If your elderly family member has been unlucky enough to catch the flu, it’s important that you know how to help her as much as possible. Little things like bringing in home care services right away might sound like overkill at first, but they can be instrumental in making sure that your senior doesn’t end up in the hospital because of the flu.
Get Her Tested to Make Sure it’s the Flu
There are lots of colds, viruses, and flu germs going around. It’s important that if your elderly family member has gotten sick with anything that causes her to have a fever, aches and pains, and lots of congestion you know what she’s up against. Contact her doctor right away and determine exactly what has gotten her sick. Narrowing down whether this is the flu, pneumonia, or something else helps her to get the right treatment plan going.
Encourage Her to Drink Plenty of Fluids
If you’ve found out that she’s definitely sick with the flu, she’s going to need lots of fluids. Water, electrolyte beverages, clear broth, and herbal teas can all help her to stay hydrated while her body fights off the germs. Fevers tend to dehydrate people, and aging adults are especially susceptible to dehydration anyway.
Add a Humidifier to Her Room
It can be tough to breathe with the flu, so running a humidifier can help your senior to breathe a little bit easier. Make sure to check the humidifier every couple of hours or so to be certain that the water level isn’t too low for the machine to keep running. There are also over-the-counter vaporizers that can help with congestion if her doctor agrees.
Make Sure She’s Able to Rest as Much as Possible
The one thing that will help the most while your senior is recovering from the flu is to rest as much as she can. Home care providers can do a lot to keep your senior comfortable, help her to remember to hydrate, and ensure that she’s able to rest. They can take care of all of the little tasks that might cause your senior to try to do too much, too soon. And with elder care professionals with your senior, you can rest easy, too.
Follow Her Doctor’s Recommendations
When she’s diagnosed with the flu, your senior’s doctor may have some specific recommendations related to her unique health situation. Be sure to follow those instructions to the letter, and if she starts to feel worse, make sure you know what to do. All too often aging adults end up in the hospital because of the flu, and that is something that you want to avoid if at all possible. Again, having home care professionals with your senior can help her to recover more quickly.
The flu is never anything to play around with, especially when it comes to your aging family member. Encourage her to get her flu shot if she hasn’t already, and hopefully she can avoid the flu completely this year.
Source
https://www.webmd.com/cold-and-flu/fact-sheet-elderly-people
If you or an aging loved one are considering home care in Breckenridge, TX, please contact the caring staff at Clear Path Home Care today. Call 254-559-2030
Clear Path Home Care provides compassionate, high quality home care in McCulloch County, San Saba County, Mills County, Hamilton County, Runnels County, Coleman County, Brown County, Comanche County, Eastland County, Callahan County, Palo Pinto County, Stephens County, Shackleford County, Jack County, Young County, Throckmorton County, Baylor County, Archer County, Clay County, Wilbarger County, and Wichita County in Texas.
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