What Are the Best Practices if Your Senior Gets a Cold?
Even if your elderly family member is doing everything right during cold season, she might still catch a cold that she just can’t shake. What can you and she do to help her to feel better as soon as possible?
Elderly Care in Greenwood IN: Best Cold Care Practices
Call Your Senior’s Doctor Right Away
Colds are caused by a virus, so there really isn’t a cure for them. But you can call your senior’s doctor as soon as you know that she’s sick and find out what is recommended for her. There may be some ways that a cold can make chronic health issues, like diabetes, worse for your senior, so you need to know the plan.
Encourage Your Senior to Stay Home
Your elderly family member may not feel like going much of anywhere anyway, but she definitely needs to stay home. There are a couple of reasons for this. First, she needs to rest and heal, which is easier to do when she’s comfortable at home. Second, she doesn’t want to share her germs and get someone else sick. Finally, she doesn’t need to encounter bigger, worse germs than what she already has. Her immune system is busy right now and might not be able to fight off something that could cause pneumonia.
Handwashing and Disinfecting Her Home Is Still a Good Idea
Once your senior is sick, she might feel like there isn’t a point in washing her hands as often and disinfecting her home as she cleans. But she runs the risk of reinfection if she doesn’t keep doing these things. It can help to shorten the cold, at least by a little bit. And if anyone else lives with your senior, this cuts down on the risk of sharing those cold germs.
She Needs to Eat Healthy Foods
Eating and remaining hydrated give your senior’s body what she needs to get healthy again as quickly as possible. Foods that are easy to eat, like chicken noodle soup, are great because they’re hydrating and they contain nutrients. Broth-based soups are also soothing, which can be very helpful, especially if your elderly family member has a sore throat and clogged sinuses.
A cold can leave someone feeling weak, which can be a fall risk for your senior. It might be a good idea to get help from home care providers while she’s ill. They can help with meals and make sure that your senior is safe and comfortable while she’s recuperating.
If you or an aging loved-one are considering Elderly Care in Greenwood, IN, please call the caring staff at Home Services Unlimited. Serving Greater Indianapolis Area. Call for Immediate Info & Assistance: (317) 471-0760
As a practicing Registered Nurse, Etelka was keenly aware of a void in quality patient care that could be provided in the home. She embarked upon a journey to develop a home health care agency that would exceed all expectations and become a trusted partner to physicians and patients.
A Distinguished Career From Nurse to Director of Nursing to President of Home Services Unlimited
Etelka’s distinguished career followed a logical progression to her position as President of Home Services Unlimited. She graduated as a nurse practitioner with a Bachelor of Nursing (RN) in 1972 from Meshgorya University in the Ukraine, close to where she lived with her family. She married her husband Phil in 1973 and decided in 1977 that they would relocate to the United States to be closer to family and to come to this land of opportunity. With an eagerness to continue her budding career, Etelka sat for and passed her Boards in the U.S. in 1979.
A Love and Talent for Working with the Elderly
Etelka began her nursing career in the U.S. at Colonial Crest, now part of Golden Living, where she was the In-service Coordinator, the Director of Training and Education and Director of Nursing, a position she occupied for several years.
With a group of partners, she co-founded Adept Corporation, which operated group homes for the mentally challenged. The business was successful and in 1996, Etelka sold her share to return to her roots, caring for the elderly.
In January of 1997, Etelka opened Home Services Unlimited as a fully licensed business to provide home health care. In her quest to learn to do better for her patients, she had already obtained a Masters in Healthcare Administration (MHA) in May of 1990 from the College of St. Francis. As President of Home Services Unlimited, Inc., Etelka guides the trusted, experienced care model Home Services Unlimited uses to continue providing excellent home health care.
Giving Back to the Community of Indianapolis
Volunteering for community services is a high priority for Etelka. Her memberships include the Indiana Association of Rehabilitation Facilities, Executive Women in Health Care and the Indiana Association for Home and Hospice Care, where she is a member of the Board of Directors.
Etelka has also served on the Board of Directors with Hooverwood Home, a highly regarded geriatric facility, since 1997 and as the President for 2005-2006. Through her community work, she has received several awards and accolades, including the Nora McFarland award in 2002, from the Indiana Association of Home and Hospice Care.
- Home Care Differences Between Grooming and Hygiene - April 24, 2023
- 4 Senior Home Care Tips to Get Out of a Food Rut - April 13, 2023
- Elder Care Tips For Managing Senior Stress - March 21, 2023