In today’s fast-paced world with hectic schedules, there can be a million things we need to get done within a day, and 24 hours can seem too little to work through your schedule. Managing work and family, in particular, can get pretty difficult, and you might find that making time for one might mean you end up neglecting the other. If you have elderly parents, this can often lead to a lot of guilt when you can’t give them the care and attention they need. Elderly parents can have unique needs, and they may require consistent care. If you’re juggling work with family commitments, you might feel overwhelmed. However, exhausting yourself mentally and physically won’t just impact the quality of care you can give but will also strain your relationship with your beloved parents. If you want to ensure your parents get the care they deserve, there are several ways you can manage this alongside a busy schedule.

Get some extra help

One of the main reasons why care for elderly parents can be so challenging is because they can have incredibly specific needs. As we age, we lose much of our energy alongside a weakened immune system resulting in several chronic conditions. Hence senior citizens suffering from different conditions may require special care. With our busy schedules, we might not have enough time to learn how to give them the care they need. However, getting some help, such as hiring a skilled nurse practitioner, can be incredibly beneficial for you and your parents. Here are a few reasons how:

• A skilled nurse practitioner can provide around-the-clock care (physically and virtually), making sure your parents are safe at all times.
• An acute care np will know how to handle terminal and chronic conditions that can affect older clients.
• A nurse practitioner with an advanced degree in adult gerontology knows exactly how to handle the unique needs of elderly patients.

With a nurse practitioner available around the clock, your parents can feel much safer and will know that they have a caretaker available even when you aren’t around. Doing so can give them and you some much-needed mental peace and reduce stress.

Keep their medicines organized

As our parents enter their golden years, it’s not just their physical health that suffers, but their mental agility might start altering too. With time, they can have a harder time keeping track of things and might become increasingly disorganized. Hence, helping them is especially important when it comes to keeping track of their medication. Any missed or extra dosages can have serious consequences, so paying attention here is vital.

If you’ve hired a nurse, rest assured they will ensure your parents don’t miss out on important medications. Nevertheless, here are some ways you can help your parents keep their medications organized:

• Add a tracker app to their phones. These apps can send reminders to your parents to take certain medications at the designated times and remind them to keep logs too.
• If your parents aren’t tech-savvy, you can use traditional medicine organizers/cases. These cases have sections that can allow you to set aside the medicines they need to take for the day. You can help them keep notes in a notebook or any other way that suits them.

Stay in touch, often

If your elderly parents are well acquainted with technology, you shouldn’t have too much of an issue. However, if they aren’t, it would be best if you could buy them a cell phone and teach them how to use it. Having them stay in touch while you are away is one of the most important and effective ways of keeping an eye on them when you are away.
Check in on them at least twice daily by calling them or sending a message, reminding them to call you when you’re free.

Keeping in touch lets you know they are okay and comfortable. If there is anything that needs mentioning, they will probably let you know themselves while texting/calling.

Keep them occupied

Many geriatric injuries occur when older adults get bored and try to entertain themselves. Simply giving them the option to watch TV can help them and you immensely. They’ll have something to pass the time without any risks, and it’ll give you peace of mind to know they won’t do anything adventurous.

If they still have a hard time sitting still, it would be best to involve them in activities where they can’t particularly hurt themselves. Gardening and Tai Chi are some of the most common ways to pass the time with their peers and can prevent them from injuring themselves. Additionally, this physical movement can benefit their health, so these activities have no downside.

Bring them food as often as possible

You may want to keep them out of the kitchen as much as possible to prevent fire hazards. They could place themselves in danger and endanger the lives of those around them, like their friends or neighbors.

You could drop by occasionally with some food and hire someone to cook a few meals every other day, so all they’d have to do is heat it in the microwave.

Checking in on them as often as possible will give you mental peace that they’re okay, while the happiness it’ll bring to their lives would be priceless.

Conclusion

Caring for elderly parents isn’t always easy with a busy schedule and so much on your plate. However, incorporating these tips into your life can help reduce stress and workload and make caring for elderly parents much easier. Doing so can also help you bond better with your parents and can help you ensure they always get the care they deserve.

Always ensure you can get them the right medical assistance if and when they require it to ensure their health and safety as well as your peace of mind. It is highly unlikely for some elderly parents to bother their children and raise concerns regarding their care, so you’ll have to pay more attention.

Dropping in a few times a week, calling them up, or having a nurse check in on them can help prevent injuries and illnesses or manage them better when they arise.