When Is Elderly At-home Care Not Enough?

Oftentimes, public programs use six Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) to assess whether an elderly person is eligible for services. Similarly, many long-term care insurance policies may use a person’s inability to do a certain number of functions as criteria for paying benefits.

Determining how many of these functions your parent can perform without assistance may also help you understand the level of care your loved one will need:

• Eating: Being able to feed oneself but not necessarily prepare food
• Bathing: Being able to bathe without assistance
• Transferring: Getting in and out of bed, and moving from a seated to standing position without assistance
• Dressing: Not only dressing oneself but also making the proper decisions when it comes to clothing
• Toileting: Being able to use the washroom without assistance
• Continence: Both the mental and physical aspects of using a washroom

Learn more about some of the costs associated with taking care of an elderly parent, including housing considerations.