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Managing Your Elderly Parent’s Health – Let’s Get the Record Straight
Keeping the Kitchen Safe for Your Elderly Loved One
March 3, 2015MAKE A LIST!
March 30, 2015“Even though this isn’t directly related, I’ve noticed a few unusual symptoms I wanted to share.”
The human body is a miracle of complex, interrelated systems. It’s always best to err on the side of too much information. For instance, when you take your parent to the dentist, you might not think to mention recent lab work showing high cholesterol. However, most systemic diseases (those affecting multiple parts of the body) have initial symptoms related to the mouth, which people tend to overlook because they seem unrelated.
“Here is a list of Mom’s prescriptions, over-the-counter medications and supplements.”
Staying on top of drug interactions is critical. Make sure every healthcare professional has an updated list of all medications and supplements at every appointment. Take advantage of your neighborhood pharmacist to ask questions between appointments. If your loved one takes many medications, take the time to separate out and instruct. There are so many styles of pill dispensers and boxes to help in this.
“Should we let Mom’s primary care physician know about this?”
In a perfect world, your parent’s primary care physician is their advocate and care coordinator. However, information doesn’t always make its way back to them. Consider yourself the doctor’s assistant, making sure they get what they need to make the best recommendations for your loved ones’ care. You might consider setting up a Personal Health Record (PHR) to manage the information. There are many online tools for this purpose, which you can maintain and share with your parents’ healthcare team.
“Since we last saw you, Mom started seeing a specialist about this health issue.”
Many older adults have chronic conditions managed by multiple specialists. As stated earlier, always “over-share.” You never know what information is important. The specialists may want to consult with each other (with permission of course) and with your parents’ primary care physician. Many hospitals and healthcare plans offer Nurse Navigators that can help you coordinate the care of complex conditions requiring a team of professionals from different specialties.
“Due to Mom’s surgery, she is on these medications temporarily, and has some dietary and physical restrictions.”
Surgery creates many complications for your parents’ care after discharge, even for outpatient procedures. To ensure a quick recovery, let all healthcare providers know about the surgery at the next appointment and share any restrictions that might affect their treatment plan, now and in the future.
“Would you like a copy of Mom’s most recent lab results?”
To avoid unnecessary bloodwork or other lab tests, you can share the results with other healthcare providers. Even if they were not planning to order tests, the information could be useful for diagnosis and treatment. Using a Personal Health Record makes this easy, so you don’t have to keep hard copies handy for each appointment.
Need help managing your loved ones’ healthcare needs? Our caregivers can support your efforts to stay organized and keep your parent healthy.
