Tips for Caring for a Senior Who is Suffering a Brain Injury

Senior Care in New Brunswick Township NJ

Each year throughout the United States millions of people experience brain injuries, and more than 5 million people are currently living with disabilities or lingering effects associated with these injuries. March is Brain Injury Awareness Month. This is the perfect opportunity for you as a family caregiver to learn about these injuries and what you can do in your role as a caregiver to help your parent overcome the effects of their injury, to recover effectively, and to prevent further injuries as they age in place.

The first step in caring for an elderly adult who has suffered a brain injury is proper first aid. If your parent has experienced a fall, impact injury, or accident, immediately evaluate them for the symptoms of a brain injury. If they are bleeding, have an open wound, lose consciousness even briefly, or have breathing or heart rate disruptions, it is critical to contact emergency medical attention as quickly as possible.

If your parent is not showing signs and symptoms of a traumatic brain injury immediately, this does not necessarily mean that they have not been injured. Symptoms of a traumatic brain injury can show up hours or even days after the initial injury. This makes it critical that you monitor your loved one very closely after they experience such an accident or injury to make sure that they have not been injured worse than you initially suspected.

Use these tips to help your elderly loved one avoid traumatic brain injuries into the future:

• Go through the home to identify any risks or hazards that might increase the chances that your parent will suffer a fall
• Remove loose floor coverings or clutter on the floor that might cause your parent to slip or trip
• Insist that your loved one wears their seatbelt any time that they are in a moving vehicle
• Discourage your loved one from climbing onto anything when attempting to reach items in their home
• Insist that your loved one wears a helmet if they are engaging in any form of physical activity that might pose a falling danger, such as riding a bike

Starting senior care for your elderly loved one can be one of the most compassionate, nurturing, and effective decisions that you can make for them in the course of your caregiver journey with them. The highly personalized services of a senior home care services provider are specifically designed to address your parent’s individual needs, challenges, and limitations in a way that takes into account their personality, preferences, beliefs, opinions, and goals, as well as the care that you are able to put forth for them. This means that they are able to live the lifestyle that is right for them while remaining safe, healthy, comfortable, and fulfilled, and maintaining as much independence and activity as possible as they age in place. If your parent has suffered a brain injury, a senior home care services provider can provide the ongoing support and supervision needed to help them heal and recover, and move forward safely and healthily.

Source
http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/traumatic-brain-injury/basics/symptoms/con-20029302
http://www.biausa.org/brain-injury-awareness-month.htm
http://www.biav.net/awareness-month.htm
http://www.brainline.org/content/2012/06/what-should-you-do-if-you-think-you-have-had-a-concussion.html

If you or an aging loved one are considering senior care in New Brunswick Township, NJ, please contact the caring staff at Care Street Home Care of New Brunswick today. Call (732) 607-8870.