By STEVE SMITHERMAN
Guest Columnist
Despite our differences as human beings, the ideas of home, work, family and community are typically major aspects of our identity and embedded in our vision of what a “good life” looks like.
Aging in place is focused on one’s ability to remain within their home, residing either alone or among the people that they love and have chosen to live with. It is rooted in maintaining a sense of identity, optimal independence and autonomy through continuing to have meaningful roles and relationships within one’s community. Aging in place should be a viable option for all Americans, regardless of educational or professional background, income levels, ethnicity or socioeconomic status. By taking a closer look, you might just find that aging in place can provide the right experience for your loved one given their specific wishes, preferences, hopes and needs.
This happened for me when I stepped into the role as a caregiver for my mother. In my case, I continue to navigate the world of aging in place with her, striving to ensure that my mother’s needs and preferences are met. Based on my family’s experience, here are some issues to consider when planning for or supporting a loved one to successfully age in place.
You must identify misconceptions and the specific needs of the individual.
Our society does not adequately value or assist families in their efforts to provide multigenerational caregiving support. Due to both systemic and cultural reasons, public policy has prioritized a heavy reliance on nursing homes or assisted living as the primary options for people when they become sick, get older or have other complex needs.
There are a number of misconceptions that often lead individuals and their family members to explore facility-based options. A major bias held toward the aging in place concept is that this is only an option to those who can afford it. However, economically, it actually costs less to support many individuals through aging in place compared to the cost of facility-based care. For instance, there are low-cost, high-impact supports that can ensure an aging relative or loved one remains in their own home versus advancing into facility-based care. Such services are typically related to supporting people with one or more activities of daily living, and include but are not limited to:
- Running errands such as grocery shopping and picking up prescriptions
- Delivering meals to one’s home or transporting them to a community meal program
- Assisting with household chores such as laundry and yard work
Support is essential to the decision-making process.
When approaching the topic of aging with a loved one, it is important to keep in mind that decisions are not yours to make. Your position, as a relative or caregiver, is to provide support using research and open communication.
Research should be focused on locating resources that are available at a local, state and federal level. The University of Indianapolis Center for Aging and Community (CAC) advocates and collaborates with a number of government entities, nonprofits and other organizations to improve the quality of life for our older generations, particularly as it relates to care, health and policy.
Additionally, there are 16 Indiana-based Area Agencies on Aging (AAA), which are nonprofit or public organizations that provide or direct older adults to home or community-based services. AAAs offer an array of services to both older adults and their family caregivers. In fact, CareSource recently awarded Aging & In-Home Services of Northeast Indiana, a federal and state designated AAA, with The Heart of Community award. This award includes $28,000 of funding for use in supporting informal family caregivers.
For many health plans, such as CareSource, it is our responsibility to listen to our members’ vision for a good life and then help to make it happen. This is done by adopting evidence-based strategies that are focused on prioritizing each individual’s goals, hopes and desires as well as facilitating services that are person-centered and based on the individual’s unique circumstances. Through our MyLife person-centered planning framework, we attempt to expose individuals through discovery to different opportunities and experiences as well as identifying their support needs, strengths and preferences for a good life.
The human connection is key.
The foundational and most essential aspect of aging in place is the power of belonging and human connection. For many individuals, navigating this era of life can be rather lonely. When we look at who is most successful with aging in place, the blending of natural, familial and paid supports is the clearest predictor of success. In many instances, individuals relying solely on paid support can be some of the loneliest people.
On the flipside, individuals only receiving natural and/or familial support can face barriers to the types of assistance they really need depending on what their family can and cannot take on at any given time. In both situations, the individual is at risk of suffering due to a lack of support or the wrong kind of support.
Remember that nothing can truly compare to the value of a hug, a one-on-one conversation or breaking bread together. Some of the best ways to maintain and foster the human connection is through establishing a weekly visitation schedule, preparing and enjoying meals together, and utilizing virtual technologies and remote monitoring tools when face-to-face interactions are not possible.
By maintaining the human connection and a sense of companionship, the aging individual is more likely to feel comfortable being open and honest about what they are facing in their everyday life.
Steve Smitherman serves as the President of CareSource Indiana.