Daily care tips for the elderly

The core principle of daily care for the elderly has never been to copy the "standard process" on the Internet and assemble all care items, but to "prioritize the avoidance of fatal risks, adapt to the elderly's own habits, and take into account both physical and psychological needs." This is the most practical conclusion I have accumulated after working as a front-line nurse in a community elderly care service station for 6 years. It is more useful than any neat list.

Don’t believe it. Last year, Uncle Chen in our neighborhood was in good health and could still go to the park to practice Tai Chi every day. But when he got up at night, he found it too dazzling to turn on the night light, so he stepped on a plastic slipper that slipped to the ground and broke his femoral neck. He never got out of bed again, and he left in less than a year. Falls are really the number one killer of the elderly’s health, bar none. Some colleagues previously advocated that the elderly’s homes should be equipped with handrails and non-slip mats in all areas. However, I feel that it is not necessary to create a "ward-like" feeling. Instead, it will give the elderly a psychological hint of "I am completely useless." As long as the two most frequent routes from the bed to the bathroom and from the sofa to the entrance are cleared of debris, the corners are wrapped with anti-collision strips, a non-slip mat is placed in the bathroom, and a night light is installed by the bedside, it is enough to avoid 90% of the risk of falling.

When it comes to the small details of daily life, many people are not very good at cleaning. A family member came to me before and said that the elderly person’s skin was always so itchy that he couldn’t sleep. He applied several ointments to no avail. When I asked, I found out that they were afraid that the elderly person would develop bedsores, so they used shower gel to wipe the elderly person’s body twice a day. You must know that the amount of sebum secreted by the elderly is only less than one-third that of the young. Excessive cleaning will only destroy the skin barrier, making it dry and itchy the more you rub it. There is no absolute right or wrong here: the elderly who are completely disabled and bedridden do need to turn over at least every two hours and clean their folds every day to prevent bedsores. However, for the elderly who can move around independently and live semi-autonomously, it is perfectly fine to take a bath every 3-5 days in winter. There is no need to force the elderly to cooperate by "wiping themselves every day". When washing, be sure to keep the temperature of the bathroom stable and not hot and cold. Apply some mild body lotion after washing, which is better than anything else.

I have seen too many family members taking care of the elderly, and I always feel that "the elderly should eat soft and bland foods." Last month, an aunt came over and said that she cooked porridge for my father-in-law every day. As a result, my father-in-law's blood sugar spiked to over 8 o'clock, and he was also found to be slightly malnourished. After asking, I found out that the old man's teeth are actually quite neat. His children think that "congee is easy to digest and suitable for the elderly." After eating it for three months, not to mention insufficient protein intake, porridge raises blood sugar much faster than rice. They are lucky that they didn't have any serious problems. There is really no need to set so many rigid restrictions on the diet of the elderly. People with good teeth can eat steamed rice, stewed lean meat, and even crispy and raw apples as normal. As long as they don’t give them food that is too hard, too chewy, too salty, or too spicy. Deliberately eating too soft food will cause the chewing function to deteriorate faster, which is not good. If you encounter a disabled elderly person who needs to be fed, be sure not to feed him while lying down. Raise the head of the bed by more than 30 degrees, and wait two or three seconds after one feeding before feeding the next one. Don’t rush. I have seen many family members rushing to feed the elderly, and the elderly choked on their meals and developed aspiration pneumonia, which caused big trouble.

To be honest, many people only focus on physical health when doing nursing care, and completely ignore the psychological feelings of the elderly. Grandma Wang in our station used to be so filial that her children had to help her put on her socks and were not allowed to do any work. As a result, the old lady sat in a daze every day and couldn't eat much. Later, we discussed with her children and asked her to help her choose vegetables and fold her own clothes every day. Within two weeks, the old lady's energy improved significantly and her appetite increased by less than half a bowl. Really don't treat the elderly as "objects" that need to be placed. If they can do it by themselves, let them do it by themselves. Even if it is slower or not so good, the sense of value of "I can still do things" is more effective than how many expensive supplements I take.

There have been many arguments in the industry over whether to use adult diapers for the elderly. One group says that they should not be used if they can be used. Using them will easily make the elderly dependent and increase the probability of urinary tract infections. The other group says that if the disabled elderly use them, it will be more troublesome to clean the mattress if they wet the bed, and it is easy for bacteria to breed. In fact, is there any absolute standard answer? Elderly people who can go to the toilet independently but only leak urine occasionally should give priority to using absorbent underwear. They should be reminded to go to the toilet more often and try to maintain their autonomous excretion function. ； If you are completely disabled or have to take a long-distance bus, it is perfectly fine to use diapers temporarily. Just make sure to change them every two to three hours and wipe the anal area every time. There is no need to adhere to the standards of a certain school.

To put it bluntly, there really aren’t that many rules and regulations for caring for the elderly. Observing the elderly’s condition and asking them for their thoughts is more useful than following any standard list. After all, our ultimate goal in nursing is to make the elderly live comfortably and securely.