Western Pennsylvania Healthcare News

Covering healthcare news in the Pittsburgh region and beyond.

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The Top Ten Fears of Elderly Adults

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Father-Daughter-WalkingMany of the fears that aging adults experience relate to the biggest challenge they say they face: staying active. According to a recent survey conducted for the Home Instead Senior Care network, seniors worry about the future, beginning with the loss of their independence.*

  1. Loss of independence.
  2. Declining health.
  3. Running out of money.
  4. Not being able to live at home.
  5. Death of a spouse or other family member.
  6. Inability to manage their own activities of daily living.
  7. Not being able to drive.
  8. Isolation or loneliness.
  9. Strangers caring for them.
  10. Fear of falling or hurting themselves.

[Read more…]

Salute to Senior Service—Search on for State’s Outstanding Senior Volunteers

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The Home Instead Senior Care® offices serving seniors in the Greater Pittsburgh Area, has announced the Salute to Senior ServiceSM program to honor senior volunteers for the tireless contributions they make to their local communities.

The program will include a search for the most outstanding senior volunteer in each state and culminate with the selection of a national Salute to Senior Service winner during Older Americans Month in May. Nominees must be 65 years of age or older and volunteer at least 15 hours a month. Nominations will be accepted at www.SalutetoSeniorService.com through March 15, 2012. Nomination forms also can be requested at ckoehler@homeinsteadinc.com. State Senior HeroSM winners will receive plaques, and their stories will be posted on the SalutetoSeniorService.com website. In addition, $5,000 will be donated to the national winner’s nonprofit charity of choice. According to research conducted by the Home Instead Senior Care® network, 52 percent of seniors volunteer their time through unpaid community service. Nearly 20 percent (one in five) of seniors surveyed started volunteering when they reached the traditional age of retirement – 65 or older. Furthermore, 20 percent of seniors who volunteer say that their community service is the most important thing they do. [Read more…]

Seniors’ Economic Struggles Continue This Holiday; Santa Program Provides Assistance

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Be a Santa to a Senior®, the popular campaign that has delivered 1.5 million gifts to needy seniors throughout North America during the past seven years, again is helping older adults cope in tough economic times.

The area offices of the Home Instead Senior Care® network, the world’s largest provider of non-medical in-home care and companionship services for older adults, has partnered with area community organizations, senior service agencies, churches, health organizations and retailers to provide gifts and companionship to seniors who otherwise might not receive either this holiday season. The local offices together serve seniors and their families in Allegheny, Beaver, Butler, Washington and Westmoreland Counties.

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The 50/50 Rule: Solving Family Conflict

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Helping You Help Siblings Overcome Family Conflict

Does your job as a senior care professional sometimes seem like that of a referee? If you feel that you’re always trying to resolve a family dispute, you’re not alone. This guide is designed to help adult siblings and their aging parents deal with those sensitive situations that arise among brothers and sisters as their parents age and need assistance.

The downloadable guide covers a variety of sibling caregiving topics such as:

  • How do siblings divide the workload?
  • What’s the best way to build teamwork between brothers and sisters?
  • How can they reach agreement as a family on important topics to avoid family conflict?

Download the guide:
The 50/50 RuleSM brochure (PDF 950KB)

The 50/50 guide is designed to help adult siblings and their aging parents deal with those sensitive situations that arise among brothers and sisters as their parents age and need assistance.

CAREGivers from Home Instead Senior Care can make a difference in the lives of older adults and their families by providing support with activities of daily living.


Free Home for the Holidays Web Conference Will Help Local Family Caregivers Tune Into Trouble

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The holidays are a good time for family caregivers returning home to their loved ones to tune into the signs that an older family member or friend may need extra help to remain safe at home.

To learn more about those signs, register for the free Home for the Holidays web conference, moderated by a representative from the Home Instead Senior Care® network, hosted by the American Society on Aging (ASA), and co-sponsored by the National Family Caregivers Association (NFCA) and the National Alliance for Caregiving (NAC).

The hour-long web conference will be available in the U.S. and Canada, and offered on two dates and times: Tuesday, Nov. 15, at 1 p.m. Eastern Time, or Monday, Dec. 5, at 8 p.m. Eastern Time. To register, go to www.caregiverstress.com/familyeducation.

“It’s easy for busy family caregivers to overlook the subtle signs that a senior loved one needs assistance,” said Lucy Novelly, owner of one of the Home Instead Senior Care offices serving the Greater Pittsburgh area. “But during the holidays, when many return to their childhood homes, the difference between your last visit and now can highlight those red flags.”

[Read more…]

10 Mealtime Challenges that Threaten Healthy Aging

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Nutrition for the elderly is among the most important aspects of aging. But mealtime challenges such as loneliness, lack of companionship and cooking for one can threaten an older adult’s health and well-being. The Home Instead Senior Care® network has launched the Craving CompanionshipSM program to promote healthy aging through nutrition and companionship so family caregivers can rest assured that their seniors are not in jeopardy.


Family caregivers who arrive at an older loved one’s home around mealtime to find Mom or Dad eating toast for dinner shouldn’t be surprised. Seniors who live alone with lack of companionship and faced with the prospect of cooking for one, often don’t eat like they should. A recent Home Instead Senior Care® network survey discovered that the biggest mealtime challenge for older people who live alone is lack of the shared family experience, including lack of companionship. And that’s just one of the ten mealtime challenges that threaten healthy aging.

Family caregivers know how difficult it can be to ensure older adults are eating properly. Seniors may face multiple challenges when it comes to the pursuit of good nutrition. Illnesses and diseases can dampen taste buds. Seniors on multiple medications or recovering from an illness may lose interest in eating. The conditions of aging sometimes make shopping and preparing food difficult. And then there’s loneliness.

[Read more…]

The 50-50 Rule: Overcoming Family Conflict is in the Best Interests of Aging Parents

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By Lucy Novelly, CSA, Franchise Owner/CEO of Home Instead Senior Care serving Washington County and the South Hills area.

For more information about the local Home Instead Senior Care offices serving the Greater Pittsburgh area, visit www.homeinstead.com/greaterpittsburgh or call 1-866-996-1087.

Anyone who cares for seniors whether in the hospital or home setting has seen the behind-the-scenes family conflict that can interfere with the care of an elderly patient. Siblings may not have much in common now that they’re grown, but they do share one thing: responsibility for the care of their mom or dad.

“Any family that has cared for a senior loved one knows that problems working with siblings can lead to family strife,” said Lucy Novelly, a local franchise owner of Home Instead Senior Care that serves Washington County and South Hills. “Making decisions together, dividing the workload and teamwork are the keys to overcoming family conflict.”

Coined The 50-50 RuleSM, this program offers strategies for overcoming sibling differences to help families provide the best care for elderly parents, which in turn helps the professionals who fit into the overall care dynamic. The 50-50 Rule refers to the average age (50) when siblings are caring for their parents, as well as the need for brothers and sisters to share in the plans for care 50-50.

[Read more…]

Home Helper Could Assist Patients Discharged from Hospital

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A recent study has identified an unusual phenomenon. For senior citizens, hospitalizations actually may cause temporary memory loss and difficulty in understanding discharge instructions, according to a Northwestern Medicine study.

The seniors go back to normal one month after the hospital stay, the study found. But immediately following a hospitalization is a critical time in which seniors may need extra support from healthcare professionals and family, according to Lee Lindquist, M.D., the lead author of the study, published online in the Journal of General Internal Medicine.

[Read more…]

Checklist for Sibling Family Caregivers

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The following checklist can help siblings better manage the care of their senior loved ones.

—Identify and list the needs that your senior loved ones have that will enable them to remain independent and avoid family conflict throughout the aging process. Tasks to consider include meals, housekeeping, scheduling doctor appointment, bill paying, grocery shopping and companionship. Key needs include:

  • Medical
  • Housing
  • Activities of daily living
  • End-of-life including advance directives such as living will and long-term care
  • Estate planning and funeral planning

[Read more…]