in the bathroom and add lighting to reduce the chances of falling. A home care agency can also provide an in-home fall assessment.

Tip 7: Help the senior stay in contact

Helping the elderly loved one stay in contact with the long-distance caregiver can be facilitated in a variety of ways. Provide the senior with a smartphone and teach her how to use it. Or, give the aging adult a few lessons in learning how to use video calls.

Tip 8: Gather important paperwork

A long-distance caregiver should have access to the senior’s current medical, financial, and legal records. Also organize life insurance policies and wills. Gathering these important documents early on will make it easier to circumvent a crisis or respond more quickly if one should emerge.

An elderly parent may resist sharing these documents. Long-distance caregivers are advised to remind the parent that they will respect the senior’s privacy and are available to work with a trusted friend, relative, or an attorney who specializes in elder affairs.

Tip 9: Take opportunities for caregiver training

Even long-distance caregivers benefit from caregiver training. Trainees learn how to safely move a senior from a bed to a chair, prevent bed sores, help the senior bathe, and administer first aid. Courses are available from the American Red Cross or nonprofit organizations that focus on elder care.

Tip 10: Seek local support resources

Local sources of support are available to long-distance caregivers and seniors. A recommended organization is the Area Agency on Aging. Caregiving resources, such as home care agencies, are reliable options, too.

Additional quick long-distance caregiving tips:

• Meet the neighbors and friends of your senior loved ones and get their contact information. Ask them to contact you if they notice anything different such as unusual behavior or mail and newspapers piling up.
• Make sure you have the contact information for elder care professionals and emergency services in the local area. These professionals can check on your loved ones if you cannot get ahold of friends or neighbors.
• Evaluate the safety of the home to make sure the home is well lit and free of tripping hazards. Also make sure that doors and windows lock properly.
• Consider getting a personal emergency response system for your loved ones so they can quickly get help when needed.
• Establish a regular time for your loved ones to call you so you can check in on them.
• Consider installing cameras or motion detectors in the home so you can check on your loved ones at any time.

To learn more about elderly needs and how to best take care of your loved ones, read Challenges That the Elderly Face Every Day and How to Help

Long-distance caregiving can be successful when the family utilizes all means of support, from the senior’s medical team to friends and home care agencies. When your loved one needs high-quality in-home support, look no further than Assisting Hands Home Care.

Assisting Hands Home Care

We are a national leader in dependable senior care. Our home care agency is staffed with teams of compassionate caregivers who are trained and experienced in all areas of nonmedical elder care. We ensure that the seniors we serve live as independently as is safely possible.

Caregiving responsibilities include help with personal hygiene, such as bathing, dressing and toileting. Our caregivers prepare balanced meals to ensure nutrition and hydration needs are met. We shop for fresh groceries, perform light housekeeping and offer safe transportation to doctors’ offices.

Long-distance caregivers rely on Assisting Hands Home Care for the best in senior care. Our caregiving services are the solution when families live too far away to provide hands-on care to an elderly loved one. We are licensed, bonded and insured to give families even greater peace of mind.

Choose Assisting Hands Home Care to complement your long-distance caregiving. Our home care agency serves seniors in the communities surrounding Sarasota, Florida. Call us at (813) 868-6782 to schedule a complimentary in-home consultation, and we’ll develop an optimal care plan to meet the senior’s care needs.