Independence at home for a elderly loved one
When families reach out to Elder Home Share to find out more about our how it all works, more times than not the person calling will say ‘Mum is very independent’ ‘Dad is very independent’. Independence and wanting to maintain that is an important standpoint for the home owners we are catering too. What I’ve learned is that a live-in companion is adding a buffer of extra support and proving to be just the right fit for people choosing Elder Home Share as a support solution for an elderly loved one.
This week we are in conversation with a family looking for a match for their mum who is 98. Believe it or not most of our home owner clients are in their 90’s. ‘Mum wants to stay at home she is not ready for a nursing home’, ‘Dad would like the company he is lonely since mum passed away last year’ it’s the children, probably you right now reading this who are turning the wheels and trying to come up with the right solution to keep mum or dad at home – overwhelming stuff when your faced with all the different solutions, cost involved not to mention HSE cutbacks.
With the match’s Elder Home Share has facilitated to date, we can see a trend in when families tend to on board and the core reasons for this. With the one week and one-month check in call we see that overall the home owner tends to adjust to having the Elder Home Share companion in the home quickly, and begin to appreciate the benefits of having a secure presence in the house at night. Added to this the companionship of the Elder Home Share companion is proving to be important too. Take Anna an artist from Europe who would visit galleries with her house mate, or Ian a student from Cork who would cook up a Sunday dinner for him and his elderly house mate to share.
Ensuring mum or dad continue to maintain their valued independence is the challenge facing their concerned children, thankfully finding a good match though Elder Home Share is proving to be a very positive and cost effective solution in the scope of what is on offer to us when we are facing this challenge.
Concerned about an elderly loved one living along contact us today to find out more Elder Home Share it’s a win-win!
