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Elderly Care during COVID 19 is one of the most important things to take care of during the pandemic. As of April 2021, all Indian citizens over the age of 18 are eligible for the Covid 19 vaccination from the month of May 2021. Senior citizens and elderly in Indian at home have already been vaccinated and the campaigns are continuing to ensure that the elderly over the age of 45 years are vaccinated.
This is mainly due to the fact that the elderly are the most susceptible to weakening health if infected with the virus. However, even with the vaccination which only helps to fight the disease and not prevent it, the elderly are not completely out of danger, may show severe symptoms marginally or are asymptomatic.
When infected, even after the vaccination it still doesn’t prevent the spread and may cause weaknesses in the long run and so, the first priority is and always will be preventing the spread of this adamant virus which consistently mutating into more dangerous strains.
But fear not! There are not only ways to prevent the spread of the virus and infection but also ways to ensure ways to help out your elderly parents, even if you are living away from them. Reading on will help you to find ways to help with elderly care during COVID 19 pandemic.
“Preventive Measures” & Elderly Care during Covid 19
Let us start with all the steps followed by preventive measures for elderly care during COVID-19 that can be taken to avoid them to be infected with the disease, regardless of whether they are vaccinated or not:
- Be patient with your parents and elders: The most important thing to keep in one’s mind is to be considerate of the elderly sentiments and respect their boundaries by explaining and giving them clarity of the situation without giving them a panic attack. Help them to use technology to maintain and stay socially in touch through smartphone video calls and messaging platforms. Setup speed dials on their phone for emergency help. While we are all still getting used to working from home, they are going through life changes both physical and mental that are natural of old age and the pandemic.
- Avoid Isolation: Stay at home with your parents and if that isn’t possible ensure there is someone to take care of them. A lot of elderly have dependable private caregivers. In case you are looking for a reliable organization for such facilities you can consider Khyaal as an option. Also, make sure that you do not socially isolate them and are in constant touch for their well-being.
- Precautionary Measures for Private Caregiver: If your parents have a private elderly caregiver let’s say from Khyaal, it is essential to ensure that they are free of the disease. So, once they have been tested negative, they too cannot leave the home premises to prevent being infected themselves.
- Precautionary Measures if you are you are the caregiver: If you are the one to take care of your parents, you have to make sure that you stay at home at all times and don’t leave home as well. You can always take care of the essentials through home deliveries.
- Handling Shopping for Essentials: The caregiver for your elderly parents or you must take care, that all deliveries at home are sanitized properly before being brought inside your home and always wear a mask yourself when having deliveries made at home. It is advisable to practice no-contact deliveries which most e-commerce essential home delivery services do provide.
- Get the elderly a Health care Plan: Onsurity offers membership for healthcare services that includes getting financial aid for the treatment of Covid-19, teleconsultations with doctors and much more for elderly members in your family for up to the age of 65 years. They will have access to all the services through the Onsurity App, just as you can.
- Avoid Visitors Unless Absolutely Necessary: The absolute necessary cases of having the elderly to meet visitors, but even in such cases ensure that the individual and the elderly member are made to meet each other at least with a distance of 6 feet and with double layers of masks.
- Stock-up Medicines and Health Essentials: Besides the obvious handwashing and sanitizing constantly, some senior citizens may be dependent on medicines for diabetes, blood pressure and other ageing ailments. So, it is always a good idea to keep back-ups of the medicines and inhalers if they are dependent on any. Onsurity members can purchase medicines with a 20% discount too. Finally, always remember to make sure that your elderly loved ones are taking their medicines in time. Call them or remind them to take the medicines if needed.
Steps to be Taken If the Elderly At Home Are “Unwell”
The symptoms of Coronavirus are constantly changing and evolving but the major symptoms as of April 2021 include:
Similar Symptoms with Common Flu:
- Fever
- Runny nose
- Fatigue
- Loss of sense of smell
- Sore throat
Different Symptoms from Common Flu:
- Breathlessness
- Nausea and giddiness
- Constant high temperature
- Loss of sense of smell and taste
So, if any of these symptoms show up and the elderly feel sick, here are the immediate steps that must be taken immediately for elderly care during COVID-19
- Socially distance and quarantine them to a room or a part of the house completely to themselves.
- Connect with a doctor immediately through phone or if the individual is an Onsurity Health care plan member get a teleconsultation call with a doctor immediately with the help of the App.
- Make sure that the tests are done for Covid-19 confirmation if recommended by the doctor based on his/her diagnosis.
- The other occupants of the home also need to be tested for the disease as a precautionary measure.
- Onsurity will also help its members to get the lab results as quickly as possible for immediate treatment and care.
- In the meantime don’t socially isolate them by staying connected through technology and ensure that he or she has access to food and water through disposable containers that are sanitized before and after being passed to the individual. Help them keep a positive state of mind until the results are out.
Guidelines for “Covid-19 Positive” Senior Citizens
Once the results are back, the times will be tested if your elderly parent or the senior citizen has been positively diagnosed for Covid-19 infection through the lab results. There are two possibilities:
- The elderly may have less to moderate symptoms of the infection and be asked to be quarantined or,
- They may be needed to be hospitalized, based on the doctor’s recommendation whether through Onsurity Help or otherwise.
Measures to be Taken for “Elderly Quarantine” at Home
The quarantine steps to be taken are basically the same as the measures to be taken if unwell along with the medication as prescribed by the doctors and health professionals but just to make it more convenient here are the measures to be taken if the elderly at home are Covid-19 positive and quarantined at home:
- The elderly have to be quarantined for a minimum of 7 – 14 days until the next test results are negative.
- This requires the individual to be restricted to a room or area of the home exclusively to him/her.
- Food and meals along with ample water have to be passed on again in a disposable container with double sanitization and once the containers are used, they need to be disposed of safely immediately.
- Medications and other essentials such as toiletries, sanitisers, etc that are going to be eventually disposed of, have to be given.
- To make the experience more pleasant it is advisable to provide the elderly to have access to some sort of entertainment such as books, television or even OTT on phone along with regular social communication through video calls and messages have to be maintained.
- Onsurity app along with the government-mandated apps need to be constantly updated with any new information or symptoms at regular intervals.
- Once the elderly at home recovers and passes as negative for the COVID test, the quarantined area has to be sanitized properly with caution.
- A lot of the recovery process is mental for individuals and hence they have to be kept in a positive mindset to ensure the effectiveness of the overall treatment.
How to Get the Elderly “Hospitalized” for Coronavirus
As an Onsurity member, the elderly care during covid 19 will be guided along with you to help with hospitalization. You will be aided and connected to through the whole process for a worry-free recovery of the infected elderly. All the steps needed will be taken care of exclusively by Onsurity for the best treatment possible whether there are necessary injections to be taken or artificial ventilation needs to be implemented.
All in all, you will access the best treatment possible in the given conditions and situations so that you can ensure a quick recovery for your loved one/ones.
Resource Box: If you are looking for a reliable elderly care health and wellness plan, Onsurity provides upgraded services to their existing members for the same including teleconsultation with doctors and advice of Covid-19 care including hospitalization through the Good Doctors Team.