Elderly Caregiver

If you have elderly individuals in your family who need special care and you want their physical and emotional needs to be met by trained professionals, you need to work with a qualified elderly caregiver. Home elderly care is not just about feeding the elderly individual, ensuring their cleanliness and personal care, and administering their medications.

It concerns the care of your mother or father, who may have become more fragile, sensitive, and weak, and/or have health issues, perhaps your mother-in-law or uncle, and Damla Consulting is ready to assist you in managing this process perfectly.

It is absolutely important for the caregiver to be well-intentioned and caring, but it is not sufficient on its own. Ensuring that the individual lives the remaining part of their life without falling into depression, without becoming too weak or overweight, enjoying life, and keeping pain and discomfort to a minimum requires knowledge and experience. Especially in unexpected situations, it is normal for people to freeze and not know what to do, and a trained elderly caregiver is a person who will support not only your patient but also you in this situation. Receiving support from loved ones, experiencing interest and affection is always good for the elderly, but in most cases, this support needs to be reinforced with professional approaches.

These approaches cover many issues, from arranging the elderly person's room to strictly adhering to their special diet, ensuring they take their medications completely and on time, and feeding them properly. It is extremely important for the individual to go through this process without disconnecting from life, engaging in activities they can do, and being distracted by things that interest them to avoid falling into deep and dark thoughts. A trained caregiver is someone who can provide you with all of this and more.

We identify the most suitable individuals from our dynamic, skilled, and energetic elderly caregiver team according to your conditions and needs, and we arrange meetings with them, repeating this if necessary, until you meet someone you feel comfortable with. Perhaps you want to be around your loved one who needs constant care, but your circumstances do not allow it. Maybe you can do this, but the process exhausts you physically and emotionally, and you need support. Our company is ready to assist you in any situation; just a call or filling out our contact form is enough.

In recent years, there has been an increase in the elderly population rate in our country as well as in other countries around the world, and it is thought that this situation will continue. As a result of this phenomenon, the number of people looking for an elderly caregiver for their elderly family members and relatives is also increasing.

Who is an Elderly Caregiver?

Individuals who provide care to those who have difficulty performing daily tasks and maintaining an independent life due to advanced age and various health issues are known as elderly caregivers. You may need such personnel when your mother, father, or another elder starts to experience serious difficulties due to physical and/or mental health issues arising from aging.

What Does an Elderly Caregiver Do?

*They meet or assist in meeting the basic needs of the elderly individual they care for, such as personal care, nutrition, fresh air, and cleanliness.

*They prevent the individual from feeling lonely or succumbing to negative emotions such as boredom and hopelessness by reading newspapers and books, watching television together, and chatting throughout the day.

*If there is a treatment program prescribed by a doctor, they are responsible for its implementation. They ensure that the person they care for takes their medications on time and as needed, and if recommended, they perform daily physical exercises.

*They do what is necessary to keep the elderly person's room and surroundings tidy and clean. They change the sheets, ventilate the environment, and ensure that frequently needed items are always easily accessible nearby.

*They observe the elderly individual they care for, and if they detect any changes in their physical or mental condition, they share this with their relatives.

Who is a Professional Elderly Caregiver?

Some services that need to be provided to the elderly include cooking, keeping the environment clean and tidy, and preventing falls while moving around the house or going to the bathroom. However, some elderly individuals may be in a more serious condition. Especially for those who are bedridden, services such as wound care, frequently changing their lying position, changing diapers and catheters, and catheter care need to be provided. Some elderly individuals are fed through enteral nutrition, meaning they are fed through a tube that goes from their throat to their stomach. For such situations, it may be a better idea to hire a professional elderly caregiver who is accustomed to these conditions, trained, and/or experienced.

Elderly Care Can Also Be Done by Family Members, But...

In many homes, the job of elderly caregiving is often done by a family member, usually the patient's daughter or another female relative. Acting this way instead of hiring an elderly caregiver is not necessarily a bad or wrong thing for the elderly individual. The outcomes of the situation vary depending on the circumstances. You can learn better over time what you need to do and fulfill the responsibilities you have taken on quite well.

However, especially when a long and challenging process is involved, this is not an easy task at all. It can physically and/or psychologically exhaust and wear out a person at different levels depending on the situation. Therefore, those whose budgets are suitable for this look for someone who will completely take over the care of the elderly individual or support them by posting ads like "I am looking for an elderly caregiver".

What Should Be Considered While Providing Elderly Care?

Someone who does elderly caregiving should act according to the individual's special situation and needs. When it comes to elderly patient care, it is important to adhere perfectly to the patient's treatment plan. In general, the following should be considered while providing elderly care;

*The individual's living environment and surroundings should always be clean, ventilated, and kept orderly.

*If care is being provided to a bedridden patient, actions should be taken according to the patient's condition.

If the individual cannot move on their own, their lying position should be regularly changed at certain intervals to prevent bedsores.

If they are being fed through a tube, they should be ensured to consume enough formula throughout the day.

If they are being fed orally, healthy menus that they can eat should be prepared and served. Unless a situation requires otherwise, their favorite food items, even if not very healthy, can also be given occasionally. It is important to be moderate in this regard. One should not fall into the mistake of harming their health in order to please the elderly individual.

*Assistance may be needed when the individual goes to the toilet or while they are in the toilet, and they may need to be present while bathing.

*A good elderly caregiver also considers the needs of the person they care for to chat, engage in hobbies, watch the news, or watch series or movies. It is necessary to act in a way that prevents elderly individuals without mental issues, who can speak, express themselves, and comprehend what is said, from feeling lonely, forgotten, or disconnected from life.

*It is important to carefully monitor the condition of the elderly individual being cared for from all aspects and to share any observed changes with their relatives and, when necessary, with the doctor.

*If possible, the individual should be moved. During this, care should be taken to avoid movements that exceed their strength or are strenuous. Otherwise, the person being cared for may be harmed, or they may feel demoralized because they cannot perform a movement that may seem simple to many.

*It is important to ask healthy-thinking elderly individuals for their opinions. Consulting them on any issue allows the individual to feel useful and valuable.

What Characteristics Should a Good Elderly Caregiver Have?

The elderly caregiver you agree with should possess some personality traits in addition to performing their job with care and diligence. For example, they should be patient, as some elderly individuals may exhibit behaviors such as speaking in repetitions, insisting on doing something that may negatively affect their health, and so on. Such situations need to be managed with patience and maturity.

A good elderly caregiver should be cheerful and talkative. Old age is already a difficult period in a person's life. During this time, individuals experience various health issues, cannot be as active in social life as before, and begin to lose friends of the same age. Having someone around who is cheerful and engages in conversation with them elevates the elderly individual's mood.

Calmness is also among the characteristics that an elderly caregiver should possess. The person should look at situations such as the elderly individual falling or becoming unwell with a cool head, perform the necessary first aid, and inform the individual's relatives of the situation promptly.

When Interviewing Elderly Caregiver Candidates

When interviewing a candidate, ensure that:

*They can perform the medical procedures required by your patient's condition. They should be able to use devices such as blood pressure and blood sugar measuring devices, be comfortable with catheter cleaning and care, and wound care, and if necessary, ask them one by one if they can do these tasks.

*Try to understand their feelings and thoughts about the elderly and their opinions on how to treat the elderly.

*If you are looking for an experienced elderly patient caregiver, ask the candidate questions about their previous experiences and inquire about their references.

*Ensure that they are a clean and tidy person.

*Observe whether they are cheerful and talkative. If your elderly relative is in a position to communicate, there should be someone around who will engage in conversation with them, open topics, and ask for their opinions.

*Ask what they would do in important and emergency situations. Learn what precautions they would take if the elderly person they are caring for falls, suddenly has a fever, or starts experiencing abdominal pain.

*Provide them with detailed information about your elderly relative. If you do not mention a condition or a bad habit, you may encounter problems later on. Make sure you explain everything.

*List the tasks you want them to perform completely.

Finding an Elderly Caregiver with Damla Consulting

We are a reputable, established company that has been providing services in the Human Resources sector and on a legal basis for 20 years. When you need it, just like for many other families, we want to provide you with an elderly caregiver who will make your and your elderly relative's life easier.

For this, you need to apply to our company and provide information about the condition of the person you want care for and the characteristics of the caregiver you are looking for. After that, without wasting time, we research our portfolio and make a selection from our candidates who meet the criteria you are looking for and can serve you best. We introduce you to this candidate (or candidates) during a meeting where we are also present. If you decide to hire the candidate we propose, we prepare our contract.