Resources for Caregivers I HIGHLY Recommend

When I’m in someone’s home working on accessibility remodeling or equipment to make living in the home easier, I’m often working with a family caregiver. Family caregivers are the front line providers of in home care across the United States. These are family members or good friends who are giving of themselves and their own lives to help protect the quality of life for someone they love.

They truly are every day Heros. If you aren’t a caregiver yourself, don’t stop reading. Think about the people you know. I bet that you know someone who takes care of a spouse, a parent, a child with a disability in addition to their job, their volunteer time, their other responsibilities. They may or may not have confided in you, but you know one. Listen, and you may be able to help someone someday.

Whatever motivates a family caregiver, as a group of people they are often at tremendous risk for both physical and psychological ailments themselves. Informal caregiving can quickly become a 24 hour a day, 7 day a week, unrelenting responsibility. A person can find themselves assuming responsibilities and duties that they have no formal preparation for and never imagined themselves under-taking.

They can get so busy, so wrapped up in what they need to do for someone else that they don’t take time to care for themselves or to find ways to reach out to others for assistance and reinforcement. In this circumstance it is so easy to feel alone and to fall into the habit of assuming that no one cares about what you are going through, and that you have to do and think of everything yourself.

My message to caregivers is that you aren't alone. You aren’t the only one giving for what ever wonderful reason. There are people you can share your story with. There are resources to help you figure out what to do, to make the job of caregiving easier, and to give you a little break – a respite. What you have to do is take a little bit of time for yourself to get the information and develop the will to get help.

If you are in the Greater Omaha area, I would suggest you start with The Respite Resource Center 402.996.8443. There is also a great family resource health fair in Lincoln put on by Partners in Aging 1.800.828.0072. Also in the Omaha area there are six week courses that you go to once a week 402.522.7934. Or call me for more information at 402.291.9514.

How to Use A Reverse Mortgage For Remodeling & Accessibility - Or Purchase A New Home!

When I ask people why they are making the choice to stay in a home that doesn’t work for them or isn’t safe for them, I’m often told that they aren’t sure they have the financial ability to buy something that works better.

Money is important. That’s why I want to discuss not only one, but two things that can help many homeowners over 62 afford to buy a home that will be easier and safer to life in.

Jody Smythe, who is one of the most knowledgeable people about Reverse Mortgages in our area, can explain how the process works in an easy to understand way. Many people know by now, that a Reverse Mortgage can be used to pay for life changing accessibility remodeling and equipment in their current homes. It can also be used to help with the purchase of a new home that may be easier to modify, closer to children’s homes, or just plain better than what they have right now.

Jody can explain how to use a Reverse Mortgage to move “up” without spending more per month on household related expenses. I know that Jody will visit with my clients, answer their questions, and treat them with the same respect that I would. So I’m comfortable urging you to visit her web site and give her a call for more information. www.jodysmythe.com

Home Buyer Tax Credit 2009/2010

The other potential financial boon that my older clients may not realize is available to them is the extended Home Buyer Tax Credit 2009/2010. This expands the credit for up to $6,500 to people who currently own a home if they purchase another home – the contract must be signed by April 30, 2010.

The amount of the credit is determined by the price of the home (800,000 and less) and the buyer’s income. Single buyers with incomes up to $125,000 and married couples with incomes up to $225,000 may receive the maximum tax credit. People who want to take advantage of the tax credit need to get busy soon in order to have a contract in place by the end of April.

So let me ask you. Why are you, why are your parents, why are your older friends living in homes that aren’t safe and aren’t comfortable? Talk to me, 402.291.9514 or BevVan@HomeAccessSolutions.com about getting into a home that will help you remain as independent and happy as you can be for the rest of your life!

SureHands Transfer Equipment to Move Independently and Safely in Your Home

Getting up out of your chair and moving to another place in your home is something that most of us don’t think twice about, yet that little task is one of the ones that can make the difference between someone being able to live at home or having to move to a nursing home.

Moving from one seat to another is called a transfer in the medical world. Fortunately most of us don’t think about it at all, but just think about how many times you get up and down in your home in a normal day. What if you couldn’t stand on your feet? What would you do?

There are many, many techniques and pieces of equipment that people with mobility limitations can use to transfer. Today I want to discuss transfer equipment that can help people who can hardly move on their own at all transfer independently or transfer without putting their caregivers at risk.

Motorized lift systems can be floor based, wall based, or ceiling based. The motor provides the lifting power. A ceiling based motor can be independently propelled or moved by a caregiver. Ceiling based systems don’t take up floor space and the caregiver doesn’t have to move the weight of the person and the lift.

Home Access Solutions is the exclusive dealer for SureHands Lift and Care Systems in Nebraska and Iowa. SureHands is the US distributor for Handimove International, so this is a system of products used around the world to help people stay in their homes. I chose to represent this product when I was looking for solutions for my clients, because of 3 things: flexibility, reliability, and the philosophy of the SureHands and Handimove company.

As an Occupational Therapist, I worked for years running a seating and positioning clinic for wheelchairs. One of the reasons I chose Surehands is that there are so many ways of supporting the motor, so many motors, and so many slings and body supports that I am able to prescribe the precise solution for my clients just as a good seating and positioning specialist prescribes a precise combination of parts to create a wheelchair.

The body support is one of the best ways I know for people to use equipment and independently transfer themselves. Even if a caregiver is needed to help, the body support is often our primary choice because it is fast, great for people with high muscle tone, and makes dressing and toileting easier. You need to feel this to believe it and that is why my staff and I will be glad to meet you here in this showroom or go to your home so you can try it. In situations in which the the body support isn’t appropriate there is a wide range of sling styles and sizes that we can select from.

The second reason I love this system is that it is very reliable. People who buy this unit need it to work, every single time, every single day. Very rarely are there any kind of problems and when they do occur my technician and I have the support of the great technical support department at SureHands.

The third reason I love my association with Surehands is that this is one of the few companies I’ve run across that shares my idea that technology and medical equipment needs to be properly selected, not just sold. Before I could become a dealer, even though I had years of experience as an OT, I had to go to Pine Island New York the home of Surehands in the US and go through training. I send my techs to for training. I recently went back for an update on some exciting new product updates. My classmates and I sat in class and learned from Handimove’s corporate trainer and also shared our experiences and learned from each other. We took products apart and put them together again to make sure that we really know the equipment inside and out. We tried out some of the new equipment and brainstormed about the optimum ways to use it. What this means to you and my clients is that Surehands and Home Access Solutions are always looking for the best way to make an individual’s transfers at home as easy and safe as possible.

Problems with transfers drives too many people out of their homes and hurts too many caregivers! Don’t let that happen to you or someone you love! You can visit the Surehands web site at www.surehands.com, give us a call at 402-291-9514 and talk to us about an evaluation to determine the right system for you, and forward this video to people you know who need to learn about really safe ways to transfer.