Try: Tour the cr’s house to determine the number of headsets that you potentially need to stay in touch buy a cordless phone system with the required number of handsets and an intercom feature this type of phone system is fairly inexpensive and can be easily found in most department stores drug stores and electronics stores some of the packaged phone systems come with a base and up to three extensions additional extensions can be purchased separately for an extra charge you should be able to get the exact number of headsets that you need read the manufacturer’s instructions before attempting to set up the phone system in the cr’s home the base will usually have a digital answering machine it is best that it be placed where it is seen on a regular basis and upon coming home after being away it does not necessarily need to be placed next to the cr the extension phones will usually be set up as headset 1 headset 2 headset 3 and so on the extension can be very easily called on the in-house intercom system by simply picking up the phone and dialing the extension number that the caller wants put one of the phone handsets in the location where the cr spends a majority of his or her time you may want to consider putting a handset in an alternative location if the cr splits a majority of time between two different locations place an index card with all of the extension numbers and locations next to all of the phones make sure that the cr knows where the card is and can easily get to it when you leave the immediate area where the cr is let the cr know where you are going for example i’m going to the kitchen to make dinner or i’m going to the bathroom to take a shower instruct the cr to call you on one of the phone extensions when help is needed this system has some limitations the cr may not be able to reach you if you are not near the extension and unable to hear it using a wireless doorbell system may cost more but would provide a better alternative to using wireless phone extensions

Materials: Wireless phone system with multiple handsets and an intercom feature index cards and pen

Categories: Communication, Medical Physical, Fully Aware, Somewhat Aware

Information: n/a

References: n/a

Keywords: Emergency response system security alert first alert intercom

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed

Try: The walkie talkies are fairly inexpressive and can be purchased in most department and electronics stores read the instructions install new batteries and become familiar with how the walkie talkies are used give cr one of the walkie talkies and show him or her how to use it you and both need to make sure the walkie talkie is on has fresh batteries and is set for the same channel you and cr both need to have the walkie talkie with you at all times that you want to stay in touch many of the walkie talkies have a range of up to two or three miles this allows you to be outdoors and further away from cr cr’s living quarters only one of you will be able to talk at a time this may take some getting used to you may want to consider saying something like go ahead or over when you are done speaking so the other person knows it is ok to talk you also could say something like signing off now or out when you want to end the conversation

Materials: Battery operated walkie talkie set of two

Categories: Communication, Medical Physical, Fully Aware, Somewhat Aware

Information: n/a

References: n/a

Keywords: Two-way radios communication safety

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed

Try: Leave the doorbell button within reach of the cr at all times wear the doorbell receiver and you move about the cr’s house and outside be sure to check the product manual for range limitations instruct the cr to ring the bell when assistance is needed

Materials: Wireless doorbell system

Categories: Communication, Medical Physical

Information: n/a

References: n/a

Keywords: Emergency response system security alert first alert intercom

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed

Try: Place button of doorbell within reach of cr’s bed use 2-sided tape to secure place sound box near caregiver’s bed instruct cr to ring door bell when assistance is needed

Materials: Batteries cordless door bell 2-sided tape

Categories: Communication, Medical Physical, Fully Aware, Somewhat Aware

Information: n/a

References: n/a

Keywords: Emergency call system

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed

Try: Offer unconditional positive regard focused on the dignity and uniqueness of cr away from his or her health concerns give cr a simple time limit to discuss health concerns for example i will listen to you tell me about your hip pain for five minutes and then we will talk about __ provide supportive feedback in a 360 way ask for opinions of other individuals in cr cr’s life find out if cr only talks about his or her illness or if there are other topics of conversations are the cr cr’s health concerns overstated and inflated encourage other individuals in cr cr’s life to redirect some of the conversations away from health issues to other topics

Materials: n/a

Categories: Communication, Emotional Psychological, Medical Physical, Fully Aware, Somewhat Aware

Information: n/a

References: n/a

Keywords: Imaginary illness imaginary symptoms imaginary pain neurotic hypochondriacs

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed

Try: Discuss cultural expectations for physical appearance with cr review magazines and the internet with the cr to get some perspective on what is currently fashionable for seniors make a daily self-care list for cr for example take shower comb hair brush teeth and so on model how to comb hair wash face and so on for cr encourage and help cr go through closets and drawers to get rid of clothes that need to be retired help cr shop and buy new clothing that is attractive yet affordable schedule a new clothes shopping trip with cr two to four times each year

Materials: n/a

Categories: Communication, Emotional Psychological, Personal, Social, Fully Aware, Somewhat Aware

Information: n/a

References: n/a

Keywords: Ugliness ugly vanity clothing fashion beauty outward physical appearance attractive attractiveness body-image self-image

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed

Try: Learn as much as you can about cr cr’s past interests leisure time activities professional life family spiritual life and so on it may be helpful to talk to the cr cr’s family and friends who know her well try to engage cr in reminiscing and talking about her life interests and so on for example sit next to cr and go through old cook books and recipe box talk about what snacks cr made for her children when they got home from school what were some of the children children’s favorite dishes what kind of pie did cr make for her children did cr have a garden and can fresh vegetables and fruits what kind of food was made from what was brought in from the garden did cr make home-made ice cream in the summer other topics that may help cr with depression a cr in her 80 80’s may have raised her children in the 1940 1940’s 1950 1950’s or early 1960 1960’s she may have been a young girl during world war ii and remembered rationing cr may have had her mother leave the home to work a man man’s job while the men were at war during the war it may have been cr cr’s job to take over the cooking and other chores at home while her mother was at work cr may have worn clothes that her mother made from feed sacks note any of the above topics may bring back memories that will encourage cr to talk and reminisce some of the talk may bring back happy thoughts and improve the cr cr’s mood and disposition

Materials: Cook books from the 1940 1940’s and 1950 1950’s if possible get cook books from cr cr’s home or personal recipe box in the kitchen

Categories: Communication, Emotional Psychological, Medical Physical, Social, Female, Fully Aware, Somewhat Aware

Information: n/a

References: n/a

Keywords: Depression the blues reminiscing

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed

Try: Assess cr cr’s spirituality and then look for resources that may be helpful with excessive worry and anxiety for example there may be bible verses or inspirational books that may help with anxiety and worry a pastor or priest may be willing to serve as a spiritual mentor or counselor assess cr cr’s occupation and professional life to determine if it is meaningful provides a sense of purpose and accomplishment if it does not discuss possible changes with cr and offer support assess the amount of time cr spends taking in negative news stories from the mass media television radio newspaper and the internet if the negative thoughts and images are contributing significantly to cr cr’s excessive worry encourage cr to take a break from the media or limit the amount of time engaged with it also help cr realize that much of what the mass media reports is negative rather than positive because this is what drives subscriptions and sales help cr process and filter what the media reports in a positive light and keep things in the proper perspective try to redirect cr cr’s negative energy towards positive leisure time activities such as socialization music hobbies volunteer work and so on encourage cr to focus on helping others focusing on the needs of others may help cr realize that a purpose driven life is possible despite all of the negativity and problems in the world it may help cr to focus outward in a positive way rather than inward in a negative way give cr a simple task to accomplish such as helping in the kitchen folding napkins wrapping silverware household chores folding pillow cases and so on encourage cr to write down worries in a journal and keep in a box reducing the worries to a written list may keep cr from obsessing so much about them it also would help to have a limited amount of time scheduled each day for cr to get the worry list out of the box and review it

Materials: Notebook or journal jar or box

Categories: Communication, Emotional Psychological, Medical Physical, Social, Spiritual, Fully Aware, Somewhat Aware

Information: n/a

References: n/a

Keywords: Upset overly concerned doubt

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed

Try: Talk with the cr ahead of time explaining how doctors these days respect and appreciate an educated patient doctors want to know symptoms and they value the patient patient’s opinion older crs grew up in an age where the doctor was next to god generally the patient and doctor didn’t interact much then remind the cr that interaction is needed for the doctor to do his job remind the cr that you are on their side you want their safety and health to be the first consideration try to talk to the doctor ahead of time alert him or her to the cr’s reservations discuss the symptoms and problem behaviors you observe at home few doctors will talk directly with you without an appointment so make an appointment or talk to a nurse another option for communicating with the doctor is to write a letter ahead of the appointment noting your concerns this way the doctor is prepared with the facts as you see them he or she can bring up issues in a tactful way or suggest a specialist without fingering you as the bad guy attach to your general letter a diary that you’ve kept over a week or two indicating times and dates of the cr’s behaviors or health issues that concern you again you will get

Materials: n/a

Categories: Communication, Emotional Psychological

Information: To the doctor without embarrassing the cr in front of the doctor during the visit make sure the doctor interacts with the cr medical people are busy and some will look over the notes and then speak directly to you the caregiver since it it’s faster and often more direct yet you are there to give support to the cr and give information to the doctor you are also there to take notes and be part of the care plan information

References: Agingcare com

Keywords: Speaking talking with doctors

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed

Try: Try to identify resources and use them learn about what is available in your community by contacting your local alzheimer alzheimer’s association at 1-800-272-3900 or using their online community resource finder try to reassess cr’s care needs during each visit each time you visit assess the situation to make sure cr’s care needs are being met try to keep communication going try to set aside time to regularly discuss cr’s needs for example if cr lives at a residential care facility set up a regular time with the managing nurse or physician to get updates and maintain ongoing communication with care staff and friends who visit cr regularly try to gather pertinent

Materials: n/a

Categories: Sage, Topic, Communication, Maintenance, Medical Physical, Personal, Mobility, Needs Some Assistance, Needs Much Assistance, Immobile, Independence, Some Supervision, Maximum Supervision, Vision, So-So Vision, Poor Vision, Hearing, So-So Hearing, Poor Hearing, Cognitive Awareness, Somewhat Aware, Unaware, Long-Term Memory, So-So L T Memory, Poor L T Memory, Short-Term Memory, So-So S T Memory, Poor S T Memory

Information: And keep it handy for example make sure you have contact information for physicians pharmacies care providers and neighbors as well as important financial and legal documents easily accessible in case they are unexpectedly needed try to give yourself a break living out of town does not mean you aren’t involved or that you don’t care try to get support by connecting with others who are long-distance caregivers through an online community or a local support group

References: Adapted from www alz org long-distance caregiving by staff writer no date

Keywords: Long distance caregiving

*This information is listed as a Tip and is not explicitly medically licensed