Caring for Elderly Parents Checklist

Checklist – Caring for Elderly Parents

This guide and checklist will help families caring for elderly loved ones. We have included important to-do items that will help in dealing with the issues seniors and their families face. This article covers: Determining needs, Receive Permission, Handy information to access, Knowledge of senior concerns, and Taking a break and Caring for yourself.

Determining Senior’s Needs – Caring for Elderly

Is your parent in need of assistance with shopping, cleaning, laundry, making beds, or yard work?
Is your parent in need of assistance with bathing, dressing or grooming?
Is she in need of assistance with grocery shopping, or meal preparation?
Is your parent experiencing difficulty with memory, hearing, vision, or movement?
Is it safe for your parent to drive or use public transportation alone?
Does your parent have difficulty residing at home? Would modifications help improve safety?
Is your parent in need of assistance with paying bills or managing finances?
Does your parent need help with making legal and other important decisions?

Receive Permission

Appoint a trusted family member for financial power of attorney to handle paying bills and financial decisions
Identify a close relative to handle health care decisions with a medical power of attorney
Discuss and execute a living will to define future life-support preferences
Identify legal documents, policies, and accounts and have safety deposit box access
Document your senior’s wishes: funeral preferences, songs, cremation, finances, medical preferences
To make legal decisions, utilize a durable power of attorney
Consider who to add to mortgages and deeds

Handy information to access when Caring for Elderly

Copies of identification records: including, driver’s license, social security, and military ID numbers
Copies of Insurance documents: including medicare, or medicaid info, supplements, long-term care policy
Document medical history: include known allergies, medications, past surgerys and procedures
Geriatric doctors: contact information including names, address, phone numbers
Locate vital records including: birth certificate, marriage license, spouse death certificate, divorce decree
Identify trusted providers, including: financial advisor, lawyer, accountant, clergy
Update address list of family, friends, neighbors, and religious members
Document financial records, including: checkbook, account numbers, tax records, investments
Contact insurance agent for review on medical, life, homeowner’s, long-term care, auto
Review and update legal documents inlcuding: powers of attorney, will, health care directive
Locate deeds on properties including home, vehicles, or boat title
Identify household records, including: mortgage, tax records on property, apartment lease
Discuss final wishes including: burial, funeral pre-planning, organ donation, estate distribution

Senior Concerns

Your parent wants to continue to make as many decisions possible
Your parent wants you to respect her independence
Your parent wants to talk to you about their desires, concerns, and frustrations
Your parent wants you to have reasonable expectations of what can be done independently
Your parent wants you to be patient, loving, and show compassion while you are being responsible
Your parent wants you to make good decisions that are in the best interest of your parent’s needs