February is National Senior Independence Month! At Home Care Partners we are proud to advocate for our local seniors independence. To help seniors celebrate the independence they enjoy we are sharing three local services that can assist your loved ones in remaining safe in their homes.
Technology:
Technology enables families to feel safe and connected, especially when in-person interaction is made difficult due to health or environmental situations. We have enthusiastically partnered with Simply Smart Homes to assist our clients with Communication and Safety Packages. They offer our clients smart video speakers for face to face calls with their family members, smart cameras to monitor high risk areas such as stairs, motion activated Smart steplights to illuminate dark hallways, and so much more. One of our favorite services is the Activity Alerts. Clients can receive reminders throughout the day over their smart speakers; alerts can include reminders to take their medication, when a door is left open, or someone is at the door. This technology helps seniors remain safe and independent as well as stay in contact with family members.
We also enjoy our partnership with Simply Smart Home because of their call to care for seniors. Addison Collingsworth, owner of Simply Smart Homes, shares, “The business started as a small project in my grandparents’ home to help them stay independent as they got older. At the time, my parents were looking for a way to keep them safe in their home as my grandmother had recently fallen and my grandfather had a habit of leaving his truck running while parked in the garage. During their last few years in the home, the tools I installed helped alert us and protect my grandparents on multiple occasions.” Over the last few years, they have evolved and grown to include many different products and home automation services with the goals of protecting families and improving their lives with simple, easy-to-use smart products.
Pharmacy:
Medications are always a concern; Did they remember to take their medication? Did they take too much or too little? Did they take the right medication? We have partnered with Nebraska LTC Pharmacy to assist our clients with their medications. They are a unique, hands on pharmacy that offers in-home consultations so clients do not have to deal with the challenges and stress of visiting a pharmacy. Shannon Schultz , pharmacist and owner of NE LTC Pharmacy, refers to it as "concierge pharmacy", stating, “We are truly doing things no other pharmacy is doing; it's more innovative!”
We appreciate their hard work to keep seniors safe as they lay out medication goals, review each medication for interactions and duplications, address concerns, and set up delivery schedules for refills. Additionally, Shannon shares, “We also offer to clean out their medication cabinet and we typically end up leaving with a basket full of medications that are expired or no longer needed by the client.” Not only are they keeping seniors safe with medication overviews, they also connect with all of their clients' providers to discuss medications in order to refrain from duplicated prescriptions as people often have a primary care physician and specialists.
Nebraska LTC Pharmacy’s creation was sparked with the calling for creating greater impact in the field of pharmacy. With a focus on wanting to create relationships and trust, Shannon introduced “concierge pharmacy” to Lincoln, reflecting, “I was not feeling accomplished in my current role, and I knew there was work left undone or an area that needed me. After much thought, I decided to go for it, and create something new. It's been an awesome journey, and I have never looked back!” We are thrilled she created a concierge pharmacy around relationships and trust.
Caregivers:
A great service to help seniors remain in their home is having assistance around the home from a caregiver. Home Care Partners offers caregiving services ranging from Companion Care to Hospice Support. We create customized care plans for your loved ones that improves health outcomes and provides safety, comfort, dignity, and companionship. Customization allows your loved ones to receive care that is right and safe for them.
Many worry that if their loved one needs more than just help around the home they are unable to remain in their home, but that is not the case. Our care team is able to assist seniors with physical, emotional, and memory needs, and are Dementia trained and certified, which allows someone living with a Dementia or Alzheimer's disease the highest level of one on one engagement that reduces agitation and provides the highest quality of life.