Recovery following a hospitalization can take a long time. It isn’t going to happen overnight, regardless of a person’s age, overall health, strength, vitality, or desire. When a person has been hospitalized, it’s for something serious. Whether it’s pneumonia, a heart attack, stroke, injuries from a slip and fall accident, an automobile accident, or anything else, recovery is going to take time.
Recovery for an aging senior will often take longer than it would for somebody in their 20s or 30s, for example. If your elderly father was recently hospitalized for a medical emergency, he may be set for discharge.
That can be a wonderful, exciting time for the family, especially if it is touch and go for a while. When he is going to be discharged, he may be sent to a nursing home or other facility for a week or two to continue close medical monitoring before he is finally sent home. Or, he may be discharged straightaway to go home.
When he is discharged, your father is going to be given a great deal of information from his doctor and maybe even the hospital itself. Much of this information is going to involve things he needs to do, medication he has to take, perhaps physical therapy to go through, and so forth.
It can be a lot of information at once. It can feel overwhelming. Your elderly father may not be able to understand everything the doctor told him or be able to decipher the mountain of paperwork he was given upon discharge.
What can he do now?
The most important thing for an aging senior — or anyone who has been hospitalized, for that matter — is to be willing to contact his or her primary doctor if they have any questions whatsoever about the recovery.
The risk of readmission following a hospitalization increases when a person does not adhere to what their doctor has recommended or advised. Too often, people simply don’t understand and are afraid to ask questions, especially when there is still something they can do about it.
Encourage him to contact his doctor if there’s anything he doesn’t fully understand about the recovery process or what he is supposed to do. If he has any questions about the prescription medications, he should immediately contact his doctor or pharmacist who can help them get everything straight.
Also, consider elder care options.
A visiting nurse or home health care provider might be able to assist with a number of aspects of the recovery process. Sure, your mother, a friend, or even you or other family members may be willing to help, but if you have no prior experience supporting somebody through this type of recovery process, something could be missed. You don’t want that on top of everything else that’s been going on.
Talk to him about in-home care, especially from a medical professional like a visiting nurse. It doesn’t have to be all day or several hours a day, but a quick visit to check in and make sure he’s on the right track can go a long way toward helping him recover.
If you or an aging loved one are considering In-Home Care in Little Elm, TX, please contact the caring staff at Clear Path Home Care today at (817) 928-5788
Clear Path Home Care provides compassionate, high-quality home care in Denton County, Montague County, Cooke County, Grayson County, Fannin County, Lamar County, Wise County, Collin County, Hunt County, Delta County, and Hopkins County in Texas.
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