BE PREPARED ..... JUST IN CASE YOU OR SOMEONE YOU LOVE GETS OLD
Table of Contents
INTRODUCTION
HOW TO USE AGING PARENTS
WHEN CRISIS HITS
Reference and Referral
GETTING ORGANIZED
Knowing when it’s time to act
Assessing your parent’s situation
Family meetings
Developing an extended care plan
Care coordination: Making the pieces fit
Monitoring your care giving plan
Surviving the stresses of parent care
Financial considerations
Balancing work and family
Preventing burnout
Reference and Referral
CARE GIVING FROM A DISTANCE
Planning for the “what if” questions
Who, if anyone, relocates
What’s really happening with your parent
Creating and utilizing your support network
Care Managers: Professional coordinated services
Rural care giving
Travel: Knowing when to go
Reference and Referral
FAMILY DYNAMICS
Role reversal
Talking with your parent
Working with siblings
Reference and Referral
HOUSING ALTERNATIVES AND SUPPORT SERVICES
Living independently at home
Home care/assisted living
Your parent lives with you
Adult day care
Other alternatives
Continuing Care Retirement Communities
Age-segregated apartments
Board and care homes
Group homes or shared living
Congregate housing with services
Elder Cottage Housing Opportunity
HUD subsidized senior housing
Nursing homes
Matching housing options with care giving needs
Reference and Referral
MEDICAL AND HEALTH ISSUES
Critically needed documents
Hospitals and the health care system
Mental and physical wellness
Age-related ailments and diseases
Medications
Reference and Referral
LEGAL ISSUES: PROTECTING YOUR PARENT’S WISHES AND ASSETS
The necessity of legal documents
Documents for life
Durable Powers of Attorney
Advance Directives (Living Wills)
Documents for death
Wills
Trusts
Reference and Referral
THE BUSINESS SIDE OF CARE GIVING: FINANCE AND INSURANCE
Finance
Talking about financial matters
Estate and Tax planning
Financial planners
Insurance
Policies and their intent
Medigap insurance
Long-term care insurance
Reference and Referral
GOVERNMENT PROGRAMS
Social Security
Medicare
Medicaid
Older Americans Act
Reference and Referral
DEATH AND DYING
Preparing for death
Making funeral arrangements
Talking about death
Hospice care
Practical considerations after death
Dealing with grief
Reference and Referral
GLOSSARY
RECORDS AND INFORMATION
REFERENCE AND REFERRAL (Full Alphabetical List)
WORLD WIDE WEB SITES
READING LIST
