December is National Handwashing Awareness Month and it’s the perfect time to make sure that your senior parent is washing their hands often. Washing hands is one of the easiest and most effective ways to help your senior parent protect their health.
Simply washing hands often with soap can help seniors, and the people who spend time with them, avoid catching illnesses like the flu, colds, and Covid-19. And washing hands doesn’t require any extra effort.
If your mom or dad has home care, their home care provider can remind them to wash their hands throughout the day. If your senior parent has a medical appointment or is out running errands, they can protect themselves by using hand sanitizer when they can’t wash with soap and water.
Hand sanitizer is a good alternative to soap when soap isn’t available, but it’s better for seniors to wash their hands whenever they can. Some of the ways that handwashing can help keep your senior parent healthy include:
Reduces Infection Risk
Regular handwashing helps eliminate harmful bacteria and viruses, lowering the risk of infections such as colds, flu, and gastrointestinal illnesses, which can be more severe in seniors. Frequent handwashing also helps protect seniors from illnesses like RSV and Covid-19 which have been on the rise this year.
Prevents Spread of Illness
Many seniors have compromised immune systems because they have chronic illnesses. Seniors are more susceptible to contagious diseases, especially if they have an already compromised immune system. Hand hygiene prevents the transmission of pathogens from surfaces and other individuals, protecting your senior parent’s health.
Prevents Illness During Recovery
For seniors recovering from surgery or illness, clean hands can prevent complications and secondary infections, promoting quicker recovery. If your senior parent is recovering at home make sure that their home care provider, family members, therapists, and anyone else that coming into contact with your mom or dad washes their hands often as well. As a general rule, anyone that visits your mom or dad should wash their hands when they arrive.
Supports Immune Health
Consistent handwashing can reduce the overall burden of infectious diseases, allowing the immune system to function better without constantly fighting off infections. Your mom or dad should also be doing whatever they can to boost their overall immune health like eating a healthy diet, taking any supplements recommended by their doctor, and getting enough sleep.
Encourages Healthy Habits
Promoting regular handwashing can foster a greater awareness of personal hygiene, leading to a more health-conscious lifestyle that includes other preventive health measures. Seniors who spend a lot of time at home may think it’s not as important to wash their hands often because they aren’t going out in public.
But germs, bacteria, and viruses don’t only exist outside the home. Seniors can still get sick when they’re at home. That’s why seniors need to wash their hands often even if they don’t go out often and spend most of their time at home.
If you or an aging loved one is considering Home Care in Riverton, KS, please contact the caring staff at Adelmo Family Care today at (417) 206-4576
Adelmo Family Care provides exceptional home and facility care for seniors, disabled adults, and their families in Joplin, Webb City, Carthage, Duquesne, Neosho, Carl Junction, Lamar, Newton County, MO, Jasper County, MO, Pittsburg, KS, Riverton, KS, Crawford County, KS, Cherokee County, KS, and surrounding areas.
To provide the safest and most qualified caregivers, John felt it was important to properly screen and train caregivers before they were invited into the homes of the families being care for.No caregiver is introduced to a client before being taught the Adelmo Standard.
Adelmo is German for Noble Protector, a name that projects what Adelmo Family Care strives to be. It is our goal to protect our elderly from having to move somewhere they do not want to go, while remaining safe, secure and independent.
Care is our Product and Independence is our Goal.We are there for you when you need to have some help to continue to live independently, at your direction, in your home. We will work with you to get you as fit as possible so you may become completely independent once again, if at all possible.
We provide compassionate care, a watchful eye and a helping hand to our clients and their families.
We can't wait to meet you!
Adelmo Family Care is a member of the Home Care Association of America, The Senior’s Choice, The Webb City Chamber of Commerce, The Joplin Area Chamber of Commerce and several local senior committees.
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