Blog | Take My Hand At Home

Recovering at home after surgery

September 5, 2018 By Take My Hand

Two elderly ladies chat outside in a lush garden.

After surgery or a hospital stay, who will help with recovery at home?

There are many important things to consider as part of pre-operation planning, such as making sure the kitchen will be stocked with healthy food and arranging to have someone available to help with meal preparation and basic housekeeping.

Will you need special medical equipment for your post-op recovery at home? Some recoveries require oxygen tanks, elevated toilets, shower seats, crutches or a walker to help prevent falls. In Whatcom County, the Bellingham Central Lions Club offers affordable rentals for wheelchairs, walkers, crutches and other durable medical equipment to help with recovery. Hoagland Pharmacy, Norco Medical and Bellevue Healthcare are also sources for medical supplies in the Bellingham area.

After surgery, dizziness may occur from being in bed for long periods or from lack of eating, which may cause balance issues and unexpected stumbling. Make sure your home is free from clutter, and if your bedroom is upstairs — stairs may be difficult — set up a comfortable place to sleep that is downstairs and close to a bathroom. Nightlights in hallways and bathrooms can also make it easier to move around at night and help prevent stumbling.

An elderly man listens to a doctor explain something while pointing to a computer screen. If you or your loved one needs someone there to help out — perhaps no family lives in the area, or loved ones who could help with caregiving have full-time jobs or are not comfortable with personal care tasks — our licensed caregivers at Take My Hand At-Home Care can assist Whatcom County residents as you return home and resume life after surgery and other hospital stays. Surgery can drain your energy for days or weeks, making simple tasks at home extra challenging. Our licensed caregiver companions can offer support while you’re healing and getting your strength back.

Your personal at-home caregiver can help with:

Hospital discharge from PeaceHealth St. Joseph Medical Center in Bellingham, WA
Transportation, purchasing healthcare supplies, picking up prescriptions, and helping you get settled in at home to recover
Grocery shopping and keeping the fridge stocked; preparing and serving nutritious meals according to unique preferences and dietary needs
Medication monitoring and reminders to help avoid accidentally taking too many or skipping a dose
Personal hygiene, if assistance is needed with bathing, dressing, toileting, etc.
Help with transitions from bed to chair or from sitting to standing, and assistance with walking to help prevent falls
Accompaniment to doctor’s appointments and sharing health information with loved ones
Light housekeeping such as laundry, dishes, changing sheets, and even feeding your pet

Our at-home caregivers are available to come by for a few hours daily, or we can provide 24-hour assistance if needed. Maybe a loved one is also there to help but would like to spend time focused on your well-being rather than running errands for supplies, preparing meals, and monitoring medications. That’s totally fine. Our trained and compassionate caregivers can provide support and comfort for both of you. To find out more about hiring your own at-home care provider, contact Take My Hand At-Home Care in Lynden.

As a family caregiver, do you take time for self-care?

August 8, 2018 By Take My Hand

You know how important it is to care for your loved one, to make sure the right medications are taken on time, meals are nutritious, bedding is clean, and the list goes on.

Yet, do you also realize how important it is to take care of yourself — the caregiver?

Caregiving for a loved one at home is often a labor of love that can be filled with special and tender moments. Yet many family caregivers do not receive much acknowledgement or help.

Whether you’re taking care of your aging mom or dad, husband or wife, or another loved one, it’s important to notice your own signs of needing a break. Caregivers can experience caregiver burnout, stress, depression, high blood pressure and more.

Even feelings of guilt, anger, and resentment can build and undermine your health and the relationship with your loved one. When caring for a spouse, often the relationship has changed from sharing experiences, joys, and intimacy with a lifelong companion to taking care of someone who may need constant care.

The bond of marriage is strong and sometimes pride can get in the way of spouse caregivers asking for help as they remember their commitment, “I stood before God and said my vows. I will care for my husband.”

The Family Caregiver Alliance addresses challenges and considerations specific to caregivers caring for their spouse, including emotional impacts, physical challenges and social considerations.

Have you considered who would take care of your loved one if something happened to you?

It happens all too often that family caregivers are so focused on the needs of their loved one that they neglect their own needs. Even when caregiving comes from a loving place and is rewarding, it can still be stressful and demanding. It’s important to take care of your own health – physical, emotional, and spiritual.

Make sure there is time to:

Reflect, breathe, meditate
Exercise and be outside
Eat right
Stay in touch with other family and friends
Do things that feed and nourish you, that keep you excited about life

It’s valuable to have support, to share the burden and care. Not only will some steady, consistent time off nourish your well-being, it will allow you to come back refreshed as you continue to care for your loved one.

You are not alone. Our caregivers at Take My Hand At-Home Care are specially trained to offer the type of care that is needed for your loved one in Whatcom County, whether it be companionship, assistance with shopping, preparing meals, monitoring medications, or help with personal care. We can give family caregivers in Lynden, Bellingham, Ferndale and beyond a much-needed break, some important and well-deserved time off.

The gift of appreciation

July 4, 2018 By Take My Hand

We all love to be appreciated when we work hard.

At Take My Hand At-Home Care, we give thoughtful and attentive care to our clients, which is rewarding work in and of itself. It’s also special to receive thank you notes from families expressing what our caregiving services have meant to them. We were incredibly touched to receive this letter:

Dear Sue,

I’m writing on behalf of my mom, Patricia Brighton, and our family. We would like to express our deepest thanks for the abundant kindness, care and concern you gave each of us, especially Mom.

Each member of your team provided dependable, thoughtful and loving care. We so appreciate your devotion and attention to detail, even when expectations were more than challenging. Honestly, we never could have had her home for so long without your cheerful support.

I hold each one of you in such high regard. I hope you know your work is respected and so appreciated. I would recommend your services to anyone looking for quality caregiving. Thank you for all you do and the positive impact you have on the clients/families in your care.

Thank you, Sue, for being such a careful listener who is committed to excellence at Take My Hand At-Home Care. Your support and understanding helped us through a very dark time. You took our hands, held on tight, and helped us up again. Such a blessing when we needed it most.

Again, our deepest thanks to you, Sue, and your fabulous team of caregivers. We miss you already!

Warm regards,

Nancy Brighton & family

We are so thankful for our wonderful clients and their families. We are touched every day by their kindness and thoughtfulness as we share important moments in their lives and with their loved ones.

Providing at-home care to Lynden families like the Brightons is our pleasure. We will continue to offer caregiver services with kindness and care; we will continue to be careful listeners and aim to be a blessing to families as they are walking through difficult times.

Tips for recognizing and preventing pressure sores

June 6, 2018 By Take My Hand

We all know how uncomfortable it is to sit or lie in one position for a long time.

For those who have limited ability to change positions or are confined to a bed or wheelchair, not only is it uncomfortable, it can cause pressure sores from prolonged pressure on the skin, which limits blood flow to the skin, depriving it of nutrients and oxygen. Pressure sores can be serious, but they can be prevented with just a little extra care and attention.

This kind of damage to the skin is also referred to as a bed sore or pressure ulcer and most often occurs on skin that covers bony areas of the body, such as:

Heels
Ankles
Hips
Tailbone
Shoulder blades and spine
Back or sides of the head for someone who is bedridden

Not only are pressure sores painful, they can be serious and require medical attention. It’s important to keep an eye out for areas on the skin that are showing signs of redness, tenderness, swelling and other types of irritation.

The Mayo Clinic lists these symptoms and warning signs of pressure ulcers:

Unusual changes in skin color or texture
Swelling
An area of skin that feels cooler or warmer to the touch than other areas
Tender areas

Pressure sores can develop quickly, and since they respond best to treatment when detected early, it’s important to check for sores daily and focus on prevention, especially with elderly individuals who may be aging in place at home.

Tips for helping loved ones prevent pressure sores:

Ensure someone is available to help your mom or dad shift weight frequently and change positions every hour or two.
Keep skin clean and dry. Moisture is a common culprit. Use mild soap and a soft cloth.
Be aware that buttons, zippers, and even folds in clothing or bedding can cause skin irritation.
Make sure they eat nutritious foods and drink plenty of fluids.
Take appropriate daily exercise. This might mean going for a walk, or something as simple as range of motion exercises such as lifting an arm and holding it up for a few moments.
Use pillows. Pillows can help prevent bed sores by being placed between parts of the body that press against each other — such as between the legs when lying on their side, or for cushioning under the tailbone, heels or elbows.

Caregivers at Take My Hand At-Home Care can help your parent or grandparent stay safe by proactively working to prevent pressure sores. At-home caregivers can help monitor skin conditions and treat early-onset bed sores before they become too serious. The awareness and care that we provide can help your loved one shift positions, get up and get moving, eat regularly and stay hydrated, clean and comfortable.

To learn more about the symptoms, causes, risk factors, complications and prevention of pressure sores, visit the Mayo Clinic website.

Our caregiver and home companion service is a locally owned and operated eldercare provider helping seniors in Whatcom County continue to live at home safely. If you would like more information about hiring help at home for an aging family member, and how we can help care for your loved one, contact Take My Hand At-Home Care.

Our state license is our commitment to excellence, expertise

May 9, 2018 By Take My Hand

When you hire a caregiver from Take My Hand At-Home Care, what you get is a licensed, insured and knowledgeable home-care attendant.

How do you know?

Because agencies like TMH that provide in-home care are subject to careful oversight by the Washington Department of Health, and we work hard to ensure we’re up to date on every last one of our stringent licensing requirements.

That means that you, our valued clients, can feel comfortable knowing a number of things, including:

TMH has current commercial general liability insurance, which is required by the state administrative code.
All of our administrators and caregivers have passed criminal background checks, as required by law.
TMH has a current and valid business license to operate in Washington state.
We’ve completed the In-Home Services Orientation Class, which provides agencies like ours an overview of the state system and the high expectations of us as people who care for the vulnerable in our society.
Take My Hand At-Home Care is subject to periodic unannounced visits from the Department of Health to ensure that we’re performing well in all areas.

That is far from an exhaustive list, of course. Check out the state DOH’s website to learn more about licensing requirements for home-care agencies like Take My Hand.

When you hire a caregiver from Craigslist, you just never know what you’re getting. Is the person experienced? Is the person insured? Has the person passed a criminal background check? With Take My Hand At-Home Care, you never have to wonder. We take licensing and compliance seriously, and that gives a lot of confidence to the families we work with.

Meeting these regulations takes a lot of work, but we don’t mind that. In the end, Take My Hand is all about caring for people in Whatcom County who need our help. Ensuring that we are doing our utmost to instill confidence in our clients is of great importance to us.

On top of that, TMH has an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau.

Bonus: With Take My Hand, loved ones can always log in on our site to view who is scheduled to provide care at any time. You don’t need to manage the schedule of your caregivers; we handle all of that.

Our commitment to you, our clients, is embodied in our efforts to meet and exceed state requirements for home-care agencies.

If you’re looking for a licensed caregiver you can trust to provide top-quality care for your dear mom, dad or other loved one, give Take My Hand At-Home Care a call. We can even send someone over for a free, in-home consultation.

Recovering at home after surgery

As a family caregiver, do you take time for self-care?

The gift of appreciation

Tips for recognizing and preventing pressure sores

Our state license is our commitment to excellence, expertise

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