How Small Businesses Prepare for Elder-Care Emergencies

What do small businesses and elder-care emergencies have in common? Well, according to an article in the Los Angeles Times, about $33.6 billion reasons. Less than 10% of companies offer elder-care resources which makes it difficult for employees. These employees are caught in the middle, working for their employers and being caregivers to their parents, plus taking care of their children, if they have any. When an individual is the primary caregiver for a parent, it is not uncommon for him or her to occasionally miss work. Productivity can decrease, thus affecting other team members and the organization as a whole.

In 2006, the MetLife Mature Market Institute and the National Alliance for Caregiving released a study stating the cost of $33.6 billion that is associated with elder-care emergencies is based on employees' “absenteeism, workday interruptions, work leaves and cutbacks in hours, among other factors. Some workers quit altogether when faced with parents’ illnesses, causing employers to spend money to replace them.”

As the number of people 65 and older continues to rise rapidly, the issue of small businesses preparing for elder-care emergencies continues to move to the forefront of conversation. Below are ways small businesses can prepare for this societal change:

• Free Information. Providing information on resources can save employee’s time and employer’s money. Websites, including www.eldercare.gov and www.n4a.org, can help find local services such as transportation, meals, home care, caregiver support and legal and financial assistance.

At a National Council on Aging site, www.benefitscheckup.org, an employee can determine which federal and state assistance programs their relatives and loved ones are eligible for. Encourage employees to learn about options for their parents before an elder-care emergency strikes.

• Paid leave. Be informed about employee rights. In California, businesses with two or more employees must allow their employees up to six weeks of leave annually to care for a seriously ill parent or family member. During that time, the employee receives partial pay, but it comes out of a state fund for this purpose (employees pay into the fund while working). The employee has to obtain a doctor’s certificate confirming the family member’s illness in order to get this benefit.

According to Labor Attorney Richard S. Rosenberg, California employers with paid sick leave programs are required to allow workers to take up to 50% of the worker’s annual allotment of sick days to care for family members, no matter the size of the organization.

• Job training. Cross-training employees on different jobs at a small business can head off elder-care problems

• Flexible work arrangements. Job sharing, telecommuting and alternative career tracks can also be options for employee caregivers who need more flexibility at work.

Courtesy of Home Care Blog

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Home Care Assistance offers the highest quality 24/7 live-in home care in the Region of Halton (Oakville, Burlington, Halton Hills, and Milton), Region of Peel (Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon) and Hamilton.

Seniors use video games to stay sharp

As individuals age, their cognitive skills tend to decline. However, some seniors have taken to video games to stay sharp and fit in a fun way. Here are just four of the ways that video games can help your cognitive performance.

1. According to Psychology and Aging, playing complex video games after receiving training may improve the cognitive function of seniors.

2. Aside from improving their cognitive functions, video games, which require seniors to juggle multiple tasks, may also improve their ability to perform other everyday tasks.

3. Research conducted in the past indicates that Nintendo Wii games can be successfully used to help treat seniors with Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s disease and other illnesses of a psychological or psychosocial nature.

4. Preliminary studies have shown that video games with a strategic element may help older adults keep their brains sharp.

So while the common image of playing video games appears dormant and mind-dulling, studies seem to show the contrary. More and more research is coming out just as fast as Wii games are selling out proving that certain video games can legitimately improve senior’s health by keeping them active, both physically and mentally.

Courtesy of Home Care Blog

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Home Care Assistance offers the highest quality 24/7 live-in home care in the Region of Halton (Oakville, Burlington, Halton Hills, and Milton), Region of Peel (Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon) and Hamilton.

Ignatieff outlines national home care strategy

October 5, 2010

OTTAWA -- Today Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff detailed his national home care strategy which he calls the "next frontier" of policy after his "number one priority" a national child-care program. Ignatieff argues that the Conservative government is not looking out for the priorities of everyday Canadians. In contrast, Ignatieff is attempting to portray the Liberal party as being in touch with Canadian voters.

"[The] government is spending $1.3-billion on a G8-G20 summit, $16-billion on planes without a competitive bid, triples the publicity budget of the government and is about to give big corporations a $6-billion tax break...When is the government going to pay some attention to the growing needs of Canadian families for home care assistance? When is it going to get its priorities right?”" -- Liberal leader Michael Ignatieff in Question Period

In the October 4 Question Period Ignatieff invoked a story about a woman from Montreal that he met who was caring for her two ailing parents at home with little support from the government. Ignatieff roughly estimated that there were three million women in similar situations in Montreal alone.

Ignatieff gave a preview of his home care strategy to Postmedia News last month which features tax credits for caregivers and more funding for professional caregivers to visit patients living at home.

Senior Liberal officials assure that the home care strategy will be balanced and fiscally responsible however Ignatieff has not offered any answers to how the program would be funded. His proposal to reverse all of the $6-billion in corporate tax cuts - $1.8-million of which is will become law on January 1 - has already been devoted to increase financial support for aboriginal students, invest in skills and language training for immigrants and the aforementioned national child-care program.

Sources: National Post - "Liberal promises adding up", Macleans Magazine - "The Commons: There once was a woman from Montreal"

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Home Care Assistance offers the highest quality 24/7 live-in home care in the Region of Halton (Oakville, Burlington, Halton Hills, and Milton), Region of Peel (Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon) and Hamilton.

How to Live to 102 - Secret #35

Eat "good" cholesterol also known as HDL cholesterol. A study published in the Journal of the American College of Cardiology analyzed 24 studies of 145,000 people and found that those with higher levels of HDL cholesterol had significantly lower rates of incidence for cancer. One theory is that HDL cholesterol possesses anti-inflammatory preperties that tame tumors.

Source: Men's Health, October 2010

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Home Care Assistance offers the highest quality 24/7 live-in home care in the Region of Halton (Oakville, Burlington, Halton Hills, and Milton), Region of Peel (Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon) and Hamilton.

How to Keep Your Heart Strong and Healthy

"In the future, invasive surgery will be viewed as barbaric. Advances in genetics mean we now understand heart disease on a higher plane. That will translate to better preventative treatments." -- John Elefteriades, M.D., Chief of Cardiac Surgery at the Yale School of Medicine.

In the October 2010 issue of Men's Health, Dr. Elefteriades provides some preventative measures that men and women can take in their lifestyles to significantly strengthen their heart and improve their health.

Cardiovascular Exercise

"Aerobic exercise is key; I hit the rower, stationary bike, and treadmill." says Elefteriades. For maximum benefit, use high-intensity interval drills rather than steady-state training.

Maintain a Healthy Weight

Maintaining a certain weight level is as simple as burning as many calories as one intakes. When the scale begins to climb out of range, simply eat less calories or exercise more during the day. The great thing about exercise is that more of it does not neccessarily preclude more eating for sustenance. One possible reason is that exercise suppresses the hormone ghrelin, which stimulates appetite. Even if you have trouble keeping the weight off, your body will be much healthier from past exercise.

Manage Stress

Find an activity that you truly enjoy and take some time out of your schedule to devote to that activity. Elefteriades manages his stress with a pen and paper. "I've started writing fiction. It helps me relax because I have total control over the outcome of events, unlike in my day job." Chewing on sugarless gum has also been shown to boost your brain's relaxation response to stress as well as sharpening your focus.

Source: Men's Health, October 2010

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Home Care Assistance offers the highest quality 24/7 live-in home care in the Region of Halton (Oakville, Burlington, Halton Hills, and Milton), Region of Peel (Mississauga, Brampton and Caledon) and Hamilton.