Benefits of Occupational Therapy for Seniors
Did you know April is Occupational Therapy (OT) month? This is an important healthcare holiday that recognizes the positive impact occupational therapists have on their patients’ lives. Whether a senior has an injury, illness, or disability, these professionals help seniors achieve a better quality of life and enable them to regain their independence needed in everyday life. Let’s take a closer look at the benefits of occupational therapy for seniors across the country.
What is Occupational Therapy?
Occupational Therapy (OT) is a type of therapy designed to help people of all stages develop, maintain, or regain the skills necessary to perform activities of daily living (ADLs). Each patient is different, therefore therapy treatment plans will depend on the patient’s specific needs. For example, a senior with Parkinson’s disease will require a different OT compared to a person recovering from a serious fall injury in their home.
Additionally, occupational therapists educate and work with a patient’s care team (i.e. caregivers, doctors, nurses, social workers, and family). This is a crucial step to ensure the patient receives the proper care to help them meet their personal goals.
What Are the Benefits of OT?
1. Overcome Challenges of Everyday Life
For seniors recovering from an illness or injury, performing everyday activities can be challenging. This includes everything from bathing, dressing, and grooming to eating, toileting, and home management. When seniors are unable to perform these daily tasks, this can lead to feeling frustrated, overwhelmed, and even embarrassed. Seniors may be less likely to socialize with others and do things they love, which may lead to feeling depressed and lonely.
To help overcome these daily challenges, occupational therapists help patients learn how to perform exercises and rehabilitation techniques that make it easier for patients to complete ADLs. These activities of daily living include walking, dressing, bathing, eating, and toileting.
Occupational therapists help seniors improve their basic motor skills, strength, dexterity, range of motion, and mobility. By gradually improving these key skills, patients will find it easier to complete everyday tasks and safely regain their independence they deserve.
2. Fall Prevention
In the United States, 1 in 4 adults over the age of 65 experience a fall every year. Every year, around 3 million seniors are treated in an emergency room due to fall injuries. It’s clear that fall prevention has become a top priority for today’s seniors. After all, there are health risks involved when an elderly person falls down.
Did you know that OT is an excellent way to prevent falls? Therapists can teach seniors special techniques and exercises designed to improve their balance, strengthen their muscles, and prevent future falls. When their balance and strength is improved, patients will find it easier to walk and maintain their center of gravity.
3. Improve Vision and Memory Loss
An estimated 1 in 3 Americans that are 65 or older have some type of vision loss or eye disease. Seniors that suffer from vision loss or eye diseases may struggle with doing everyday activities, which can increase their likelihood for mental health issues like anxiety and depression.
Occupational therapists can help seniors with vision issues by performing activities designed to improve their vision. Specifically, a therapist may recommend activities to improve a patient’s perceptual vision, pattern detection, and vision awareness. Aside from activities, therapists may offer suggestions to make a patient’s home safer and thus, help a patient overcome everyday challenges with vision loss.
An occupational therapist may recommend:
- Removing clutter from the patient’s home that can lead to tripping/falling
- Color coding household items and medications to identify them
- Improving the patient’s lighting in their home
- Using magnifiers to read small print
- Labeling appliances with brightly colored stickers
- Painting walls with light colors and outlets a darker color to create visual contrast
- Placing brightly colored tape on steps for fall prevention
4. Improve Memory Loss
Some people may be surprised to hear that occupational therapy helps improve not just a patient’s physical health, but their mental health too. When a therapist meets their patients, they will evaluate their cognitive abilities and then create a personalized care plan based on their needs. Therapists can create a plan designed to maintain a patient’s strengths and work on areas of improvement.
Occupational therapists play a key role in helping seniors regain their memory skills needed in everyday life. These techniques may include:
- Playing memory-enhancing activities, including puzzles and matching games
- Labeling front doors with stop signs for patients that become easily confused and may wonder away from home
- Educating caregivers on effective techniques to handle patients with extreme personality changes
- Educating caregivers on simple techniques to make it easier for patient’s remember, such as limiting the number of items in a patient’s fridge or pantry
5. Modify the Home
For many healthy seniors, living in their own home independently is ideal. Of course, many homes are not well-suited for the elderly as they pose safety risks. Occupational therapists can evaluate a patient’s home to determine if it can be modified. The therapist can offer suggestions that will improve the safety of their patient’s home and encourage independent living.
Home Modifications May Include:
- Home monitoring alert systems
- Grab bars throughout the home, especially in showers
- Power lift recliners
- Slip-resistant flooring
- Shower benches
- Wheelchair ramps
If these modifications are implemented, the therapist will show the patient how to use these new modifications. Like any new change, it’s important for the patient to know how to properly use something new, such as a home monitoring alert system if the patient has a fall. Indeed, this will reduce the possibility of becoming confused or injured.
6. Promote Independence
A primary goal of occupational therapy is to help patients regain the skills needed in everyday life, so they can achieve independence. Therapists will carefully evaluate each patient’s health needs and create a care plan that will help patients overcome their daily challenges. Through a combination of education, care, and support, therapists can help patients achieve and maintain their goals.
As you can see, there are a wide range of benefits of occupational therapy for seniors. If you are interested in learning more about our occupational therapy or other expert services, contact Liberty Healthcare and Rehabilitation Services today.
What is Dementia and How is it Diagnosed?
The World Health Organization states that an estimated 50 million people have dementia around the world and there are around 10 million new cases each year. An estimated 60 to 70 percent of dementia cases are due to Alzheimer’s disease, which is the most common type of dementia. As your loved one ages, you may want to learn about what dementia is, the different types, and how dementia is diagnosed.
What is Dementia?
Dementia refers to an umbrella category of diseases that lead to a loss of cognitive function. This cognitive loss can impair a person’s ability to remember information, think clearly, or even perform activities of daily living (ADLs). Each person is different, so symptoms will vary. However, common symptoms of dementia include memory loss, impaired language skills, impaired problem solving skills, loss of focus, and an inability to manage their home. Overtime, family and friends may notice slight changes with their loved one’s ability to control their emotions or socialize with others.
While a person’s ability to remember information slows down with age, memory loss is not a normal part of aging. Dementia is not the same as “senior moments,” in which a person occasionally forgets something. Indeed, dementia is different because it interferes with a senior’s ability to perform ADLs at home and can threaten their safety and well-being.
The Different Types of Dementia
Alzheimer’s Disease
You have likely heard of Alzheimer’s disease, which is the most common type of dementia. In general, this disease progresses slowly. Alzheimer’s is caused by physical changes in the brain, which include a buildup of specific proteins and nerve damage. The average person lives four to eight years after their diagnosis, while some people live decades after their diagnosis.
Dementia with Lewy Bodies
Dementia with Lewy bodies is a type of dementia caused by clumps of protein in the cortex. Common symptoms include:
- Balance issues
- Confusion
- Hallucinations
- Memory loss
- Movement issues
- Sleep issues
Frontotemporal Dementia
Frontotemporal dementia is a group of dementias that can affect a person’s behavior, language skills, and personality. This type of dementia can be caused by various conditions, such as Pick’s disease and progressive supranuclear palsy.
Mixed Dementia
Mixed dementia refers to several types of dementia that cause brain abnormalities. This type is common in Alzheimer’s and vascular dementia.
Parkinson’s Disease
You have probably heard of Parkinson’s disease, which is a neurodegenerative condition. This disease commonly leads to issues with movement and motor control, but may cause dementia in other people.
Vascular Dementia
Vascular dementia is a type of dementia caused by blocked blood vessels, such as after a person has had a stroke or other serious brain injuries. It’s also called post-stroke or multi-infarct dementia and makes up 10 percent of dementia cases.
How is Dementia Diagnosed?
Since there is a wide range of dementia types, it’s hard to use a single test to diagnose dementia. Instead, a doctor will use a variety of medical tests to determine if a person is showing signs of dementia.
A Doctor Will:
- Evaluate a patient’s medical history
- Perform a physical exam
- Perform a neurological exam
- Conduct mental status tests
- Conduct lab tests to rule out other factors causing a patient’s symptoms
During these tests, a doctor may discover that drug interactions or thyroid issues may be to blame for a patient’s confusion or memory. Indeed, this is why it is imperative for a doctor to perform a series of tests to determine whether or not a patient has dementia.
Contact Liberty Healthcare and Rehab for More Information
If you or someone you know may be showing signs of dementia, it’s important that you contact a doctor for getting tested. Remember that serious memory loss is not a normal part of the aging process. We hope this article was helpful, which discussed what dementia is, the different types, and how is dementia diagnosed. Stay tuned for our upcoming articles that will take a look at the early signs of dementia and the different stages of dementia. Contact Liberty Healthcare and Rehabilitation Services today to learn more about dementia, as well as our expert care services.
What is Skilled Nursing?
Like other medical terms, skilled nursing care is often misunderstood. Skilled nursing care refers to a type of medical care that can only be provided by licensed health professionals, such as registered nurses (RNs), practical nurses, and certified nursing assistants. At Liberty Healthcare and Rehabilitation Services (LHRS), our care team provides professional medical services 24/7. Keep reading to find out what skilled nursing is and why it may be a good choice for your loved one.
What is Skilled Nursing?
Skilled nursing is a type of high level service that some patients need after having a stroke, recent surgery, or serious health conditions. This type of service can only be performed by licensed health professionals, as these patients have more serious health conditions that require specialized training and expertise. To ensure our patients receive the expert care they require, Liberty’s nursing staff provide support and care 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Furthermore, patients must receive orders from their doctor to qualify for skilled nursing care covered by Medicare, Medicaid, or private health insurances.
Aside from our medical services, LHRS educates our patients and their loved ones about the patient’s medical condition. In turn, this helps our patients achieve a successful recovery, so they can return to the place they call home.
What Services are Offered?
At Liberty Healthcare and Rehabilitation Services, we offer a variety of skilled nursing services. These services include wound care and IV therapy, as well as physical, occupational, and speech therapy.
- Wound Care: Our expert staff can provide wound care to patients that are recovering from surgery, trauma, illness, or chronic wounds, such as pressure ulcers.
- IV Therapy: This is a type of treatment that delivers fluid into a patient’s veins via an IV drip. IV therapy is beneficial to patients with severe infections, nutritional deficiencies, or immune diseases. Depending on the patient’s health needs, we can administer antibiotics, key nutrients, as well as help rehydrate patients.
Experience the Liberty Difference
If your loved one’s doctor recommended skilled nursing care, we hope this article can offer some insight as to what skilled nursing is and the benefits of this care. At Liberty Healthcare and Rehab, we offer a diverse range of services to ensure that we provide the expert care our amazing patients deserve. Contact Liberty Healthcare and Rehabilitation Services today to learn more about our skilled nursing and other services.
Maintain Your Independence with Assisted Living
Aging is a natural progression in every person’s life. For healthy seniors, you are likely still living at home and enjoying your independence. Losing that independence is a major fear for seniors across the country because it feels like you are losing control over the life you love. Studies show that 1 in 5 American seniors 85 or older will need or currently receive help with activities of daily living (ADLs). You and your loved ones may be wondering if you can receive help with everyday activities and still maintain your independence as much as possible. The answer is yes!
What is Assisted Living?
Assisted living is for patients that do not require ongoing medical services, but can benefit from assistance with specific everyday activities in a safe residential setting. A health assessment can determine whether a senior can benefit from this type of service. Once a senior arrives to the residential community, they will receive an individualized service plan designed to meet their specific needs and provide personalized support services. Liberty’s devoted care team is available 24/7 to administer medications and provide assisted care. This allows seniors to maintain their independence in a safe, supportive residential community.
How Can Assisted Living Help Me?
You have likely heard of assisted living before. However, you and your loved ones may still be unsure of what this type of service can do for you. Studies show that the most common reason that leads seniors to choose assisted living is requiring help with activities of daily living.
Most common ADL needs include:
- Bathing
- Dressing
- Eating
- Getting in and out of bed
- Toileting
- Walking
Aside from receiving help with daily living, assisted living plays an even bigger role in seniors’ lives. By living in a safe, supportive residential setting, seniors can get the support they need without sacrificing their independence. This significantly improves seniors’ quality of life and gives primary caregivers peace of mind that their loved ones are in good, caring hands. A 2019 Quality of Life in Assisted Living Survey found that 87 percent of residents and 78 percent of their loved ones indicated they were satisfied or very satisfied with their overall experience at an assisted living community. These results show that assisted living can have a positive impact on the quality of your life and for those that help take care of you.
What are the Costs?
Since every state and company differs in prices, it’s recommended that you contact your local senior communities. These health experts can provide you with up-to-date information regarding costs and whether or not your Medicare, Medicaid, or private insurance will cover assisted living costs. In most cases, Medicare and Medicaid do not cover these costs.
Is Assisted Living Right for You?
Now that you know a bit more about assisted living, we hope that you consider these services now or down the road. This is a great option to receive the help you may need, so you can maintain your independence and a better quality of life you deserve. Contact Liberty Healthcare and Rehabilitation Services today to learn more about our services and how we can help you get the care you need.
What is Short-Term Rehabilitation?
You may have heard your loved one’s doctor use the terms short-term rehabilitation. What does this mean exactly? What are the benefits of this form of rehabilitation. These are excellent questions, which will be addressed in this article. Keep reading to find out more information about short-term rehabilitation and why your loved one may benefit from this service per their doctor’s recommendations.
What is Short-Term Rehabilitation?
Short-term rehabilitation provides 24/7 medical care and therapeutic services to help a patient recover from an illness, surgery, or even an accident. The ultimate goal is to help the patient achieve independence and a better quality of life, thus no longer needing this type of focused care. This type of care usually lasts a few weeks, but can last for a few months depending on the patient’s needs and recovery rate. Unlike hospital settings, rehabilitation centers offer a more comfortable and welcoming environment for patients.
For costs, Medicare and other insurance companies may cover some or all of the patient’s rehabilitation services. This also depends on the patient’s type of coverage and their specific health needs.
To provide around-the-clock care, an entire team of experts are involved. This team includes doctors and nurses that provide on-site care and help monitor patients during their recovery process after a hospital stay. If an emergency arises, the rehabilitation center can quickly respond to these issues. Indeed, this 24/7 care helps ensure that patients receive proper medical attention, which helps promote a successful recovery back to their prior living setting.
Therapy Services
Aside from medical care, short-term rehabilitation centers provide physical, occupational, and speech therapy for patients. The type of therapy provided will depend on the patient’s health needs. Therapy services are an effective way to help patients regain their balance, strength, coordination, speech, and/or function, so they can safely return to their prior living setting.
Who Can Benefit from Short-Term Rehab?
A patient’s doctor may suggest short-term rehabilitation when the patient’s health issues require around-the-clock medical care and support. There are several types of health issues that can benefit from this type of rehabilitation.
- Surgery or Serious Illness: After a surgery or an ongoing illness, an aging patient may benefit from recovering in a short-term rehab facility. This will help promote a successful recovery, and it will provide the patient with additional care and support from a team of experts.
- Orthopedics and Joint Replacement: This is a major surgery that typically requires long-term physical therapy to fully recover. Physical therapists can help patients do exercises designed to strengthen their muscles, improve their circulation, reduce pain, and prevent potential risks post-surgery. Additionally, patients can benefit from occupational therapy to regain skills needed in everyday life by overcoming physical impairments or limitations.
- Heart Failure: Patients with heart failure require special care and monitoring to manage and treat their symptoms. These patients can benefit from physical therapy, which will slowly increase their daily activity level, improve mobility, reduce pain, and prevent or limit permanent disabilities caused by injury or disease. This care and support helps restore patients’ function and reduces future complications.
- Cardiac and Pulmonary Care: Patients with cardiac and pulmonary conditions need to be monitored closely and receive care from health professionals and therapists. A short-term rehabilitation facility can help ensure patients receive the proper medicine, therapy, physical activity, and nutrition as prescribed by their doctor.
- Respiratory Rehabilitation: Patients with breathing issues will benefit from a facility that provides around-the-clock care and has the resources to help improve their breathing quality as much as possible.
- IV Therapy: Patients needing IV therapy can benefit from being in a short-term rehabilitation facility because they will have a team of health professionals to care for them. Nurses will ensure patients receive the correct dosages and monitor patients’ health, so patients can be on the road towards achieving a better quality of life.
- Palliative Care: Patients with serious or long-term health conditions can benefit from short-term rehab care. This facility can help reduce the patient’s pain, symptoms, and discomfort related to their health conditions.
- Hospice Care: Patients deserve the highest quality of care at all stages of their life, including end of life care. Short-term rehabilitation centers are equipped with caring staff that will provide comfort, respect, and understanding for patients and their families.
Liberty Healthcare and Rehabilitation is a Provider of Choice in NC
Whether you have a loved one that needs short-term rehabilitation care or maybe they will need it down the road, you can still benefit from knowing what this type of care is and how beneficial it is for aging patients. All patients deserve to receive the proper care, support, and therapy needed to fully recover and return to their prior living setting. Here at Liberty Healthcare and Rehabilitation Services, we provide expert short-term rehabilitation services for patients that need and can benefit from it. Contact us today to learn more about our rehabilitation services and how we can help your loved one.
March is National Social Work Month
Established in the late 19th century, social workers have played an essential role in helping people in need gain the resources and skills to escape economic and social poverty. Social workers help people lead a productive and fulfilling life, which has a positive impact on individuals, families, and local communities.
National Social Work Month
In case you didn’t know, March is National Social Work Month. Here at Liberty Healthcare and Rehabilitation Services, we want to recognize the value and positive outcomes that our social workers bring to Liberty’s patients and local communities. This year’s theme is Social Workers are Essential, which perfectly describes the significance of these incredible individuals. We appreciate their continual dedication, care, and support, which is essential for our community’s well-being. Our social workers play an integral part in making Liberty Healthcare and Rehabilitation Services a better place.
Social Workers Are Essential
Our social workers work with our residents, families, and community to provide the highest level of functioning and care for our residents. This includes supporting our residents and helping solve problems that may arise, such as issues with our staff, doctors, other residents, or the patients’ loved ones. Indeed, our social workers help us support our patients’ mental and emotional well-being, which is just as important as their physical health. If you are interested in learning more about our healthcare and rehabilitation services, contact Liberty Healthcare and Rehabilitation Services today.