Caring for aging parents is a profound life transition—one that brings both emotional and practical challenges. These are the people you have looked up to and who have cared for you. Now that your roles are reversed, you probably have a lot of questions and uneasy feelings. You may feel overwhelmed and unprepared for how to take care of aging parents. The good news? A structured plan can help you move forward with confidence.
Our ‘How To Take Care of Aging Parents’ Checklist
An important first step is to develop a plan for your parents. This should address their current situation and capabilities but also look toward the future. Following a checklist to help you care for your aging parents, such as the one below, can help you take the necessary steps to keep your parents safe, well cared for, and protected.
1. Financial Planning
It is never too early to plan for your parents’ financial future. You do not need to take over their finances completely, but you do want to make provisions for if and when that time comes. At the very least, a springing power of attorney allows you to make financial moves if your parents cannot. You should also prepare for the costs of in-home care or assisted living, home repairs, and other unexpected expenses that could come up.
2. Healthcare Arrangements
Healthcare is a major concern for many older adults. You want to make plans for this early. Some of the legal documents that cover healthcare you may want your aging parents to complete include:
- Advanced directive: Explains what you want to be done or withheld if you cannot communicate your wishes. A living will can cover topics such as palliative care, organ donation, and life support.
- Healthcare power of attorney: Gives a designated person the right to make medical decisions for you if you cannot.
- Do not resuscitate (DNR) order: Stops healthcare providers from resuscitating you if your heart or breathing stops
Healthcare concerns can also cover whether your parents want to remain in their current home and receive assistance or move to an assisted living facility if the need arises. It is a good idea to talk with your parents about their insurance policies and whether they cover long-term care.
3. Other Legal Documents
Legal planning for older adults goes well beyond health care arrangements. You will also want to ensure they have a valid will. In some states, a will alone is not enough to avoid probate. Consider discussing establishing a living trust to protect your parents’ assets and limit legal complications after their deaths.
Help your parents gather all their important legal documents and store them in a safe place. This will usually include advance directives, powers of attorney, will or trust documents, social security cards, insurance policies, and copies of IDs. If you haven’t already, consider speaking to an attorney who specializes in estate planning during this stage.
4. Home Maintenance and Modifications
Many older adults choose to stay at home. This requires them to keep up with maintenance and repairs. It may also necessitate modifications. Making plans for these is an important part of your checklist since it helps ensure your parents have a safe and healthy place to live.
Aging in place is a great strategy that can help improve quality of life and lower healthcare costs. However, it isn’t for everyone. Some older adults experience isolation or an increased risk of falls at home.
5.Social Engagement
Isolation poses serious risks to older adults. Your checklist should include ways to keep them engaged with friends and family. If they aren’t involved in a local community or senior center, see if there is one nearby that they can visit. Depending on their abilities, you may want to look into options such as homebound meal delivery or a visiting angels program.
6. Living Arrangements
Discussing assisted living with an aging parent should be approached sensitively. However, it must be approached. You should fully understand each person’s feelings and wishes about living arrangements. This is especially important if one of them needs more care than the other.
You also want to watch for signs that it is time for your parents to transition to an assisted living community. You may notice they aren’t bathing regularly or they are skipping meals. These actions can have serious consequences and indicate it is time to find more intensive care.
Tips for Creating an Effective Checklist to Care for Your Aging Parents
Knowing what you must do and actually doing it are two very different things. After all, you have probably made a bunch of lists in your life where you didn’t get to every item. Unfortunately, skipping any of these items can leave your parents vulnerable to abuse, neglect, or improper care. Following a few basic words of advice can help ensure your checklist is comprehensive and effective.
Involve Your Parents
This may seem like an obvious statement, but it is easy to overlook for the sake of convenience. However, you must include your parents in these decisions. It is their future you are discussing. If they are still cognitively capable, let your parents make these choices. If they are not able to make them alone, you still want to listen to and address their concerns in your decisions.
Leave Emotions Out of Decisions
Don’t let your emotions cloud your ability to make objective decisions. You will need to face issues affecting your parents, such as memory loss, declining health, and mortality. It can be hard to look at things objectively, but you must.
Get Professional Assistance
You can probably handle many of the decisions and tasks on this checklist between you and your parents. However, some things like estate planning, healthcare needs, and insurance changes are better left to professionals. Many resources for assistance with home repairs and living choices can help ease some of your burden. Don’t be afraid to use them.
Create a Checklist for Caring for Aging Parents With Elder Care Alliance
Finding the right care for aging parents can be overwhelming—but you don’t have to do it alone. Elder Care Alliance offers compassionate and safe living arrangements for older adults. Whether your parents want to be in an active community surrounded by their peers or they need assisted living services, we can help. Visiting one of our communities can help put their minds at ease and tick an item off your caring for aging parents checklist. Contact us to schedule a visit.
