Preparing for the Future Without a Family Caregiver
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When yous tin can't lean on family and friends to assist have intendance of you, here's what you can do.
En español | Carol Marak was a caregiver for both her parents: Her mom had congestive heart failure and her dad had Parkinson's illness. After they died and she turned threescore, she says, "It occurred to me ... oh, my goodness, I am not married. I do non have children. Who is going to do that for me?"
Marak, 65, of Waco, Texas, is considered an "elderberry orphan" — someone who is aging alone with no family available to address their caregiving needs. More than ane in five Americans older than 65 are — or are at risk of condign — elder orphans. And 23 pct of boomers will somewhen be without family unit caretakers, according to Maria Torroella Carney, who has studied the issue and is chief of geriatric and palliative medicine at Northwell Health of Great Neck, North.Y.
And those figures don't include the countless parents whose adult children are not available or able, for various reasons, to assist them.
The American Geriatrics Society recently developed guidelines for how public policy and the health care industry might assist elder orphans. (The authors refer to them as "unbefriended" older adults.) Experts warn of a potential crunch every bit the population ages and fifty-fifty fewer family unit caregivers are available for each person. A 2015 AARP Public Policy study titled "Valuing the Invaluable" concluded that while there were seven.ii potential family unit caregivers for every person 80 and older in 2010, that ratio is likely to fall to 4 to 1 by 2030, and could sink to 3 to i by 2050.
But even with already high numbers of elder orphans set to skyrocket, in that location'southward still a widely held supposition in the health care industry that anybody has a family caregiver in the wings. "When you go in for a colonoscopy, they won't even exercise the procedure if you don't have someone to take you home," Marak points out. "Everyone thinks we all accept family. Well, we don't."
Hither are some tips for planning ahead if you don't have a family caregiver.
Consider where — and how — you might like to historic period.While you lot're still healthy, evaluate your living state of affairs and try to make a plan. "Identify where the best place is for you to alive," Carney says. "Should yous motility to an surface area that'south more walkable, or has mass transportation or access to taxis?"
Y'all might also consider communal living options, such as taking on roommates, or moving to a senior community or assisted living facility — often an ideal option for some who can afford it.
Get your paperwork in gild.Make all legal documents accessible and your intentions clear. That includes deciding upon a health and financial proxy: Who's going to make crucial decisions for you if you go incapacitated? If you don't accept anyone in your personal life to fill that part, you might look into elderberry intendance resources in your region. Or your doctor may exist willing to stride in, Carney says.
"I've had patients who've had no one and accept asked me or my colleague to be their wellness care proxy," she adds. (If a physician agrees to exist your proxy, he or she can't keep as your health care provider.) You might consult an elderberry care lawyer to talk over your situation and aid you lot plan.
Develop a social network. Yous may non be able to rely on friends for serious, long-term care, just they tin help you — and you them — in many ways, such as bringing meals when y'all're sick or recovering, and doing errands such as picking upwardly prescriptions or groceries. Sometimes it'due south hard to make new friends tardily in life, and old ones may non alive nearby or are caught upwards in their own health issues. Consider joining clubs, taking a class, volunteering — anything that will offering you repeated exposure to a new group of people.
Find back up from like-minded people.Marak started a Facebook grouping for elder orphans in February 2016 so "people have a place simply to feel like they're not lone, so they can identify with others."
Call back creatively.Amongst other possible means to plan for a future without a family caregiver, Marak has considered adopting a family. They'd agree to intendance for her, and she'd bequeath her assets to them. Other innovative ideas, Marak says, include joining other elder orphans in a living situation with infinite for a alive-in caregiver "so the residents, every bit they historic period, can count on this caregiver to aid them at home. They provide the infinite for the person to alive, and that person provides the services they need."
If you have ideas for how elderberry orphans might prepare for aging without a family unit caregiver, join the chat at AARP'south online community.
Christina Ianzito is a features editor at AARP Media.
Source: https://www.aarp.org/caregiving/basics/info-2017/tips-aging-alone.html
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