As usual, it’s storytime. Let’s talk about Long-Distance Caregiving!

Trevor has taken care of his beloved grandparents since 2018, which is one of the reasons he applied for medical school. In 2020, he officially became an MD-PhD candidate at UChicago, but his parents and grandparents still live in Las Vegas. Currently, his grandparents are in long-term care homes. His parents still live in their home, and every day, a home care professional provides them with the required medical care and assists them with daily activities.

Indeed, Trevor is a long-distance caregiver because his grandparents are not in the same city as him, but does it also mean that a caregiver who lives in the same town as their loved ones is not a long-distance caregiver?

What is Long-Distance Caregiving?

Here’s a pop-quiz for you to see if you are a long-distance caregiver.

Q1: Is there any older adult who needs your care? For instance, your parents or your grandparents.

Q2: Do you live far away from them? Do you have to spend an hour or more to visit your loved one who needs care?

Living in the same city as your loved one who needs care doesn’t guarantee that you are not a long-distance caregiver. According to the U.S. National Institutes on Aging, all individuals who live an hour or more away from the elderly who need care should consider themselves long-distance caregivers. So if both your answers are “Yes,” you are indeed a long-distance caregiver.

What can a long-distance caregiver do from afar?

As a long-term care home volunteer in Chicago, Trevor has cared for and assisted many local seniors. But what can he do for his beloved grandparents far away in Las Vegas? You may have a similar question, and if that’s the situation you’re facing now, keep reading this blog article to check out options for the support you can provide for them!

Medical support

When you find your loved ones face some of the adverse effects of aging, you need to talk with them about their health issues. We know that sometimes it could be hard to start the conversations since older adults may resist this topic, but you should always keep trying and prepare medical support they may need in advance.

“Can my parents & grandparents take care of themselves?”

“Do they need additional assistance from others?”

If you figure out that they need additional support, arrange for in-home care and hire a professional caregiver to take care of them. Also, prepare required prescription drugs and durable medical equipment. If the situation gets worse, you should find more local resources and locate 24/7 care for your loved ones in an assisted living community or a long-term care home.

Financial support

Financial support is always a huge component. This not only means long-distance caregivers are responsible for paying the bill but also means they should be in charge of money management for their parents. For instance, check on your loved one’s health care and health care insurance coverage, and decide whether you should purchase more or different insurance for them.

Emotional support

Older adults are at higher risk for loneliness and social isolation, especially for seniors who live alone and live far away from their children. Just like how children need a connection from their parents, your parents need your connection, greetings, and psychological support as well. It’s a good idea to call them frequently, chat with them, identify their needs and fulfill them!

In addition, there are also some challenges of long-distance caregiving that are often mentioned.

How can I stay connected with my beloved aging parents and grandparents?

We understand that providing long-distance caregiving is hard, but staying connected is always an excellent start! First things first, the direct connection between you and your beloved aging family members is essential. So, always keep in touch with your parents through instant messaging. In addition to phone calls, using video calls is another excellent option! But try to find and use an App that is senior-friendly; for example, the UX design should be straightforward and transparent so seniors can quickly see how to make a call. Also, the size of the characters should be significant. Presbyopia is a pretty common aging sign, so always keep that in mind. Besides that, plan more in-person visits ahead of time.

Another way to stay in touch with them is through indirect contact. Remember that your loved ones probably only mention the positive side. Try to find people who live near your loved ones, and provide a more realistic picture of the situation, for instance, home care professionals and neighbors.

I don’t know what I can do when emergency issues take place

Always be prepared beforehand! Sometimes, long-distance caregivers may not even notice that their beloved aging adults are experiencing emergency issues! One possible way to eliminate this danger is to know and get the available resources and services near them ready, just in case.

“Are the family doctors available when my loved ones feel sick? How can I reach them?”

“Can the neighbors give the other hand when my loved ones face difficulties? How can I reach them?”

And always, always prepare an emergency backup plan. We also encourage you to have a backup plan B!

Long-distance caregiving during COVID

During COVID, individuals are more likely to face travel restrictions. Countries temporarily close their borders, cities temporarily shut down, and long-distance caregiving situations occur more frequently. Trevor is one of the populations affected, and we are sure that some have suffered far more than he has – long-distance caregivers living overseas. People have had to cancel their visits, and their loved ones rely entirely on local care services and assistance.

Moreover, virtual technology becomes another challenge for both the elderly and long-distance caregivers. Communication relies highly on wireless technology, and families adapt to virtual family caregivers and have video calls more often. Additionally, long-distance caregivers should also keep in touch with their parents’ or grandparents’ neighbors and prepare some backup resources just in case.

How to deal with these issues

One possible way to address this issue is to use technology to track your parents’ health indicators and daily performance regularly. Try to find an approach to record their daily activities and collect instant information and messages from home care staff and neighbors. Moreover, find a senior-friendly communication app so your parents and grandparents can quickly start and answer calls. Most importantly, provide as much detailed information as possible so that home care professionals and neighbors can better help your parents. And you know what? CareStory is perfect for that!

So, how does CareStory work? Well, try it. Scan Jasmine Levy’s QR code in the picture to experience the transformative power of how CareStory promotes connection and empathy and improves your provided long-distance care. You know what? We want to offer you a demo and start your free trial of CareStory!

Reference:

https://www.rensco.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/Aging_NYC_long-distance-caregiving.pdf

Sending an elderly family member to a long-term care home sometimes feels like placing a bet, and a series of obstacles that follow make the process even more daunting. Weighing the pros and cons of each community, not to mention the number of options, can be highly Taxing. You have probably heard many terrible stories about how things can go wrong in a care home. Thus, setting metrics for your selection has become vital at this point.

After doing lots of research and talking to our professionals, we are here to provide you with a set of pointers to help you size up a long-term care home.

Today you will learn:

What to look for when choosing a long-term care home.
How to evaluate a long-term care home.

What to look for when choosing a long-term care home:

Here’s a checklist of what you should consider.

Things should check before visiting:

– Is the community accredited?

– Have any critical incidents/complaints/abuse reports happened in its history?

– Do they still accept new residents?

– How long is the waitlist?

– What are the waitlist rules (do they prioritize the people in critical situations?)

– Do they offer tours, and how do you book one?

Things to check during the visit:

Physical Surroundings:

Is the community conveniently located for family members to visit?
Whether there public transit in the area?
Is the community clean, well maintained, and nicely decorated?
Would be the neighborhood smoke-free, or are there areas where smoking is prohibited?
Is a community nurse call system provided in each room?
Are there accessible emergency call devices equipped around beds and toilets?
Are the locks on residents’ room doors/washroom doors readily releasable and easy to open outside?
Is the room temperature controlled separately in each room?
What types of rooms do they provide?
What furnishings does the community provide?
Is there a safe outdoor environment accessible for the residents?
Are there clear signs for residents to get around the community?
Is it easy for inhabitants to access phones, television, and the internet?
Are there specific units for residents with dementia?

Resident Care:

Does the community have policies regarding residents’ privacy and safety?
Are there doctors on call?
Do they have procedures in place in case of an emergency?
Do the residents have flexible daily routines?
Is there a wide variety of recreational activities provided (more than 10)?
Are the residents taken to the activities if they cannot go on their own?
Can residents choose their meals?
Are healthy snacks available and accessible between the meals?
Can residents bring their furniture?
Are there spiritual/religious services provided?
Do they provide personal care services (hairdresser, barber, etc.)?

Staff:

Does the staff seem friendly to the residents?
Do the caregivers seem to talk to the residents with respect?
Is there a healthy rapport between the residents and the staff?
Do the staff patiently answer your questions?
What is the caregiver to resident ratio? (The support worker to resident ratio in most Ontario long-term care homes is 10:1)

Others:

Do the residents look generally happy, friendly, and well-dressed?
Do you and your family members feel welcome while visiting?

How to evaluate a Long-Term Care Home:

Use certifying agency searching tools:

Some local public agency websites provide complete reports of long-term care homes in the area. For example, ltchome.net provides details of inspection and licensed beds in long-term care communities within Ontario. Check these sites to see if the homes you’ve selected are certified.

You can also see the history of critical incidents and complaints inspections on a government website like ltchome.net(Canada) or medicare.gov (the U.S.). Try to pay special attention to their past three years of critical incident inspection reports. Note that the lower the number of health citations, the better the community performs in the inspection.

Call the community:

Call the long-term care homes before you visit. Ask if they still accept new residents and find out about waiting lists. If your loved one is over 80 years old or has severe physical/mental impairment, ask them if they could prioritize applicants in critical conditions. Figure out these questions before you go there.

Tour the Long-Term Care Home and take notes:

When you arrive at the long-term care home, calculate how long it takes to get there. If it is convenient for you to get there, it will give the care workers a sense that their services are being watched and you are actively involved in your loved one’s living. Also, ask yourself if you feel the surrounding area is quiet and safe. Since you never want your loved one to live in a noisy and dangerous neighborhood that has many break-in cases.

It is helpful to print and bring the checklist we provided with you. Aesthetically appealing furnishing is desirable, but don’t be impressed just by that. It is better to walk around and check wherever the residents may access. Pay attention to the details, and jot them down. Also, don’t forget to smell – it is a non-neglected indicator of the community’s cleanliness.

Talk to the caregivers:

Don’t be afraid to ask questions! They should understand your concerns. Ask how they take care of the residents, and observe if they are patient when answering your questions. Then, you can ask yourself if you feel comfortable with their response and attitude – they likely communicate with the residents the same way.

Ask for references:

Ask to speak to the families that have their loved ones living there, and ask the questions above to see how well the community has held up. If the staff at home seem reluctant to have you speak to families, this is not a good sign.

Check online reviews:

Using professional agency review sites is not the only way to help you find out the community’s accreditation. You can also go to online review platforms such as Google Reviews to search about the general feedback for the long-term care home or use professional agency review sites such as Medicare to find out their accreditation. Recruiting sites are also helpful. You can use Indeed or LinkedIn to see how staff rate the home and check the hiring requirements of the community so that you’ll know if they perform background checks and training for the employees.

Revisit the facility:

You can drop by unannounced on another day. If you can, try to visit the community at a different time to get a sense of how caregivers interact with the residents. If you haven’t seen it there at mealtime, this is time for you to do so. Ask them if you can buy their meals to investigate the quality and the taste of the food. Sometimes a second visit can either confirm the community is suitable for your family or turns out the total opposite.

Takeaway:

Try to search and visit several long-term care homes (preferably five of them) instead of just focusing on just one. Put each of them into the checklist and use checkmarks to evaluate if they meet the requirements. Taking time to do the comprehensive research on choosing the best long-term care home might sound arduous, but at the end of the day, it will give you peace about your selection and secure a better quality of life for your loved one.

Download the free checklist.

Checklist

Resources:

https://affinityhealth.ca/5-answers-about-long-term-care-homes-in-ontario/

https://www.health.gov.on.ca/en/public/programs/ltc/docs/home_design_manual.pdf

http://healthcareathome.ca/hnhb/en/care/patient/Pages/LongTerm_HOME_%20E1016%20final%20website.pdf

http://healthcareathome.ca/Northwest/En/Documents/Selecting-A-LTC-Home.pdf

https://www.medicare.gov/care-compare/

Should-I-Send-My-Parents-to-a-Long-Term-Care-Home-1-1200x675.jpg

Have you ever struggled with whether or not you should send your parents to a long-term care home? After we see our beloved parents start to experience aging and disability, we often try to provide care for them by ourselves first.

After Tammy noticed her mother, Madeline, began to experience aging and disability, she often went home early to ensure her mother was doing well. But one day, her mother fell while at work, and she could do nothing about it.

She started looking for information about senior care services from that day on. Initially, she chose home care services. Home care professionals provided medical and personal care for Madeline when Tammy was working. When the home care staff was off duty, Tammy took their place and became a caregiver.

But as Madeline got older, the situation became worse, and Madeline often needed care at night. Tammy hadn’t had a proper sleep for a while, and she stayed up all night again. She only slept 5 hours in the past three days, and she was exhausted and burned out.

“I just want my mom to get the best care she deserves.” Tammy stressed this matter with us many times, “But at the same time, I also have other concerns, like budgeting and my mom’s will. So, should I send my parents to a long-term care home?”

Unfortunately, CareStory cannot answer the question for you, but we are here to help you make the decision easier. Check out some essential factors with us before you make the decision!

Factors to Consider for Transferring Seniors to Long-Term Care Homes

When we talked to professional care staff, seniors, and their families, some issues kept coming up —

How to predict whether seniors need a long-term care home or not
When should seniors and their families start to consider arranging a long-term care home?

Unfortunately, it is difficult to predict how much or when an individual might need long-term care. However, several factors might increase the probability of needing long-term care. If your parents are in line with most factors mentioned below, plan for long-term care services!

Age

In general, the risk of needing long-term care increases as people get older. According to the U.S. Administration for Community Living and Administration on Aging research, seniors over 65 have an almost 70% chance of needing long-term care services and support for their remaining years. If your parents are about to turn 65, it’s a good idea for you to consider arranging a long-term care home in advance!

Health and Family History

A family history of health problems also contributes to the need for long-term care later in life. Conditions can be physical disabilities, sensory disabilities, cognitive disabilities, and other chronic diseases. The most common aging health issues are arthritis, heart disease, dementia, and chronic lower respiratory diseases, where most patients need professional treatment and care in the long term. Therefore, you need to raise awareness of common aging disease symptoms and inherited or acquired disabling conditions. It is crucial to check your parents’ health conditions regularly and book professional long-term care services in advance, just in case!

Independent Living

If your parents live alone, boom, pay attention! They are more likely to need care from paid caregivers than elderly adults who live with their family members. Keep in touch with your parents at all times and ask them how they are doing daily. If you’re too busy and there are no home care services available, a nursing home should be the best option.

From a Budget Perspective, Is A Long-Term Care Home The Best Option?

Budget and cost are always huge components in our decision-making. When approaching whether or not I should send my parents to a long-term care home, spending accounts for a lot! If you want to know more about other kinds of long-term care homes, please check our “What is Long-term Care” blog. Here, we will discuss three different scenarios, calculate the budget and inform you, from a budget perspective, whether a long-term care home is the best option.

Scenario 1: You become a full-time caregiver and take care of your parents at home

In this scenario, you will not send your parents to a Long-Term Care Home. Your parents can stay at home, like what’s happening now, for good. But at the same time, you should gain more professional personal care skills. The most common way to achieve that is to take a private caregiver training course and get certified. Nowadays, those programs can be taken both in-person and online, so you can choose the program that works best for you.

The benefit of this scenario is that you can provide the most personalized care for your beloved parents. After you take the training and become a certified caregiver, there’s no doubt that you are the best caregiver for them. But on the other hand, it will be pretty costly. To become a full-time caregiver, you have to give up your current career. Therefore, the total annual cost will be Personal Caregiver Training Course + Your Annual Salary and Bonus, an annual expense of at least $55,000.

Scenario 2: You choose live-in home care services

In this case, you are in a similar situation that Tammy and Madeline were in. Your parents still stay at home, and they can receive professional care from long-term care nurses. Home care professionals can provide similar care and services to average nursing homes. What’s more, since your parents are the only clients for home care professionals, they know your parents better than standard care staff in a long-term care home, so they also provide personalized care for your parents.

However, when your home caregiver is off duty, there is no professional care for your parents! So now, you need to take responsibility, and take care of your parents after work. But you are worried that you are not a professional. So if your parents need emergency medical treatment and care at night, unfortunately, you cannot handle this issue, and no one can help your parents in time.

On average, senior home care costs $16-$26 per hour or $150-$280 for 24-hour live-in care. So the total annual cost will be around $46,720 – $102,200 per year.

Scenario 3: You send your parents to a long-term care home

Nearly half of the families end up sending their parents to long-term care homes. Why? Because long-term care homes can provide the best 24/7 care for seniors. Long-Term care homes can provide daily assisted living, nursing care, and emergency medical care and are on hand 24 hours a day. Moreover, long-term care homes are designed for seniors and are often community-based, so your parents can meet more friends there and use the more friendly communities to seniors.

Long-term care home staff will also provide housekeeping, feeding, and bathing services. However, that means the residents not only need to pay for the medical and non-medical care services, they also need to pay for accommodation and food! But the good news is, some of the long-term care homes’ costs can be reimbursed by the national health insurance program!

The bad news, however, is that elder abuse happens in long-term care homes, and you even need to wait for a long time for long-term care home beds. In Canada, there are only 29 long-term care beds per 1,000 people aged 65 and older. So most of the time, you need to conduct both online and field research on different nursing homes and plan far in advance for your beloved parents!

The total expenses of long-term care homes vary widely. The monthly cost of a basic (public and non-profit) long-term care home is approximately $1,800 – $2,300, the cost of a private one is around $2,900 per month. Some residents can also receive a subsidy to help pay for basic long-term care accommodation. So, the total annual cost will vary from $0 – $34,800 per year, depending on your health plan and insurance.

Here’s a summary of the recommended options for you and your parents:

If you and your parents are looking for the care services that cost the least, long-term care homes are the best option.
If you and your parents are looking for more personalized care services, you should consider home care or become a full-time caregiver, but that will cost A LOT!!!!
Always remember that long-term care homes are the place that provides more comprehensive professional care, and if your parents need care as well as friendship, long-term care homes are probably the best place!

The last note from CareStory: we will try our best to provide a more holistic view of long-term care and more objective opinions on the pros and cons of long-term care homes. However, we CANNOT make the decisions for you. You should always discuss this question with your parents and other family members and find the answer that is best for all of you. From your beloved seniors’ perspective, what matters more to them? From your perspective, what turns out to be more important? It’s a trade-off, so consider different factors, such as your parents’ will, the budget, waiting time, etc. When making the decision, and choose the most beneficial long-term care plan.

Still, find it difficult to evaluate the situation? Carestory just created a checklist for you! Feel free to download the checklist here and find your answer!

CheckList

References:

https://www.cihi.ca/en/how-many-long-term-care-beds-are-there-in-canada

https://www.statista.com/statistics/323253/average-number-of-certified-nursing-facility-beds-in-the-united-states-by-state/

https://www.hebrewseniorlife.org/blog/difference-between-nursing-homes-and-skilled-nursing-facilities

All You Need to Know About Long Term Care

The time finally comes that you decide to find a home for your loved one(s)-no matter how much you love and miss them, there will be times when you need someone else to take over, and long-term care homes are an inevitable option for most families. What is a long-term care home? What do they offer? ” You may start searching for answers to these questions.

If the mass of research reports and ads intimidates you, CareStory is here to help. In this article, we will provide you with a clear walkthrough of the basic concept of long-term homes and everything you need to know about them.

Let’s jump in!

What you will learn today:

– Long-term care homes, what are they?

– What are the types of residents in long-term care homes?

– Understanding the different types of long-term care and what are their functions?

– What has changed in the long-term care culture revolution?

Long-term care homes, what are they?

A long-term care home, just as its name implies, is a healthcare environment that provides nursing care. Specifically, it provides the necessary assistance to its residents for a long period of time during the day (up to 24 hours). Primarily, it offers daily assistance with eating, toileting, and bathing. Furthermore, long-term care homes also provide wellness services such as dietary instructions, life enrichment programs, and recreational activities.

Still confused? The following example may help you picture the concept.

A day in Kay’s life:

Kay is an 80-year-old resident who has been living in a long-term care home for 10 years. She has mild cognitive impairment and several physical issues that require occasional assistance from the personal care workers.

Morning

6:00 a.m.: Kay wakes up at this time, as usual. She’s been getting up no later than 7 am since she turned 70.

6:30 a.m.: Kay has finished dressing and washing, and a care worker enters her room and starts to take Kay’s blood pressure. After making sure Kay has taken her morning medicine, the worker proceeds to the next room, and Kay starts heading to the dining hall for breakfast. She usually eats with her friend Lara.

7:17 a.m.: Kay is starving at this moment. When she is about to ask for a banana shake, Lara reminds her that the dietitian told Kay to avoid foods containing high potassium due to the medicine she’s taking. So, Kay orders a cup of milk and has some biscuits.

8:25 a.m.: Kay finishes her breakfast with Lara, ready to go to the lounge and enjoy some sunlight at the seats beside the window. This is the best time of the day, not too hot, and the sky is still bright.

10:00 a.m.: Activity time! The place that Kay lives has multiple activity programs and this is what they call “Morning Inspiration Session”, which offers many different activities such as yoga, meditation, Tai chi, and even baking class.

Kay chooses Tai chi; she’s not able to do yoga because of her osteoarthritis, and the health worker at her nursing home told her that a short daily practice of meditation would help to alleviate signs of dementia.

Afternoon

12:00 p.m.: Lunchtime has arrived; the nutritionist has designed the residents’ menu according to each one’s need. Kay goes to the dining hall with Lara and has some chicken pasta.

2:00 p.m.: For afternoon activities, residents have the choice of singing in the choir, dancing, or doing light exercises. Kay loves to dance but her body doesn’t let her do so. Due to the deterioration of her brain function, she feels tired easily, so she decides to nap.

3:00 p.m.: A personal care worker gently wakes her up and gives Kay her medicine. The care worker asks if Kay wants to use the toilet since someone will come and help her bathe later

“You can rest after the shower,” the worker says,

“We need to make sure everyone’s taken care of.”

Evening

5:00 p.m.: Kay has finished showering, and here comes dinner time. After dinner, some of the residents need to take sedatives to go to bed, and some go back to their room and watch TV.

8:00 p.m.: This is the time that most of Kay’s neighbours become very quiet. Kay is feeling tired, too. She grabs a book and begins to read, and soon she falls asleep.

Now, you already know how a typical long-term care home works from Kay’s perspective. Actually, the service that the residents receive varies from person to person – depending on each individual’s health condition.

So, who are the people living in long-term care homes?

The types of residents in long-term care homes

There are five levels of priority, from low to very high, that determine a client’s urgency in needing long-term care. In Ontario, they use the Method for Assigning Priority Levels (MAPLe) to classify clients’ needs and allocate limited home care resources effectively.

As you can see, the need for long-term care increases as clients’ independence decreases. But placing seniors who fall within the eligibility criteria of long-term care homes isn’t like a mix-and-match game. Without proper differentiation of individuals’ needs, it would only cause chaos in in-home care systems. Therefore, CareStory has compiled four different categories of long-term care communities that allow people with different needs to find the “right home.”

Understanding the different types of long-term care and what are their functions?

Independent Living Communities

Independent Living Communities, also known as Retirement Communities, are designed for people who can live on their own. They are the least restrictive type among the four kinds of long-term care communities—if a person can maintain his or her independence and with few medical issues, then this is the right place.

This type of community offers fully equipped homes or apartments that allow people to have their privacy. It also provides social activities and recreational gatherings that enable its residents to build a sense of “community”.

The cost of independent living communities in Canada ranges from $1400 to $4500 per month (data from aplaceformom.com).

Seniors with low priority MAPle levels are advised to live in Independent Living Communities.

Assisted Living Communities

People who need 24-hour supervision can live in assisted living communities. Assisted Living Communities provide services such as eating, bathing, toileting, taking medication, transportation, and housekeeping, and just like Independent Living Communities, they offer recreational activities as well.

According to the updated data from wheredoyoulivematter.org, the monthly cost of assisted living communities in Canada can range from $1500 to $5000.

Seniors who have a mild or moderate priority of care are recommended to live in assisted living.

Skilled Nursing

Another type of facility that delivers 24-hour service would be nursing homes.

Skilled nursing is for people who have lost their ability to live independently and also require ongoing medical attention. Therefore, nursing homes have skilled nursing care, which can provide a higher level of care than independent living and assisted living communities.

Taking care of a person with complex medical conditions can be exhausting, but nursing homes give patients’ family and friends a little time of “respite,” as they can be used as an alternative option for after-hospital care. In that way, nursing homes can also be referred to as “respite care”.

The average monthly rate of nursing homes in Canada that comfortlife.ca has reported ranges from $1453 to $4500.

Individuals with a high to very high priority of needing care are encouraged to opt for skilled nursing.

Continuing Care Retirement Communities (CCRC)

Don’t get confused! Although it has “retirement communities” in its name, this type of community is still a little different from the retirement communities we mentioned above. In fact, CCRCs offer options for independent living, assisted living accommodations, and skilled nursing care. In that, CCRCs can also be called “life plan communities”, as the residents can access the full continuum of care for the remaining years without relocating, and a senior from any level of the MAPle priority chart can choose to live in a CCRC.

Sounds like a one-stop place for seniors to age? But it comes at a cost.

According to comfortlife.ca, the average monthly payment of a CCRC is around $3038 in Canada, which is not that big a difference from the other three types of communities, but there is also an upfront entrance fee-based on the report from CBRE, the average initial payment to enter a CCRC is $329,000.

Although the entrance fees of CCRCs are expensive, people who are applying for CCRCs are in droves—most CCRCs have a long waitlist and the applicants on their lists must wait for years to join the community.

So why are these people so keen on moving into CCRCs?

Here we can affect the perception and cultural change of long-term care.

What has changed in long-term care?

Let’s rewind time by 20 years: What does it mean to you when you hear “long-term care homes” at that time?

Well… you might think it’s a lifeless place. The atmosphere was hopeless and dull, and the endless sounds of sneezing, coughing, and grumbling filled your ears. You could even smell the harsh antiseptics mixed with human body secretions. It was just an awful experience for most of us!

Not only you, but also the elderly, were resistant to it because they felt mistreated and neglected.As the contradictions between health care providers and residents emerge, a culture change in long-term care communities has taken place.

Instead of solely focusing on medical issues and safety, the emphasis on long-term care has gradually steered toward establishing a person-directed environment that provides the elderly with dignity, self-determination, and purposeful living.

As a result of the long-term care culture revolution, getting to know each resident and staying in close contact with their families has become a trend in the long-term care industry. This explains why people tend to choose CCRCs even if they cost a pretty penny – the residents can just stay in the same environment without being moved around for their remaining years. These types of communities provide their families with peace of mind that they are being cared for and allow them to have a closer relationship with the caregivers.

Building rapport can be exhausting, but CareStory can assist you in doing so without spending a fortune. More precisely, you can now store all of the information about each senior in one place, scan it with a QR code, and allow caregivers to help your loved one more efficiently.

Worry-free is just one click away!

Takeaway:

Long-term care homes are home-like health care communities that provide 24-hour nursing care and assisted living according to the clients’ needs.

The residents of long-term care communities vary from those facing a low risk of independent living to those who have several physical and cognitive impairments.

There are four types of long-term care communities: independent living communities, assisted living communities, skilled nursing, and continuing care retirement communities (CCRC).

The focus of long-term care homes has transformed from task-centred to human-centred in cultural evolution.

At the end,

Now you’ve learned that long-term care homes can be differentiated according to the needs of the senior residents—the more critical the situation, the higher the level of care required. Nursing homes specialise in providing seniors who need continuous attention and care. As a result, nursing homes have become a primary choice for seniors who have severe physical and/or mental diseases. When you type in “nursing homes near me” on your search engine, there will be plenty of options popping up in your browser.

However, not all nursing homes are created equally—there are actually bad ones! And choosing the wrong nursing home can be disastrous for you and your loved one. On that note, extra caution and effort are needed when choosing a suitable nursing home. See our blog post “How to Choose a Nursing Home” to find out what and how to assess a nursing home. A free checklist is available for download!

Resources:

https://www.homecarebyseniors.com/4-types-long-term-care-facilities-elderly-loved-one/

https://www.thca.org/for-consumers/resource-center/types-of-long-term-care/

https://www.webmd.com/healthy-aging/guide/choosing-long-term-care#2

https://www.exploreretirementliving.org/the-different-kinds-of-long-term-care-facilities-what-you-need-to-know/

https://www.oltca.com/oltca/OLTCA/Public/LongTermCare/Services.aspx

https://www.aarp.org/caregiving/basics/info-2017/continuing-care-retirement-communities.html

https://www.usatoday.com/story/money/columnist/powell/2014/10/18/continuing-care-independent-living-assisted-living-powell/17447609/

https://www.care.com/c/continuing-care-retirement-community-pros-and-cons/

https://www.pioneernetwork.net/elders-families/what-is-culture-change/

https://www.ontario.ca/page/get-help-paying-long-term-care

https://arborsassistedliving.com/entrance-fees-vs-month-to-month-whats-a-better-buy/

https://elizz.com/planning/cost-of-assisted-living/

https://www.aplaceformom.com/planning-and-advice/articles/canada-seniors-housing-guide

https://www.umh.org/assisted-independent-living-blog/bid/245242/the-difference-between-assisted-independent-living

https://www.whereyoulivematters.org/how-much-does-assisted-living-cost/

https://www.soa.org/globalassets/assets/files/resources/research-report/2020/covid-19-aging-essay-rappaport.pdf

When you picture yourself growing old, where do you see yourself? In a long-term care community, or at home?

If you said growing old in the comfort of your own home, you aren’t alone. In fact, according to the study conducted by Campaign Research Inc. on behalf of Home Care Ontario, 91% of Ontario seniors hope to live at home and want to receive home care services as they age, however, only 3% of them intend to move into a long-term care community.

A report published at Morningstar pointed out that around 50% of seniors 65 and older will need long-term care during their lifetime, so who will care for them?

Cognitive decline is a common symptom of aging in the elderly. As seniors get older, they often become more sensitive, isolate themselves from others and show agitation. These actions strengthen the idea that they need more tailored professional medical services and emotional support. The best way to calm the elderly is to let them feel that you are on their side, and CareStory can help caregivers achieve that. All caregivers, residents, and families are connected, with detailed information about our loved seniors available at their fingertips. Therefore, caregivers can form deep connections with the seniors, promoting empathy, and providing them with more tailored services.

Meet with Doug

Take Doug for instance; the grandfather of one of us at CareStory. He was being cared for at home, after he was diagnosed with stomach cancer. Now, Grandpa Doug was a stubborn man. He took great pride in serving in the Navy for over 35 years, and he knew how to take care of himself. This meant that he didn’t want anyone else to take care of him, ESPECIALLY a stranger. Several health care workers would come and go, and he would rarely cooperate. One day, by chance, a nurse brought up the Navy, and Grandpa Doug would not shut up about it. The nurse listened intently and asked questions for further discussion. “That’s incredible Doug. I’m just going to clean this wound for you to make you a bit more comfortable. So when you saw that whale when you came out of that underwater cave, what did you do next? Did you freeze?” Grandpa Doug was content and honoured that someone took the time to ask about memories that he held close.

Everyone will become elderly at some point, and everyone wants to be loved and taken care of. There is so much more we can do for the elderly, by understanding them, and being with them. Get to know your residents today.

REFERENCES:
Cision
Morningstar
American Psychological Association
Griswold Home Care

Do you often spend time thinking about the future, or reminiscing on the past? If your answer is yes, then, unfortunately, you probably squandered tons of precious seconds being in the present moment. The good news is: you are not alone.

We often let the present moment slip away since we spend too much time worrying about the future or being stuck in the past. “Today is a gift. That’s why we call it the present.” Yes, this quote may be overused, but it is true. We need to live more in this moment, right now. Here are some tips on how to help you ground yourself and stay in the present.

Stop thinking about your performance.

You may have experienced something similar to this: during the prom, you felt somewhat uncomfortable on the dance floor because you felt like other people were judging your dance moves. You did your best to handle your limbs, but you found out it made you even more awkward. This is a great example of how thinking too hard about what you’re doing actually might actually make you do worse. When you find yourself embarrassed when dancing or giving a presentation, start focusing more on what’s happening around you, such as music, and less on what’s going on in your head.

Relish in what you’re doing at the present moment.

We often compare and contrast so much that we get trapped in a cycle of thoughts of the future or the past. For example, when you sip coffee, you often compare the taste with cups you had before and think that the coffee doesn’t quite compare to the day before. That will probably influence you to worry about the future — will my next cup of coffee taste even worse? The probability that your next cup of coffee will taste even worse is only one in three, but the feeling of the moment is 100%! People experience more happiness and positive feelings when they actively savour something they usually hurry through, such as eating a meal and drinking a cup of tea. That’s because savouring forces you into the present.

Feel free to lose track of the task.

Sometimes we feel that time passes very slowly, and sometimes we feel that time passes very quickly. When we are fully engrossed in what we are doing, we often lose track of everything around us, including time. When you are focused, distractions such as time, scent and even exhaustion cannot penetrate. Therefore, it’s good to keep your attention narrowed and only focus on the task. This is when you may experience your awareness merge with the action you’re performing, and you become totally in control of the situation.

We live in the age of distraction. As professional long-term care staff, we are sometimes unable to move on from the guilt of the past. Just remember, there is only now. Live in the moment!

REFERENCES:
Psychology Today

“Oh ye of little faith.” — A saying Cynthia Drake lived by.

Cynthia was a woman of few words, with a “look” that spoke paragraphs, and a kind, giving essence that made you feel seen, heard, and loved.

In fact, if you ever visited Cynthia and her husband John on their 52-acre farmhouse in Portland, Jamaica, you were fed until you couldn’t move and left with the food you couldn’t carry. Fruits, vegetables, meat, plants—whatever you wanted, it was yours to take.

Cynthia firstly met John at church, where they quickly fell in love. Married in 1953 with just a single gold band, they were the epitome of true love. Every morning they would spend the first hour in bed listening to the radio, talking, and laughing. They would drink coffee on the veranda with crackers and jam, feeding the birds before retiring to the dining room for breakfast. They lived for each other, they loved each other, and although John was the head of the house, she was the neck that made the head turn.

Cynthia’s purpose in life was caring for others. She was a nurse, however, her husband wanted her to be a stay-at-home mother. As much as she honoured and respected her husband, she honoured and respected her purpose more, and sped down the streets of Portland to work every day. She loved and cared for others at work, and came home to love and care for her husband and five children.

Cynthia spends her remaining years in Portland with her husband, tending to the farm and caring for her plants and animals. Restoring faith in those who have lost it, calming their panic with her words: “Oh ye of little faith.”

It’s no secret that the rapidly accelerating ageing population has put pressure on the long-term care system in Canada. Statistics Canada indicates that the number of Canadians over 80 is projected to approximately triple in the next 25 years.

So the question is, are there enough long-term care beds for seniors in Canada?

Research published in the Canadian Institute for Health Information also announced that in Canada, there are approximately 2076 long-term care homes, and over half of the LTC homes are privately owned (54%). These LTC homes can provide around 198,220 long-term care beds, however, Canada has around 6,835,866 people aged 65 and older. So on average, for 1,000 seniors aged 65 and older in Canada, only 29 of them can have beds in the long-term care communities.

According to the Canadian Institute for Health Information, the incidence of dementia among Canadians aged 65 and older is more than doubling every five years. To be specific, about 1 in 100 seniors aged 65 to 69 have been diagnosed with dementia, and 1 in 4 seniors aged 85 and older have been diagnosed with dementia! Moreover, according to the Ontario Long Term Care Association, nearly 70% of seniors with dementia will need long-term care.

It’s not hard to see that long-term care resources are stretched thin, and our caregivers, who are working tirelessly day in and day out, somehow get the blame. Why is there no empathy towards our caregivers? Our leaders? We need to redefine what long-term care looks like from the outside looking in. That, of course, will take years, and support from all angles. In the meantime, caregivers, residents, and families need to connect and demonstrate empathy for all parties. How? Well, try CareStory. Scan Mr. Douglas Hughes’s QR code and experience the transformative power of how CareStory promotes empathy and connection.

Mr. Douglas Hughes QR Code

REFERENCES:
Policy Options
Ontario Long Term Care Association
Canadian Institute for Health Information

To all of our beloved caregivers, how long has it been since you allowed yourself to feel everything you feel during a day, a week, or even a month of caregiving?

Some of us go years holding onto energy that isn’t ours. Well, guess what, it’s time to start releasing it. Because that stuff is heavy. How does this show up? BURNOUT! The Ontario Caregiver Organization states that nearly 60% of caregivers experience burnout, with symptoms including depression, constant headaches, sleep disturbances, irritability, emotional dysregulation, and digestive issues, to name a few.

Let’s take a look at some QUICK and CONVENIENT ways to get that energy moving, shall we? Try some self-care activities together!

Try self-foot reflexology!

Research published in the Journal Korean Academy of Nursing shows that self-foot reflexology could reduce pain, stress and depression. Soaking your feet in hot water and mineral salts, and massaging your big toes’ base can minimize headaches caused by burnout.

Listen to podcasts on your commute!

Many people listen to podcasts and use them as a form of entertainment. Based on that, you can listen to your favourite podcasts and create a better state of mind for yourself. Some sample podcasts are “Feeling Good Podcast” by Dr. David Burns and “Tell Me What You’re Proud Of” by Dr. Maggie Perry.

Write down and celebrate small achievements every day!

At the end of each day, you should celebrate yourself for completing different tasks during the day. For example, completing your to-do list on time, receiving compliments from colleagues, getting along well with the seniors, etc. Please tell yourself every day that you are fantabulous! Take this one step further and write out all the negative feelings you’ve felt: the frustration, the annoyance, the insecurity: anything that we don’t like to admit that we feel.

Sleep in on your day off!

If you feel overwhelmed, you need rest, and the weekend is the perfect time to relax! Turn off your alarm and wake up naturally, and then do activities that you really enjoy. Watching TV series, reading, exercising, painting, cooking, etc. I know days off are for errands a lot of the time, but schedule afternoon appointments. Give yourself permission to rest.

So tell us, how are you feeling today? Remember to try the self-care activities and tell us your changes!

REFERENCES:
GR8NESS
Relax The Feet
Verywellhealth

In the long-term care industry, teamwork is key in offering consistent as well as high-quality care to our loved residents. Based on findings at Health Services Research, long-term care communities with a better teamwork structure and good staff communication are more likely to provide better senior care!

So if we want to create a high-performing team, we must have a clearly defined team structure. Among various team structures, CareStory recommends that caregiving communities should adopt a multi-team system (MTS) team structure. It consists of 6 smaller teams: the Administrative Team, the Core Team, the Coordinating Team, the Emergency Team, the Ancillary Team, and the Support Services Team.

Multi-team System (MTS) Caregiving Team Structure

The Administrative Team includes the medical directors, the nursing directors, and the administrators. The Administrative Team has 24-hour accountability for the overall nursing home’s management. Administrative team members need to ensure that all teams at the caregiving communities understand their role, responsibility and specific tasks.

The Core Team has leaders and members who provide direct care to the residents: for instance, nurses, restorative aides, attending physicians, etc. Members in the Core Team not only need to be fully aware of the overall caregiving performance, but also need to have good communication skills to keep all team members on the same page.

The Coordinating Team consists of nursing supervisors and heads from different departments. Coordinating team members are responsible for the daily operational management and coordination functions in the organization. Moreover, they also provide the maximum support to the Core Team, and they are responsible for resource management as well.

The Emergency Team is responsible for immediate and emergent situations. It’s is important to make sure that the Emergency Team always composes members from different teams so that they can respond to different types of crises. Possible emergency team members can be emergency response members, care planning professionals, etc.

The Ancillary Team also provides direct and task-specific care to residents, but in a supporting manner. Ancillary team members provide specific services that support the care of residents, and members can be X-Ray technicians, pharmacists, and laboratory professionals.

The mission for members of the Support Services Team is to provide safe, comfortable, and clean environments for residents. Possible members can be volunteers, housekeeping staff, gardeners, etc.

The structure of the MTS team can vary from long-term care community to community, as long as all members in the communities have specific responsibilities and close ties to the team members.

REFERENCES:
https://www.belbin.com/media/1818/belbin-team-work-in-care-homes-cmm-april2012.pdf
https://seniorhousingnews.com/2012/06/21/better-care-found-nursing-homes-with-good-staff-communication-teamwork/
https://www.ahrq.gov/sites/default/files/wysiwyg/professionals/education/curriculum-tools/teamstepps/longtermcare/module2/igltcteamstruct.pdf

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As usual, it’s storytime. Let’s talk about Long-Distance Caregiving!

Indeed, Trevor is a long-distance caregiver because his grandparents are not in the same city as him, but does it also mean that a caregiver who lives in the same town as their loved ones is not a long-distance caregiver?

What is Long-Distance Caregiving?

Here’s a pop-quiz for you to see if you are a long-distance caregiver.

Q1: Is there any older adult who needs your care? For instance, your parents or your grandparents.

Q2: Do you live far away from them? Do you have to spend an hour or more to visit your loved one who needs care?

What can a long-distance caregiver do from afar?

Medical support

“Can my parents & grandparents take care of themselves?”

“Do they need additional assistance from others?”

Financial support

Emotional support

In addition, there are also some challenges of long-distance caregiving that are often mentioned.

How can I stay connected with my beloved aging parents and grandparents?

Another way to stay in touch with them is through indirect contact. Remember that your loved ones probably only mention the positive side. Try to find people who live near your loved ones, and provide a more realistic picture of the situation, for instance, home care professionals and neighbors.

I don’t know what I can do when emergency issues take place

Always be prepared beforehand! Sometimes, long-distance caregivers may not even notice that their beloved aging adults are experiencing emergency issues! One possible way to eliminate this danger is to know and get the available resources and services near them ready, just in case.

“Are the family doctors available when my loved ones feel sick? How can I reach them?”

“Can the neighbors give the other hand when my loved ones face difficulties? How can I reach them?”

And always, always prepare an emergency backup plan. We also encourage you to have a backup plan B!

Long-distance caregiving during COVID

How to deal with these issues

After doing lots of research and talking to our professionals, we are here to provide you with a set of pointers to help you size up a long-term care home.

Today you will learn:

What to look for when choosing a long-term care home.

How to evaluate a long-term care home.

What to look for when choosing a long-term care home:

Here’s a checklist of what you should consider.

Things should check before visiting:

– Is the community accredited?

– Have any critical incidents/complaints/abuse reports happened in its history?

– Do they still accept new residents?

– How long is the waitlist?

– What are the waitlist rules (do they prioritize the people in critical situations?)

– Do they offer tours, and how do you book one?

Things to check during the visit:

Physical Surroundings:

Is the community conveniently located for family members to visit?

Whether there public transit in the area?

Is the community clean, well maintained, and nicely decorated?

Would be the neighborhood smoke-free, or are there areas where smoking is prohibited?

Is a community nurse call system provided in each room?

Are there accessible emergency call devices equipped around beds and toilets?

Are the locks on residents’ room doors/washroom doors readily releasable and easy to open outside?

Is the room temperature controlled separately in each room?

What types of rooms do they provide?

What furnishings does the community provide?

Is there a safe outdoor environment accessible for the residents?

Are there clear signs for residents to get around the community?

Is it easy for inhabitants to access phones, television, and the internet?

Are there specific units for residents with dementia?

Resident Care:

Does the community have policies regarding residents’ privacy and safety?

Are there doctors on call?

Do they have procedures in place in case of an emergency?

Do the residents have flexible daily routines?

Is there a wide variety of recreational activities provided (more than 10)?

Are the residents taken to the activities if they cannot go on their own?

Can residents choose their meals?

Are healthy snacks available and accessible between the meals?

Can residents bring their furniture?

Are there spiritual/religious services provided?

Do they provide personal care services (hairdresser, barber, etc.)?

Staff:

Does the staff seem friendly to the residents?

Do the caregivers seem to talk to the residents with respect?

Is there a healthy rapport between the residents and the staff?

Do the staff patiently answer your questions?

What is the caregiver to resident ratio? (The support worker to resident ratio in most Ontario long-term care homes is 10:1)

Others:

Do the residents look generally happy, friendly, and well-dressed?

Do you and your family members feel welcome while visiting?

How to evaluate a Long-Term Care Home:

Use certifying agency searching tools:

Some local public agency websites provide complete reports of long-term care homes in the area. For example, ltchome.net provides details of inspection and licensed beds in long-term care communities within Ontario. Check these sites to see if the homes you’ve selected are certified.

Call the community:

Tour the Long-Term Care Home and take notes:

Talk to the caregivers:

Ask for references:

Ask to speak to the families that have their loved ones living there, and ask the questions above to see how well the community has held up. If the staff at home seem reluctant to have you speak to families, this is not a good sign.

REFERENCES:
Policy Options
Ontario Long Term Care Association
Canadian Institute for Health Information