Personal Care Services in the North East

Personal care can mean anything done for you that’s of a personal nature. This could include such things as personal hygiene-bathing, showering, shaving, oral hygiene, or hair and nail care. It can also include continence management, assistance with toileting, wound, catheter, or stoma care, laundry, or bed changing. Personal care is for older people that need assistance of a general nature, as opposed to those who may need specific medical care.

• Personal hygiene – this is one of the most important aspects of personal care, as good hygiene is important to maintaining a healthy life.
• Mobility – as one ages, they are at risk for falls. In the UK, one in three people aged 65 or older experience a fall every year, and some of those falls leave permanent and serious damage. A personal carer can assist with mobility to prevent falls, and should a fall occur, the carer will be there to provide immediate assistance.
• Laundry – a personal carer can help with laundry and can make sure that their care recipient is dressed in clean clothes.
• Changing bed linen – washing and changing bed linen is often a struggle for older adults. The personal carer can perform this task alone, or simply assist. Making a bed is always easier when two people are doing it.
• Meal planning and preparation – a personal carer can perform this task and can offer nutritional advice to ensure that the older adult is eating a proper diet.
• Errands or shopping – offering assistance with grocery orders, shopping for clothes or other essentials.
• Doctor’s appointments – the carer can keep track of appointments and may provide transportation to and from.
• Pet care – a personal carer can assist with caring for pets-feeding them, cleaning up after, or walking them.
• Companionship – older adults sometimes just need someone to be there. A carer can provide companionship and someone to talk to, take a walk with, or one to share a cup of tea.

• Familiar surroundings – as one gets older, routine tasks can be difficult to complete. Rather than move into an assisted care residential facility, personal care can allow the individual to remain in their home. This allows them to stay in familiar surroundings with their possessions, their neighbours, and their memories.
• Independence – personal care allows the recipient to maintain a sense of independence. This is important as it can greatly reduce stress or depression in older adults.
• Safer care – one of the challenges of helping older adults with hygiene tasks is safely providing help. Carers who specialise in personal care are trained in techniques to help their charges safely with daily hygiene.
• Expert care – an experienced carer will know how to adapt their approach based on the individual’s ability to do specific tasks. They can identify which tasks give the individual difficulty, so that they don’t have to be told in what areas they need help.
• Less embarrassment – most people would prefer private hygiene, but older adults can lack this luxury. Personal care providers know how to allow the individual to maintain a sense of dignity when they need help in this area. Most older adults would be more embarrassed if these duties were performed by a friend or family member.
• Better health – older adults can sometimes develop serious health problems when they are too embarrassed to ask for help. Urinary tract and other infections can have serious health complications if not dealt with properly. A professional carer will know best how to do that.

Here are a few suggestions for you when selecting a personal care provider:

• Understand your needs – the first step in finding the right provider is to assess the needs of your loved one.
• Do research – take advantage of the internet to find agencies or private personal care providers. Your family’s general practitioner may be able to offer some assistance in this area as well.
• Involve your loved one – let them have input into the selection process.
• Review the provider’s credentials and reviews – other clients’ experiences can help you trim down the selections.
• Interview the care providers – if this is going to be a long-range relationship, it’s best to test the compatibility of the carers with your loved one.
• Ask about training – find out exactly how the care providers are trained and if that training is pertinent to the needs of your loved one.