Many older adults in their golden years are turning to retirement communities as their next step in retirement life, thanks to the various perks and services they’re entitled to enjoy. One of the many exclusive retirement community services residents take advantage of to enjoy a higher quality of life is medication management, in which the caregivers in the community help them to manage and organize their prescription medication. Wonder how medication management services can help out your parents in a retirement community offering senior living in Texas? Read on to find out.
Understanding Your Parent’s Medical History
If your parent has a medical history that involves a chronic disease of some sort, it may be worrying for you to let them live alone in an apartment home. Thankfully, many retirement communities in Texas offer medication management services provided by onsite caregivers. During your parent’s evaluation period before their big move, they’ll be sharing their medical history and any conditions they may have with the community’s team. Thus, your parent’s caregivers will have a comprehensive understanding of your loved one’s medical history and medical care requirements.
Recognizing and Remembering Medications
Older adults in the U.S. are experiencing a polypharmacy epidemic, which essentially means that individual patients taking multiple medications are becoming increasingly common. Statistically, 42% of older adults are taking five or more prescription medications. Hence, it’s no surprise that your parent may have trouble recognizing and remembering their prescriptions. Retirement communities are backed by team members that are experienced in senior care, including registered nurses that have deep medical knowledge. Your parent’s caregivers will know which medications are for which symptoms and will help your parent to sort them appropriately.
Modifying Medicine
If your parent has problems with swallowing pills and tablets, their doctor or pharmacist may give them permission to crush or break their tablets. Rather than having to go through this tedious task every time they need to take their daily dose, your parent can receive a helping hand from their caregivers in the community instead. This makes taking medication less troublesome for your parent, making it easier for them to stay in good health.
Scheduling and Reminding
Scheduling medication intake becomes more difficult than ever because of how complicated taking multiple medications can be. However, forgetting to take medication can lead to serious health consequences in the long run. Thankfully, at a retirement community, your parent can leave scheduling to their caregivers, and receive reminders from them whenever they need to take their medication. Never will your parent forget to take a pill again!
Staying on Alert for Side Effects
Another important aspect to consider about medication is side effects, especially if your parent is still exploring medication options. Whenever your parent changes to a new medication or dosage, you’re most likely not going to be able to be present to watch over them at all times. On the other hand, when living in a retirement community, your parent will be able to rely on the caregivers in the community to keep them in safe hands.
Exploring care options for your aging loved one? Consider taking a look at the senior living options we offer!
