At Avalon Memory Care, your loved one will always receive compassionate care focused on supporting their dignity and quality of life, 24/7.
When is it time to take the keys away?
It’s human nature to make our own decisions, take charge of our personal schedules, and be independent. When dementia is diagnosed, however, patients become limited in doing many of the activities that came with adulting. It’s a tough reality, but there are resources that can help ease our senior loved ones into this unknown world. Driving is one of the most autonomous things we can do, and for some people, giving up that freedom brings them to absolute obstinance. This is for good reason, though. Especially when dementia robs an individual of so many other aptitudes, removing the joy of driving is like another kick to the spirit. There are ways to delicately address the driving dilemma, but it might take an equal amount of patience and austerity. Because unsafe senior drivers are a danger to themselves and others, this is a very important issue to handle. Here are some tips: Check your parent’s car for blemishes. Things like scratches, dents, windshield cracks, untidy spills that aren’t cleaned up, or missing parts such as tire hubcaps are all warning signs that your mom or dad is having trouble. Do an online assessment. AARP has a free online seminar called We Need to Talk to help families decide if it’s time to take the car keys. Hire a professional driver occupational therapist for an evaluation. They’ll do a series of tests to determine if your aging parent is still competent and cognitively fit to drive. It’s a safety measure that can prevent a lot of heartache down the road. Talk to your parent candidly. See how they feel about having others pick them up or learning public transportation. Offer them alternatives like virtual doctor visits, massage [...]