Caregiving hacks for easier activities of daily living (ADLs) for your senior
Caregivers find themselves jumping from one task to another: making breakfast, followed by helping their loved one complete their morning grooming and dressing regime, followed by a doctor’s appointment, then clearing those breakfast dishes to make room for lunch preparation.
The to-do list goes on and on.
Many of these activities are considered “activities of daily living,” or ADLs—very basic activities that allow a person to care for themselves. First coined more than 70 years ago, the term refers to the following six categories:
- Eating: The ability of a person to feed oneself.
- Dressing: Selecting appropriate clothes and putting the clothes on.
- Personal hygiene: Bathing and grooming oneself and maintaining dental hygiene, nail and hair care.
- Continence: Controlling bladder and bowel function.
- Toileting: Getting to and from the toilet, using it appropriately, and cleaning oneself.
- Ambulating: Moving from one position to another and walking independently.
A national survey determined that 20.7% of adults aged 85 or older, 7% of those aged 75 to 84, and 3.4% of those aged 65 to 74 needed help with ADLs. And that number is much higher for older adults with dementia.
These stats mean that ADLs become common to-do tasks for caregivers and can often consume large blocks of time—even entire days.
Read the rest of the article here: https://www.seniorsmatter.com/caregiving-hacks-for-easier-activities-of-daily-living-adls-for-your-senior/2612364/
