Caregivers

Learn about where to dispose of unused medications safely.

With many older adults taking multiple prescriptions, and with physicians adding and changing dosages and medications to determine the ideal solutions, it’s essential to know where to safely dispose of unused medications. There are several options:

Check labels. The medication’s label or informational literature might provide instructions on how to properly dispose of the drug. You could also consult the pharmacist for suggestions.
Participate in National Prescription Drug Take Back Day. This is the suggested method to properly dispose of unwanted medications, and is held once a year in locations across the country by the United States Department of Justice Drug Enforcement Administration. Discover the location closest to you as well as the next date for the event here. 
Exercise caution before flushing medication down the toilet. Flushing medications down the toilet … Read More »

Please join us in congratulating Lilia for being our Caregiver of the Month for May!

Lilia has been with Hired Hands Homecare for over 4 years and has really been there when we needed her!   She is soft spoken, calm and sweet with a wide variety of skills.  Her flexibility and the ability to go with the flow is often called upon, and she absolutely delivers!  Most importantly, our Clients and the families Lilia works with all give her high accolades, and glowing reviews of her ability to anticipate their particular needs.

Lilia – THANKS for being You, and doing all you do!
~ The HIRED HANDS HOMECARE family

It’s not unusual for some siblings to avoid helping to care for elderly parents.

If you are responsible for most of the care for elderly parents while your siblings distance themselves from helping, you are not alone. In fact, 50% of all family caregivers are caring for an aging loved one alone, based on a recently available report from AARP.

Understanding why this situation is so typical – and learning what can you do to safeguard your own personal health, which can easily be impacted by providing care for a senior loved one on your own – is critical. Our aging care experts have the answers.

Family members do not recognize there is a need for assistance. It may very well be that from the outside looking in, you have everything covered and running smoothly, and are not in … Read More »

Seniors who have dysphagia can benefit from a variety of easy-to-implement care tips.

There’s nothing better than a tall, cold drink on a warm summer day, but for someone with dysphagia, this simple pleasure can be downright dangerous. There are millions of seniors with dysphagia – or trouble swallowing – due to weakened mouth and/or throat muscles. Alzheimer’s, MS, cancer, and stroke are all culprits as well. 

Signs of dysphagia include:

Drooling
Coughing, gagging or choking when eating, drinking, or taking medication
A gurgling sound in the senior’s voice after eating/drinking

Additionally, if you suspect dysphagia in an older family member, ask him or her the following questions – and check with the doctor right away for further guidance:

Are you coughing or choking when trying to eat or drink?
Are you having frequent problems with food “going down the wrong pipe?”
Is food … Read More »

Hired Hands Home Care, providers of hospice care in Pleasanton, CA and nearby areas, have gathered tips for the sandwich generation.

Ask anybody in the sandwich generation if they’ve achieved a healthy life balance between caring for an older loved one, children at home, career, self-care, household management, etc., and you are likely to receive a similar refrain: perhaps a sigh of longing, a snort of frustration, or a rolling of the eyes. And if you happen to be a sandwicher yourself, you may be struggling to set aside the time to even read this article completely! Nonetheless, allow yourself just a few minutes to consider the tips for the sandwich generation below that may just help you to breathe easier and let go of some of the pressure and stress associated with striking a better work-life balance:

Read More »

Hired Hands Homecare, providers of elderly care in Santa Rosa and the surrounding areas, provides tips for overcoming caregiver dread.

What are your first thoughts when you wake up in the morning? Are you looking forward to what your day holds, or would you like to crawl back under the covers and stay there? If you are experiencing more dread than delight when you think through your caregiving responsibilities for the day, you are not alone. Overcoming caregiver dread is possible, it just takes a little presence of mind.

Contact us online or call us at (866) 940-4343 to learn about how we can help your family

Distinctly different from anxiety, depression, and even burnout, caregiver dread is an exhausted, heavy sense of duty. It comes from feelings of over commitment together with the desire to get away from obligations. … Read More »

Hired Hands Homecare, provider of senior care in Novato, CA and nearby areas, provides tips for avoiding caregiver depression.

There’s no question that it’s a wonderful honor to care for family we love. Family caregivers encounter a closeness and connection with those in their care that very often far outweighs the difficulties. Yet there are difficulties. A continuous to-do list to ensure the senior loved one you are providing care for is as happy and healthy as possible. Household duties and errands to run. Work responsibilities. The requirements of other relatives and friends. And don’t overlook self-care. The end result is an often an overwhelming quantity of stress, that if left unchecked, can easily transform into caregiver depression, which can appear in any or all of the following ways:

Thoughts of frustration, unhappiness, despair, anxiety
Trouble with falling or remaining … Read More »

Hired Hands Homecare, providers of elderly care in Napa and nearby areas, provides advice for the boomerang generation.

Thanks to the advances of science and medicine, we’re now living longer than ever before, resulting in a new responsibility for not only the sandwich generation (adults who are providing care at home for both children and aging parents) but for countless aging adults who have been coined the boomerang generation. Luckily, there are some pieces of advice for the boomerang generation that can help seniors care for their aging parents while also caring for themselves. 

“Aging together” is the term being used to describe older adults whose mother and/or father are still living and in need of support to remain safe at home. This leads to a wave of seniors uprooting and “boomeranging” back to live in close proximity … Read More »

It was such an honor to go out and deliver recognition to Apple as our most recent Employee of the Month!  We have had the absolute pleasure of working with Apple for close to five years now, and she has developed into an amazing caregiver and has become Napa’s go to caregiver for so many reasons.  Apple has a positive, friendly approachable attitude and has been so extremely helpful, flexible and willing to jump in wherever needed.  Apple has worked hard to develop her skill set, and is now an active member on both our Hospice and Alzheimer’s’/Dementia Care Teams.

She recently stepped in when we needed her on a hospice client with little notice, and they absolutely loved her.  When we ask her to switch her shift out and run on over to assist with a difficult case in Marin … Read More »

The providers of in-home support services in Santa Rosa offer tips on how to make use of care management services.

The COVID-19 pandemic has been especially concerning for seniors and their loved ones. Seniors are disproportionately affected by the virus, especially those with underlying conditions such as COPD and heart issues. In an attempt to maintain social distancing and minimize contact with potential contagions, many seniors have become increasingly isolated from their family members. In the absence of routine socialization and attentive care, loneliness and depression as well as memory issues linked to dementia and other diseases can creep in. In response to these difficult circumstances, many families are seeking the assistance of care management services. 

Care managers help families ensure that their senior loved one is safe and cared for, even in unprecedented times such as these. … Read More »