Older Adults and Cancer – How Can Elderly Care Services U.K. Help?
As adults age, they are more at risk of illnesses and diseases. Cancer is one such disease that is not only challenging for the eldelry, but their family members and caregivers too.
Cancer is more challenging and complicated for the elderly, than it is for younger adults. This is because seniors have other complications that can make their condition and disease worse, such as heart disease, diabetes, and so on.
This article is going to focus on how elderly care services in the U.K. (Chelmsford) can help elderly Cancer patients:
How Do Elderly Care Services U.K. help cancer patients?
Cancer is quite difficult to deal with, let alone surgery, chemotherapy, radiation, and other treatments that cancer patients have to undergo.
Elderly, naturally, feel more challenged and threatened by such treatments, due to the constant monitoring and treatments they have to go through. However, elderly care services in the UK have been providing the elderly with caregivers, who help with their everyday tasks, monitor, provide companionship, and run small house errands. This way, the other family members of the elderly cancer patient know that their loved one is in safe hands, and can have their rest as well.
Here are few of the elderly care services for cancer patients you can also benefit from:
Meal preparation
Proper nutrition and diet is essential for cancer patients, specifically if they are undergoing chemotherapy and radiation. Therefore, caregivers ensure to take into account each elderly’s dietary and nutritional requirements, and plan and prepare their meals accordingly.
In most cases, eldelry cancer patients are not able to consume large meals throughout the day. For this matter, elderly caregivers prepare small, but balanced and healthy, meals for them, to help them keep their energy levels high. They also ensure to provide small snacks to them throughout the day, as well as fluids.
Medical assistance
Licensed and professional caregivers provide medical assistance to elderly cancer patients. Such caregivers are licensed to provide necessary medication, and also remind the elderly to take all their medication on time.
Personal care
Caregivers from elderly caregiver services help with personal care for the elderly as well. This includes help with toileting, showering, bathing, oral hygiene, getting dressed, and so on.
This is particularly helpful for those elderly who need assistance in moving around and need support moving around. This is fairly understandable as cancer treatments can weaken the patient’s body.
Small errands/ light housekeeping
Carrying out or continuing everyday responsibilities around the house is indeed challenging and tiresome, especially when an individual is undergoing chemotherapy, radiation, or just underwent surgery.
Moreover, it is not advisable for doctors to continue such tasks around the house. This is why elderly caregivers from the UK provide caregivers to take care of light housekeeping, as well as small errands around the house.
This includes cleaning, dusting, vacuuming, laundry, and other tasks. Caregivers also go out to fetch groceries and medication from the pharmacy or local store, in case they run out.
Physical activity
It is essential for cancer patients not to remain idle or at bed rest all the time, as it can lead to bedsores and other conditions.
It would be best to move around and exercise lightly from time to time. Therefore, maintenance of the right level of exercise is essential. This is the reason why physical therapy is prescribed by oncologists to their cancer patients.
Caregivers provide such elderly cancer patients support, motivation, and encouragement during such physical activities and therapies.
Transportation
Moving around can be quite challenging for the elderly, especially when we’re talking about cancer patients.
Even driving can be a difficult task when the elderly are undergoing chemo and other cancer treatments. Therefore, elderly care services in the UK provide caregivers to help with transportation.
They make sure to drive to and from clinics and hospitals. And take the elderly to all their appointments and treatments. Caregivers also take the eldelry to support groups, or basically anywhere they want to be transported to.
Companionship
It is quite common for cancer patients to suffer from anxiety or depression, especially due to the challenging treatments and fear of what is still to come. They can also socially withdraw themselves, and totally isolate themselves from the outside world. This, however, can have a negative impact on the mental and emotional well-being of elderly cancer patients.
This is why caregivers help provide support and companionship to such senior cancer patients. Whether it’s just having a conversation, talking about their feelings, or passing time doing their favourite hobby, a companion caregiver will be at every step of the way.
Even going along with them to their appointments and chemotherapy or radiation sessions help provide great emotional support, which is good for their overall wellbeing.
