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Elder CareTips:
Mastering The Eldercare Maze™
August 1, 2006
A couple of warm hours
in the garden were the inspiration for the lead
article in this issue. The weeds will grow through
anything, but the plants we want are looking pretty
dreary. So I got out there earlier than usual (it's so
danged hot) and I took the little radio for company.
That's when I noticed, not for the first time, that
our subject has certainly become mainstream!
Pre-Need Funeral
Plans:
The Pros,
The Pitfalls, and
The Alternatives
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How many advertisements
have you heard or received in the last month about
pre-need funeral arrangements? As we boomers age they
certainly seem to be multiplying. Even the talk-radio
gardening guru is pushing them this year.
Though it's not a subject most of us care to dwell on,
it's certainly true that if you want to have any say
in how you take your leave, you'll have to make your
arrangements before you go. And, to be sure, it's a
gift you can give to your loved ones, who won't have
to make decisions at a time of grief.
Read The Rest...
They say such nice things about people at their
funerals that it makes me sad to realize that
I'm going to miss mine by just a few days.
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So your mother won't let you install
grab bars in her bathroom, even though you've
explained time and again about how much safer it will
be. She's used to using the towel rods
as grab bars, and she doesn't want to give that up
because it will make her look and feel "old." OK - We
can deal with that...get her new towel rods
instead.
You can purchase grab bars in
stainless steel, gold tone, or white.
Replace those flimsy towel racks with grab bars (make
sure the hardware goes firmly into studs). Hang the
towels back up. Now she has sturdy towel racks and
grab bars in one. It may not be perfect, but it's way
better than what she had before.
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Finally...Something That Tastes
Good
Is Actually Good For Us |
Researchers are reporting evidence that consuming
naturally occurring compounds in cocoa can lead to a
range of circulatory health benefits including the
first observed brain and cardiovascular blood flow
improvements. Previous studies have demonstrated that
the consumption of flavanol-rich cocoa can improve
blood vessel function and may even reduce the
formation of damaging clots. This newly published
research reports for the first time that the increase
in blood flow following cocoa consumption can also be
observed in the brain.
Results of this research suggest that cocoa may have
promising effects on cognitive performance -
particularly promising because decreased brain blood
flow is associated with dementia and deterioration in
brain function.
You can read the the full cocoa story here
Sometimes one news story can illustrate what a
thousand pages of explanation cannot. It's getting
harder and harder for seniors to spend their resources
to stay at home, and then when funds are exhausted to
move to a nursing home. We all work to help people
stay at home as long as possible. Now it's backfiring
on some folks.
Until recently many nursing homes were more than
willing to admit a patient knowing full well that they
would not be paid for care until Medicaid funding had
been approved. If everything was in order approval
rarely took more than a few months, and nursing homes
were then reimbursed for care.
Now, as
this story illustrates, because of changes to the
Medicaid rules nursing homes are rightly fearful that
they will be forced to provide free care for as much
as several years if their patients cannot pay
privately. As a result they are refusing to admit new
patients who don't have assets in the tens, or even
hundreds, of thousands of dollars.
What can you do? Right now your Congressional
Representatives are heading home for the rest of the
summer. Have a little talk with yours about what he or
she plans to do about fixing this. Second, before you
help your loved one give away so much as a nickel to
anyone, consult with an attorney who's up-to-date on
elder law issues. Third, look into long-term care
insurance. It's not cheap, and many of our older loved
ones will no longer qualify. If they do still qualify,
it might be cheaper in the long run to help pay the
premiums than to have to subsidize nursing home care
for several years. Talk to your financial advisor.
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