Book Description

It is often said "it takes a village to raise a child." The same can be said about helping an elder age at home. Perhaps not a village, but certainly a family. Caregiving at home has proven its value in offsetting the high costs of in-facility healthcare, and at the same time, improving the quality of life for many elders. However, educational training and support for caregivers has been in short supply. The focus of this book is to help you as a family caregiver create a safe living space and conditions to support an elder living semi-independently in the community or adapting your family household to support an elder as a member of your family. Make it Safe! A Family Caregiver's Home Safety Assessment Guide for Supporting Elders@Home is a compilation of safety tips, and sage advice to help support an elder in aging semi-independently and safely. This is a book meant to be read, and then put into action. A downloadable home safety inspection sheet is provided so you can complete an elder's home inspection, or yours for that matter. There is also a companion workbook to this book entitled Make it Safe! A Family Caregiver's Home Safety Assessment Guide for Supporting Elders@Home - Companion Workbook available that may make your task a little easier. As a recently retired Registered Nurse of over 40 years, author Rae A. Stonehouse has worked predominantly in the field of mental health/psychiatry. He has experience working with all ages of adults including the elderly in senior's facilities, psychogeriatric units, mental health facilities and in the community. While working as a Registered Nurse, Rae A. Stonehouse was actively involved with occupational Health & Safety in his workplaces. That experience has been beneficial in developing his skills to take an analytical look at a home's potential safety hazards and to provide strategies to rectify those hazards to make it safe for an elder to live there. Make it Safe! A Family Caregiver's Home Safety Assessment Guide for Supporting Elders@Home begins with an overview of home safety. Then it provides a strategic method of completing an assessment of the home's safety status and develop strategies to rectify the problems or hazards to make the home safe. The book goes on to address elder driving safety. How to face the issue with your aging elder. Financial scams targeting the elderly is discussed. The final section addresses maintaining your elder's ongoing health and welfare and day-to-day healthcare supervision. With the Covid-19 pandemic in full force at the time of publishing this book, many families are considering alternatives to institutions for their elderly loved ones. This book can help determine if supporting your elderly loved one in the community or in your home is not only feasible, but safe for you and your elder.