Top 5 Benefits of ADL Assessments

As people age, they become increasingly reliant upon their family and other caregivers to take care of their physical needs, as they aren’t able to do so independently. Between the ages of 85 and 89, more than half of older adults (58.5%) receive a caregiver’s help because of some physical limitation or other health problems.

Are you in a situation where you have an elderly parent and you wonder if they need senior care, or if they can be left to fend for themselves? ADL assessments are a great way to gauge this. ADL stands for activities of daily living, and it’s an assessment that can help you figure out if the older adult can perform all the daily activities necessary to live as an independent person.

Read on to learn more about the benefits of using an ADL assessment tool.

1. Maximizes an Individual’s Ability to Be Independent

The main benefit of an ADL assessment is that it helps an individual relearn or regain the ability to carry out their ADL tasks. This is especially useful after an injury or some other health problem.

As a caregiver, one of the main things you worry about when it comes to your loved one is probably their ability to take care of themselves when you are not around. You can’t be around 24/7. That’s impossible, especially considering you probably have your family, full-time job, and other items to take care of.

But you also probably feel an immense amount of guilt and fear when you leave your elderly parent or loved one on their own.

With an occupational therapists’ help, an ADL assessment can get your loved one back up to par. They can become mobile again and independent enough to take care of all their needs, without needing your help. This can give you your life back, but also give you a sense of relief that you don’t have to spend time worrying about your elderly or injured parent.

2. Reduces Reliance on Costly Home Care Services

If you are working a full-time job or have young children that need your constant care, you will NOT be able to take care of your elderly or injured parent full-time as well. There are just not enough hours in the day for that.

So you might have considered hiring home care services to take care of your loved one. But home care services are exorbitantly expensive, especially if they involve a live-in caregiver or some additional benefits.

If you are having a hard time balancing out your finances already and worry that this additional expense (most of which will not be covered by insurance), is going to blow your finances out of the water, then an ADL assessment tool can help. Once your elderly or senior parent is independent and moving about on their own volition again, then you won’t need home care services at all.

3. Minimizes Injury or Aggravation in the Home

One major issue with leaving an injured or functionally incapable person in the home is that they will end up hurting themselves if they try to cook something on the stove or if they try to take a shower without proper precautions. You can’t have a baby monitor set on them 24/7, but without such a watchful eye, you will worry about them day in and day out.

With an ADL assessment, your loved one can become independent again, and not rely upon you or anyone else. They will be less prone to injuries or aggravation in the home (due to frustrations of not being able to do what they want). This should reduce the overall burden on you and also on them, as they don’t want to be unnecessarily reliant upon someone else either.

also read: How to Help Your Aging Parent Stay Active

4. Shortens the Period of Incapacity

The faster your loved one can heal their injuries, and get back to independent living, the better it is for them. It is harmful to their muscles, tendons, ligaments, joints, and other internal structures to be immobile or incapacitated for too long.

You want the injured party to be moving about and back on their feet as soon as physically possible. And an ADL assessment tool like Iinsight can help with that.

5. Gives You Relief and Respite, Reducing Caregiver Stress Levels

Caregiver stress is a real thing. There’s no doubt about that. Not only is it painful for you to watch your elderly parent struggle with daily living, but it’s also exhausting for you to help them all day long in addition to everything else that’s on your plate.

No matter how much you say so, you are not superhuman. And if you burn out or get sick because of overwork, then that isn’t going to bode well for anyone in your family.

With a proper ADL assessment, your loved one will be back on their feet in no time and that will reduce your overall stress levels. It’s easy to think that you can handle it all for a little while, but what if the situation prolongs for longer than you imagined. That would be devastating to your health.

ADL Assessments Are an Essential Part of the Recovery Process

If you want your loved elderly parent to not feel like they are burdening you, and you want everything in your life to go back to ‘normal’ as soon as possible, then consider adding ADL assessments to the roster.

It might seem like an inconsequential thing, but it can be a powerful tool that could transform the way your loved one recovers, recuperates and bounces back to independence.

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