Are you overseeing the well-being of an older adult?
This is the reality that many adult children of aging parents live every day, and it can be exhausting.
To help make your care giving easier, try researching your community and its resources. Even if it’s your hometown, you may be unfamiliar with services for older adults that exist, such as delivered meals, adult day care, transportation, emergency response systems, medication reminder devices and much more.
Help is out there, and technology can assist in tracking down appropriate and affordable resources.
For instance, here in Dallas County, Aging Resources of Central Iowa is available at 515-993-2138 to offer many helpful ideas. Another local source of help is the Health Navigation program at Dallas County Public Health, which you can reach at 515-993-3750. Their online resource directory will point you toward many types of help.
Find it at www.dallascountyiowa.gov/department-services/resource-directory.
Develop a core of reliable people who can be your eyes and ears when you can’t be there. They can inform you of any changes in the physical, social or emotional health they observe. This will add a layer of oversight and give you peace of mind.
