Elder CareTips:
Mastering The Eldercare Maze™
January 15, 2005
Winter's Wrath
and
The Elderly
|
It's certainly been one memorable New Year in
every corner of the globe. If you know of a senior who
lives alone, especially where there have been such terrible
snow and rain storms, make a visit and check on his or her
well-being.
Change the furnace filter if it needs it. Offer to make a
run to the grocery store. Bring back a jug or two of
drinking water for emergencies. Some fresh soup or a pot of
spaghetti sauce might be welcome, too.
Let's all take a minute to check on each other regularly and
lend a hand if we can. It really does take the whole village
and then some when people are enduring such awfulness.
By the way, here's a list of
emergency supplies that everyone should
have on hand, no matter what their age or where they live.
And now, on to our regular business...
Prescription Help For You, The
Caregiver
|
Studies say that 1 in 10 Americans don't have
health insurance. That means that at least one in 10
caregivers don't have health insurance.
If you don't have health insurance you're tempted to let
your own health go. Not only is that not a good choice for
you, it could have devastating consequences for the ones you
care for. If you fall into the no-insurance group, there may
be some help coming to you.
Just this week there was an announcement from 10 of the
biggest drug manufacturers about a drug discount program for
people under age 65 who don't have public or private drug
coverage and who have a limited income.
The
Together Rx Access program will allow holders to get
varying discounts on selected drugs at participating
pharmacies. It will not cover mail order purchases. On the
list that was released on Tuesday about 275 drugs were
included. Some generic drugs are also expected to be
offered.
Companies agreeing to offer drugs for discounts include
Abbott Laboratories, AstraZeneca, Bristol-Myers Squibb
Company, GlaxoSmithKline, Janssen Pharmaceutical Products,
Novartis, Ortho-McNeil Pharmaceuticals, Pfizer, Sanofi
Aventis, Takeda, and TAP Pharmaceutical Products, Inc.
You can check eligibility or apply for the program at
Together Rx Access or by calling 1-800-444-4106.
Caregiver Dilemma:
Getting Urine Out Of
Carpet
|
A reader asked me this question, and I
decided to go right to a real authority for the best answer.
If you haven't had this problem yet you stand a good chance
of facing it in the future, so save this issue somewhere
where you can find it when you
need it.
My definitive source was the great people at
Dalworth Carpet Cleaning in Dallas, TX.
That "classic" urine odor is really caused by the waste
products of bacteria, so get to the problem quickly, before
they have a chance to start multiplying.
Read The Rest...
The great secret that all old people share is that you
really haven't changed in seventy or eighty years. Your
body changes, but you don't change at all. And that, of
course, causes great confusion.
|
Prevent someone from being scalded: Stick a
thermometer in the water coming out of the "Hot" taps. If
it's more than 120 degrees, turn the thermostat on the water
heater down low. Wait 24 hours so the water cools off and
test again.
