A complete collection of daily care tips for the elderly

Pay attention to details, follow nature, and avoid blind spots. There is no need to pursue complicated medical operations. If you pay attention to eating, drinking, movement, emotions, and chronic disease management, you can avoid more than 90% of the risks in elderly care and improve the comfort of the elderly by several levels.

Don't believe it, I have been a volunteer at a community nursing home for three years, and I have seen too many family members step into the trap. They obviously have good intentions, but instead make the elderly suffer. Take eating as an example. Aunt Zhang, who lived in Building 3, always felt that her husband had bad teeth, so she always made porridge with pickles. As a result, in less than half a year, the old man lost 8 pounds, suffered from constipation, and went to the hospital several times. There is actually a point that has been debated in the industry for a long time: Should we give soft liquid food to the elderly? If the elderly have clear dysphagia, it is necessary to follow the doctor's advice to make a homogeneous and thick diet, or even insert a gastric tube. However, for ordinary elderly people who do not have chewing problems, there is really no need to deliberately stew the vegetables until they are mushy and the rice until they are invisible. On the contrary, it will accelerate the degradation of chewing function and lose a lot of dietary fiber. Usually when cooking, you only need to cut hard ingredients into small pieces and let them cool to about 40 degrees before serving them on the table. Many elderly people have degraded sense of taste and always like to drink hot water and eat hot meals. In the long run, the esophageal mucosa is repeatedly damaged, which makes them prone to major problems. There is another small detail that many people overlook. Don’t overfill the food when serving it to the elderly, and don’t always urge them to “take another bite.” Many elderly people spend their whole lives frugally, and they will stuff their food even when they are full. In severe cases, it may even induce acute pancreatitis, which really outweighs the gain and the loss.

Compared with the trivial problem of eating, falling is a "big worry" for most family members. I have seen too many elderly people who were in good health but never stood up again after falling once. Last month, Uncle Li got up at night downstairs and stepped on a rolled-edge floor mat. He fell and fractured his femoral neck. He lay there for two months and became completely thin. Regarding anti-fall care, there are two different views in the industry: One group believes that the elderly should be equipped with a full set of protective gear, such as knee pads and hip pads to wear all year round, and anti-slip mats at home. ； The other group believes that over-protection will cause the elderly's muscle strength to deteriorate, their sense of balance will become worse and worse, and they will be more likely to fall. In fact, there is no need to go to extremes. Elderly people with strong bodies who often go out for walks do not need to wear protective gear every day. If it rains or snows, or goes to a park or market with a lot of people, wearing a thin hip protector is enough. It can cushion a lot of impact if you slip. Don’t make home renovations too complicated. Throw away floor mats with complicated patterns and easily curled corners. Don’t install the handrails on the toilet at knee height. They should be level with the hip bones for support. When buying shoes for the elderly, don’t always pursue “super light” shoes. Shoes that are too light have thin soles and won’t feel when you step on a pebble. On the contrary, it is easy to sprain your feet. Buying shoes with deep grooves on the soles and weighing about one kilogram is just right and stable.

Let me tell you something that many people may not like to hear. Most family members only focus on "the body is not sick" when doing nursing care, but completely ignore the emotional needs of the elderly. This is the source of many conflicts. Grandma Wang, who was connected to the inn before, had very filial children. She hired a live-in aunt and did not allow the elderly to do any work. As a result, Grandma Wang sat on the balcony every day in a daze, always telling us, "I am a useless person now, and I am of no use." Later, her children listened to our suggestions and left her a small basket of vegetables for her to pick every day. She also watered the flowers at home. Within two weeks, the elderly came back full of energy and ate half a bowl more rice. There is also a collision of different nursing ideas here: some schools advocate "total alternative care" to help the elderly do everything and prevent them from being injured and tired. ； There is also a group of people who advocate "supportive care" and try to let the elderly do what they can, even if it is slower or not good enough, it doesn't matter. Judging from the hundreds of elderly people I have interacted with, as long as she has no cognitive impairment, she really shouldn’t rush to do everything. Even if the quilt she folds is crooked and the dishes she washes are a little foamy, don’t blame her. Being able to feel that she is “needed” is more effective than taking any number of expensive supplements. Pay more attention when speaking, and don't always say "Don't move when you are old". Instead, say "I will help you". The elderly will be more accepting.

As for the most troublesome issues of taking medicine and regular check-ups for chronic diseases, it is not as complicated as everyone thinks. There was an old man who used to take antihypertensive medicine. The manufacturer changed the packaging to a new one. His children didn’t tell him. He thought he had taken someone else’s medicine by mistake, so he just carried it for a week without taking it, which almost caused a cerebral hemorrhage. Many people are accustomed to packaging medicines in separate medicine boxes. This is a good habit, but be careful not to throw away the original packaging of medicines commonly used by the elderly. Even if you change to a different brand with the same ingredients, you must make it clear to the elderly in advance and write it in larger letters on the medicine box. Nowadays, many young people like to buy smart pill boxes, which will sound reminders to take medicine when the time comes. There are two different views on this: some think that smart devices save trouble and will not forget them. ； Some people think that the elderly cannot understand these electronic devices and get panicked when they ring. They are not as useful as handwritten notes. This really depends on the person. If the elderly usually browse short videos and use smartphones, the whole smart reminder is really trouble-free. If the elderly can't even understand the remote control, just put a handwritten note next to the sofa or dining table where they usually sit. The words should be larger and circled in red pen. It is more reliable than any smart device. When it comes to physical examinations, don’t always pursue luxury packages that cost tens of thousands of dollars. The elderly will suffer from sitting there for two or three hours. It is enough to focus on bone density, fundus, carotid artery ultrasound, and digestive tract tumor markers every year. If you have underlying diseases, you can also get corresponding special examinations, which is completely enough.

There are also a few small details that no one mentions specifically but are very practical. I would like to mention by the way: Don’t cut the nails of the elderly too short, especially the toenails. Cutting them too hard can easily cause ingrown toenails and cause paronychia so painful that you can’t walk.； Don’t put slippery silk sheets on the bed. They can easily slip when the elderly sit up, which can be dangerous. ； If the elderly's fingers are not flexible enough, don't always buy cardigans. Pullovers will be easier to put on and save you the effort of buttoning them.

In fact, there is no "big book". There is no standard answer to caring for the elderly. It is all about the little experiences accumulated day by day. Pay more attention to the habits of the elderly and follow his temperament. Don't always hold him to the standards of us young people. The common sense of nursing is more effective than copying it.