Readers' Blog: Improve supports for elderly in their homes
On a regular basis I have elderly people call to me seeking information and guidance on healthcare when they are unable to fend for themselves. Where an elderly person lives is not the major consideration; making him/her know they are valued is all that counts.
There are many ways of honouring your father and mother beside giving them a place at your fireside.
Two or three generations had a much better chance of living amicably together 50 years ago. When households overflowed with children and space, there was always ample work and ample room for elderly relatives.
If your older relative wants to cling to their living quarters where he’s been content for so long, stand up for him.
Older people value their own homes first, and privacy at all costs anywhere. Sadly, many of our senior citizens receive a very raw deal be it in a nursing home or in their own home. I would like to see a major injection of capital go to the family home support services. Elderly people love the contentment and comfort of being in their own home, where possible.
In all cases, I always advise senior citizens when making a will to include the security proviso — ‘that they are left a room in their own home — during their lifetime. This has helped many of them, under the HSE Home Support Service. The Government must allocate additional funding for Home Support Service. The costs of some nursing homes is exorbitant, to say the least.
I receive calls on a daily basis from elderly people living in remote and isolated parts of east Cork, pleading with me to have the Home Support Service improved.
The majority of elderly people have no relatives to visit or care for them and should be careful, for security reasons, of admitting strangers to their homes. Learning to live in amity with older people is a challenge that is worth more than passing study. For, even if it doesn’t face you right now, remember that you are going to be an older person, yourself someday.
If you would like to have your say on the issue of the day then visit here or send your submission to digitaldesk@examiner.ie
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