Home Care

You are being discharged from a health care facility -maybe you have had hip replacement surgery, pneumonia, a fall - every person’s situation is different, but the bottom line is you need help in order to go home. This can be a very difficult part of the healing process for many people. Although we are health care professionals, we are still initially strangers to you, and welcoming us into your home can be an intimidating task. We hope to earn your trust and respect while we are assisting in your transition back to independence.

The boomer population will increase by almost 70 percent over the next 15 years, which will result in an increased need for caretakers to help this aging group.

My family seems to think my elderly uncle is fine living by himself in an apartment. What should I alert them to look for when they visit him this summer?

This is the time for planning all those family occasions and vacations. Are your elderly family members involved in that plan? Who will take care of the grandparents?

Audry was from the old country. As a kid, whenever she was stressed, she would visit her mother in the kitchen. Her mother would set her up with some spices and with a mortar and pestle, she would bang and grind the spices until she felt better. Now, even in her later years when her anxiety spikes again, she still gets great comfort from the bang and scrape but also from the smells of the spices.

By Douglas Peck When we think of elder care we often think of doctors, nurses, rehabilitation specialists and even hospice workers. We have an intuitive...

By Jeannette Sheehan Caregiving is a balancing act. In an age where many of us are burning the candle at both ends, we often prioritize...

By Marianne Delorey © Recently, a marketing genius at the Department of Transportation got a simple message across statewide by talking to commuters in the...

By Doug Peck Taking care of an elderly parent or relative is never an easy task. There is an endless of number of critical decisions...

Last month I wrote about a 70- year-old friend of mine with diabetes who fought to return home after a hospitalization, instead of going to a rehab. Well, it has happened again. A 61-year-old woman from Charlestown called me last week. Let's call her “Laura.” She is a MassHealth member. She broke her leg, and was sent to a major hospital in Boston. She spent three days in the hospital. At discharge, the staff hospitalist gave Laura a list of three rehabs, and told her to pick one. Laura didn’t know what a rehab would be like, but she picked one facility she had heard of.