How In-Home Caregivers Can Prevent Social Isolation During Coronavirus in West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, CA, and the Surrounding Area
As the Coronavirus pandemic continues to rampage across the world, many health and government officials are encouraging people to stay at home. In California, government officials announced the state is in lockdown, meaning residents are required to stay at home to prevent spread of disease. For many residents, this means working from home, connecting with loved ones by using platforms like Zoom, FaceTime, and Google Hangouts, and only going out for essentials like groceries and prescriptions.
For seniors though, things aren’t as easy. Seniors are considered high-risk individuals and lack the resources to stay safe at home alone. Most seniors struggle to maintain their independence on their own, especially when it comes to technology, transportation, personal hygiene, and taking their medications. This pandemic can be detrimental for the senior community for a wide range of reasons and can cause severe health defects as time goes on.
Seniors in West Hollywood, Beverly Hills, Los Angeles, and Nearby Cities Are High at Risk of Social Isolation During this Pandemic but In-Home Caregivers Can Help
During this time many seniors will struggle with communicating to their loved ones, going out for fresh air, getting groceries, and staying safe at home alone. This can lead to social isolation, which can cause feelings of loneliness, anxiety, depression, and increase the likelihood of worsened heart and circulatory health. It has been found that loneliness can increase the likelihood of death in seniors by 26 percent and that a lack of social connections can be as damaging to a senior’s health as smoking 15 cigarettes a day.
How Can You Prevent Social Isolation?
1. Keep sending caregivers.
It is important to keep in-home caregivers on schedule during this time. Agencies are doing their best to ensure the safety of their clients and in-home caregivers through sanitization and healthy best practices. In-home caregivers are essential during this time as they can run errands, help your loved one set up FaceTime or use similar platforms to communicate, ensure they’re taking their medication, and provide personal care at home.
2. Provide and teach seniors how to use technology.
Statistics continue to show that more and more older adults have access to smartphones, tablets, and the internet. However, they often lack the knowledge on how to use them. In-home caregivers are happy to teach their clients on how to use their devices to communicate with their friends and family.
3. Do front porch visits.
For clients who refuse services currently, we offer “no contact” front porch visits. This is when an in-home caregiver or volunteer visits and talks with the senior from a safe distance on the porch. This can include a delivery of groceries, or other needed supplies.
5. Daily check-in.
If daily, in-person visits are out of the question, make sure someone is calling your loved one at a certain time every day – just to check in and chat. During these chats, try not to talk too much about the crisis. Ask about things your loved one is interested in, such as “Are the flowers blooming in your yard now?” Or, “Have you put out your bird feeder yet?”
Learn More
If you have an aging loved one who is struggling to remain independent at home, especially during the Coronavirus pandemic, please contact Visiting Angels Beverly Hills/Los Angeles today to learn how our home care services can help and schedule a free, virtual care assessment.