Long-Distance Care: Tips for Supporting Senior Parents from Afar

It happens in the blink of an eye: one day, you are the child being cared for by your parents, and the next moment, you are the caregiver for your aging loved ones. When it is time for us to step out of the child role and into the parental role for our senior parents, it can be a tough transition. 

Supporting aging parents from a distance can be challenging, especially when caregivers and their senior parents live far apart. This situation often requires caregivers to juggle various life obligations, such as working and managing their households, while providing care and support for their aging loved ones. 

Solterra Senior Living in Arizona provides a beautiful community for aging loved ones to call home, and their caregiving experts offer some valuable tips for how best to support aging parents from a distance, whether they are experiencing senior living in Arizona near family or are living far away.

Use Technology to Your Advantage

From security cameras and sensors to emergency call buttons, technology can be your friend when creating a care plan for your aging parents from afar. It is always a good idea to maintain open communication with your parents to understand their needs and concerns around installing technology in their home and share your concerns as well. 

It can be a delicate balance to ensure your loved one maintains their sense of control and privacy within their home while keeping them safe by using the tools now available to us in the digital age. 

Finding a happy medium between privacy and safety can be difficult, but it can be done with some forethought. 

• Security cameras: When using security cameras to monitor your loved one, consider installing them outside by the front and back exits so that you can see when they come and go, but they can maintain privacy within the home. 
• Sensors on the fridge door: This technology can help detect if your parent is regularly eating meals. It can be a great tool for caregivers whose parents struggle to maintain their nutrition. 
• Safety buttons: Installing an emergency call button that your parent can push in an emergency can be a lifesaver. Most senior living apartments already have one installed.
• Wearable tech: Many companies offer wearable devices that allow your loved one to push a button on a bracelet or necklace and receive help if they have fallen and cannot reach the phone. Some smartwatches even offer fall alerts, with an alert sent to a chosen person when a fall is detected.

Create a Local Support Network

Sometimes, we cannot rely on technology and need a physical presence to check on or assist our parents who are far away. When this happens, it is a huge relief when we can reach out to a local support network with someone physically close to our parents who can check in on them or provide a helping hand when we can’t be there to provide it for them. 

Reach out in advance to family and friends who live close to your senior parent. Ask them if they are willing and able to provide that helping hand when needed. It can make all the difference in the world for your parents when they need help and will give you peace of mind knowing your parents have help available if you can’t provide for them. 

Consider reaching out to friendly neighbors who may be willing to keep an eye on your parents. You can also contact local community centers and religious communities to expand your local support network.

Use Online Delivery and Local Mobility Services

For parents who can no longer drive or when bad weather hits and driving is unsafe, consider using online delivery for things like food and medications to minimize the risk of falling or getting into a car accident. Delivery services are available in most areas, and either through a website or a smartphone app, you can easily have necessities delivered either on the same day or the next day for a small fee. 

If your parents cannot drive, you can use transportation services to open up their world beyond their home and allow them the freedom to get to their doctor’s appointments, go shopping, visit friends, and more. Often, senior living communities offer transportation through the front desk.

Organize Financials and Medical Documents

It can be challenging to know where important documents are stored during times of stress without planning ahead and knowing where everything you may need is before an emergency hits. 

Setting aside some time to have a conversation with your parents to discuss where they currently store their medical records and any financial documents, and maybe even have them send you copies, can remove the difficulty that arises when your parents need your help paying bills while in the hospital, or when doctors ask you for their medical history when they are unwell and are unable to provide the necessary information themselves due to illness.

Make Video Check-Ins

Though you may live far away from your parents, technology can bring you together with video calls. Scheduling regular calls with your parents can help remove their feelings of isolation. 

Video chats allow you to connect with your parents on a deeper level than just voice alone while living at a distance. Checking in with your parents on a surprise video call can help you identify when they may be hiding issues from you that they may not want to discuss due to fear or shame.

Consider Assisted Living

Sometimes, a parent’s care requires help that is closer to home. If moving closer to your parent or your parent moving closer to you is not an option, consider hiring an in-home caregiver, either full or part-time, or you may feel your parent moving into an assisted living community with onsite 24/7 care. If you or your parent lives in the Arizona area, talk with your parent about joining a senior living community in Arizona, like ours, here at Solterra Senior Living.