Understanding the Top Care Needs for Seniors

Identifying top care needs for seniors and why it helps you book in-home care

Talking about care needs can be tough, but it’s an essential part of finding the right in-home care services for your family. In this article we’ll introduce the six most common senior care needs and how you can find support for them.

How in-home care addresses senior health needs

In-home senior care typically covers non-medical support with personal care needs. Care needs range widely, but generally cover areas with everyday life where someone needs a bit of assistance. In-home caregivers provide day-to-day support with these needs, usually in collaboration with informal care from family and medical care from healthcare providers.

Examples of common care needs:

• Companionship
• Mobility support
• Help using technology
• Assistance with personal hygiene
• Senior-friendly assistance with transportation
• Meal preparation

Identifying care needs for yourself or your loved one helps you figure out all the details you need to book a Helper on Herewith. Once you know what your care needs are, you can create a Help Request, choosing how often you want to book help, what tasks the Helper will do, and any other requirements you have.

If your care needs change, you can always work with your Helper to adjust the help they provide or even book additional Helpers for one-time tasks for needs that pop-up from time-to-time.

The top 6 senior care needs

While everyone’s situation is different, there are six main types of care needs that most of us encounter as we age and as our loved ones age. In this article, we’ll talk about these care needs and how you can find help to meet those needs.

1. Help around the home
2. Companion care
3. Personal caregiving
4. Transportation
5. Mobility support
6. Specialized support

Help around the home for seniors

Help around the home includes household tasks, such as tidying and light cleaning, laundry, changing bed linens, meal preparation, pet care, and performing errands on behalf of the care recipient, such as grocery shopping or going to the post office.

Help around the home is an essential service that can be tailored to seniors’ individual needs and housing arrangements. For example, some families prefer to book supplemental caregiving services for loved ones in assisted living, so that they get those little extra services that add to their quality of life and peace of mind.

On Herewith, you can book a Helper to provide support with specific tasks related to help around the home and other categories. For example, you may task your Helper with doing laundry, doing weekly meal prep, or doing the shopping for your loved one.

Companion care for older adults

Whether seniors choose to age in place at home or move to assisted living, independent living, or skilled nursing facilities, they can be at high risk for isolation and depression.

For many long distance families, it’s very challenging to see loved ones lose access to their friends and community, as their ability to get out and about changes over time. Companion care is an essential service in supporting mental and emotional health, as well as assisting with wellness checks and providing peace of mind for families.

Companion care often goes hand-in-hand with help around the home, as Helpers provide company and conversation while performing household tasks. In addition, Helpers can help plan and/or accompany care recipients to social activities, as well as simply spending time together in conversation or doing the care recipient’s preferred activities.

Personal caregiving for seniors

Personal caregiving includes support related to hygiene (for example, showering or bathing), dressing, toileting, brief changes, and eating/drinking. These areas can be some of the toughest for family members and older adults to face together, as emotions of frustration, embarrassment, or family dynamics can make it hard to ask for help—or, in some cases, to set boundaries of what family members are able to provide. Sometimes, family members may simply live too far away or may not have enough time in their schedules outside of work and their own kids to provide help with these daily personal routines.

It can be beneficial to bring in a professional Helper with experience in this kind of support, reducing stress and risk of injury. If you wish to get help with personal care on Herewith, create a Help Request for Ongoing Care and customize your request with any other preferences and needs.

Senior-friendly assistance with transportation

With limitations on driving and using public transport, it can be challenging for seniors to get out of their homes to do errands, get to appointments, and other outings.

Helpers can provide essential support connecting care recipients with resources in their community outside the home. Most commonly, Helpers do errands on behalf of the care recipient, such as grocery shopping, post office runs, or going to the drugstore. Helpers can accompany care recipients to appointments, but may not assist with medical decisions. Learn more about how to request Helpers for errands and outings.

Mobility support for seniors

Proper support and supervision with movement can help prevent injuries and accidents for those who are at high risk for falling, those who use a scooter, wheelchair, or walking aid, or those who require sitting to standing assistance. It’s important to work with caregivers who have the proper training and experience to prevent injuries both to the person providing assistance and to the care recipient.

For older adults with limited mobility, a Helper experienced with mobility support can be very helpful. Such Helpers are familiar with the correct way to transfer a care recipient between the bed and wheelchair or other seating arrangements. View Helper profiles to review their experience with mobility support or message them with questions about their expertise.

In addition, Helpers can help maintain a safe environment, keeping the living space free from clutter and tripping hazards, and even provide support with light exercise. Learn more about easy modifications for a safe home environment for seniors with dementia.

Senior health needs with specialized support

In some cases, it might be necessary for a Helper to have experience with a particular kind of care or special equipment. Some types of specialized support include memory care (dementia or Alzheimer’s), hospice care, bedbound care, post-stroke care, support with limited range of motion, and familiarity with proper usage of special equipment, such as a gait belt or lifting device to support mobility and transferring.

In-home Helpers with these skills provide a valuable service in offering family members respite and covering gaps in care. If you’re looking for specialized support on Herewith, create a Help Request for Ongoing Help and add your specific needs. You can review each Helper’s credentials and expertise on their profile, as well as chatting with them before hiring to ensure they have the required skills.

Create a custom Help Request based on your loved one’s care needs

Care needs play an important role in creating your Help Request for flexible, affordable in-home senior care services. When you create your Help Request, you can select what you need help with, plus add your own job description with additional details. Once you post your Help Request, background-checked Helpers in your area will apply, and you can chat with them to find the best fit for you.