Elderly Companion Care While Maintaining COVID-19 Protocols

Covid-19 has been the culprit for taking lives and causing distress in many communities. So many things got delayed because people feared the infection. 

Plenty of people stayed in their houses to contain the spread of the virus but eventually, they had to go out to get groceries and other stuff. 

Covid-19 started to infect elder people initially, therefore so many people preferred to stay at home with their families because elderly companion care wasn’t a safe option. However, things unfolded differently than any of us anticipated.     

As we are still battling the coronavirus, it is not practical to keep the elder people with you at home because they are susceptible to covid-19 infection. Your home may be a safe sanctuary for them but it is not good for the long term. If you have a good option for elderly companion care in the U.K., it is better to benefit from their services.

But if the elderly companion centers are not safe and you don’t have a choice then you have to understand the risks of infections. It’s just not you but your whole family and community that is at risk so you should take precautions. Taking precautions will help you to stay healthy and comfortable doing your job.

Here we will be discussing a few things that can be done when you are a caregiver to an elderly family member. These are pretty basic, and anyone can opt for them but if your loved one is really sick, you should consider a facility where they can look after your loved ones. Now, let’s see what things you should do and avoid. 

Limit your visit

When you are the sole caregiver for a family member, you should be careful of where you are going and who is coming to visit you. Your job and grocery store visits take priority but other than that, you should avoid going to crowded places, family visits, running unnecessary errands, and especially dining out. 

We all can agree that nobody wants to die from COVID-19 infection but resuming the above-mentioned activities could be bad for you and your elderly family member. You and your elderly loved one could die if you are not careful. So, choose the safest option. 

Order your grocery online, talk to your extended family through video calls and try to cook at home as much as possible. Surely, you have plenty of time on your hands so make use of that time and learn to cook at home.

If you have some questions regarding your own health or your loved one’s health, talk to your doctor and seek his/her advice. Postponed all the doctor visits that can wait and visit only when necessary.

Follow Standard Operating Procedures (SOPs)

 Coronavirus has spread all over the world. Every country is hit by this pandemic and due to its global exposure, every country has launched its own standard operating procedures. Most of them are common like keep washing your hands, keep a social distance, stay at home, avoid crowds, and most importantly wear a mask. These are recommended by the World Health Organization (WHO) and people must follow them. If you have an elderly person at home, you should also tell him/her to follow these SOPs outside and when someone visits them at home.

Complete the quarantine procedure

People who have traveled from one place to another or have been in a crowd where someone was positive of Covid-19 infection, should follow the quarantine protocol. In quarantine, you are supposed to isolate yourself in your own home or somewhere else for 14 days. This way if you are infected, your condition will be revealed, and you won’t be able to infect anyone else. You should stay in quarantine and ask someone else to look after your elderly family member in the meantime.

Maintain a house routine

A lot of people didn’t have a house routine but due to covid-19, so many things have been altered to ensure everyone’s safety. One of those things is having a house routine where you manage the cleaning of an elderly person. Before you do that, you need to take a few precautions such as wearing a robe or gloves and boots to avoid any infection. 

Another thing is to keep a schedule for such things. Elderly people can have dementia or Alzheimer’s disease and they may not remember you, but they tend to follow routines in elderly companion care centers. This way they don’t get upset and you will have time to manage your own time.

Even though things have eased down a bit, if you are living with an elderly person, you should use a disinfectant on doorknobs, fridge handles, bathroom, switches, countertops, and all the items you bought from the outside.

Focus on mental health

People of old age are sensitive. They are not young anymore and things like pandemics can have a severe effect on their mental health. 

Surely, they get depressed by the SOPs, isolation, and news stuff but after all, they are human, and they need some sort of comfort. It’s better to spend some time with them or give them a chance to speak whenever they want to. If they are in isolation, talking through the video call is the best solution. But if you think they are severely depressed and have symptoms of anxiety, let them talk to a counselor or a healthcare provider.

Keeping up with the Stock

Elder people need adult diapers, medicines, toilet papers, cleaning supplies, snacks, and a bunch of other stuff. So, you should stock some of their necessities because sometimes going out is not safe. Plus, this will keep them happy that they have plenty of stuff during the pandemic.

Call ahead in case of infection

If you feel like your loved one is showing symptoms of covid-19 then call the hospital and let them know about the condition. Don’t panic because there are plenty of medical services that can take your loved one to the hospital and give them proper care.