Why are independent living techniques so important for the health of the elderly?

An ageing population gives residential care no choice but to be a developing sector, with those care homes who welcome technological innovations and trendier forms of personalised care likely to have the best survival chance when assessed alongside emerging supported living facilities, sheltered housing and extra care villages. These emerging forms of care offer a friendly face to those first encountering the care sector, helping to defeat some of the feared stereotypes of elderly care, but it is important that care homes move with them in order to stand up for their own relevance rather than appearing archaic as a result, with growing competition from the social care sector also a competing factor.

We might not need to be a care professionals in order to be familiar with the importance of physical activity for the health and well-being of the elderly, but only those who work in the industry will be more acutely aware of some of the problems standing in the way of turning a healthy lifestyle into a reality within a care setting. Complications that contradict the ultimate goals of a healthy care service are often related to legal issues, with the likelihood of falls and other safety issues proving a frustrating hurdle. Elderly people with a relatively minimum fall risk, for example, can often be prevented from completing simple daily tasks for themselves, such as making drinks, due to the danger of their care provider being sued as a result, though such policies are actually detrimental to long-term health and falls risk, as it is generally agreed that inactivity reduces balancing abilities, while potentially contributing to many other factors such as depression, stress, high cholesterol and high blood pressure. Many care workers are keen to stress that if elderly and frail people are able to enjoy fully supervised outings and exercise sessions, then there should be more versatility on more mundane personal tasks.

Physical activity is also directly-related to mental health and care campaigners are keen to spread the message that there are no reasons for physical and mental decline to be viewed as coming hand-in-hand. Many are also looking for individual care assessments to acknowledge the positive health attributes that residents have, with rules and regulations often overlooking the fact that a person can have a particular physical frailty while still having positive levels of fitness that should be protected within their care plan for the sake of long-term health.

An embracing of new technologies is being encouraged throughout residential homes, with many having seen elderly people, who wouldn’t have expected to be mastering the workings of a games console’ getting endless hours of enjoyment – and exercise – from the Nintendo Wii, for example. Though this is just one step on the way to achieving an independent and fulfilling lifestyle within the care setting, in which carers have the time to get to know those they look after individually and further to the requirements set out in their care package.