When your elderly family member is diagnosed with diabetes, she’s going to need to make some changes. Some of those changes will feel overwhelming to her, and she may even want to resist. The best way for her to learn to manage her new health condition is with the help of home health care providers. They will understand what she’s up against. Here is how they can do that.
Understanding Diabetes
Coming to terms with a new diagnosis of diabetes is not easy. The situation can feel especially difficult when your elderly family member doesn’t really understand what she’s facing. Most people who have never had diabetes find it difficult to understand why certain things affect blood sugar levels. Home health care providers can support your elderly family member and educate her about living with diabetes.
Managing Glucose Levels
One of the most important aspects of managing diabetes is knowing where your senior’s numbers are. Testing glucose levels doesn’t come easily for many people with diabetes. There can be fears associated with drawing blood, and it’s also possible that your elderly family member doesn’t have the manual dexterity to properly test. Having help with those issues can make testing much easier.
Managing Medications
While there are a few types of medications that can help someone manage diabetes, not everyone needs them or can take them to keep their blood sugar under control. If your elderly family member is prescribed medications to help manage her glucose levels, she needs to take them properly. For this reason, home health care providers can be instrumental in managing medications with your elderly family member.
Identifying Complications and Risks
Uncontrolled diabetes can lead to many health issues, from diabetic neuropathy to wounds that just refuse to heal. Other complications to watch for include eye problems, kidney failure, heart disease, and a higher risk of stroke. Your elderly family member may also be at a higher risk of falling due to uncontrolled glucose levels or problems with numbness in her feet. Understanding your senior’s risk factors and possible complications helps you put the right solutions in place for her.
Addressing Controllable Issues
Certainly, some situations related to diabetes are manageable for your elderly family member. The right assistance from home health care providers ensures your senior has the tools she needs to stay on top of those controllable issues. For the situations that she really can’t control on her own, skilled nursing assistance ensures your senior gets additional help as needed from her medical providers and other experts.
Following her doctor’s care plan as closely as possible is your senior’s best opportunity to ensure that she keeps her diabetes under the best possible control. What her doctor recommends depends entirely on how diabetes affects your senior’s overall health and well-being.
