Elder Care ABC

As I began to outline my book, The Complete Eldercare Planner over thirty years ago, I wrote the following words in a journal I was keeping at the time — we don’t choose elder care; elder care chooses us. Today that to-the-point phrase has never been truer. I refer to elders as, “living answers.” And [...]

Stay connected I knew it!!! I’ve been telling my grown-up siblings for months that the key to keeping our recently-widowed mother living fully is to keep her connected to the community of people who live in her senior care home. It’s not about yanking her away and bringing her to our houses to curl up [...]

As our body ages, it is often common for some things to become more difficult. This can be simply caused by the way our body ages, but it is often complicated by disorders, such as arthritis, which can make bending the knees and other joints more painful. Commonly the task of standing is what becomes [...]

There may be times when we forget that just because our loved one is older, doesn’t mean that they don’t enjoy activities. Boredom is prevalent among the elderly, which can lead to loneliness, which then can lead to poorer health and depression. But before you rush off to sign up your parents or relatives to [...]

Before joining Medicare D, I had to sit down and make a list of all of my husband’s prescriptions.  I can tell you at that time, he was on 10 or maybe 11 different drugs.  I calculated an estimated retail cost of about $8,000 – $10,000 per year and that was dependent upon discontinuing a [...]

Hopping on the “Daughter Track” Years ago as an aspiring journalist, and a new mom, I remember waltzing into my newspaper editor’s office with a plan: Job sharing. I could split my business column duties with another new mom and win-win all around. Aside from the fact that the all-male managerial team looked at me [...]

If laughter is the best medicine, pets must be the second best elderly health care prescription. Why are pets a key component of elder care wellness?

Why can’t we build orphanages next to homes for the elderly? If someone were sitting in a rocker, it wouldn’t be long before a kid will be in his lap.—Cloris Leachman Isn’t that a lovely thought!  If they all could be green homes, it would be all the better! Without further ado, here are this [...]