Updating Your Aging Parent’s Emergency Kit for Winter
Caregiver Darby PA
As a family caregiver you know how important it is for your aging loved one to be properly prepared for any emergencies that might arise. While you do not like to think about your senior facing such an emergency, especially if it occurs when you are not available to help them through it, ensuring that they are properly prepared is crucial to helping them avoid potentially devastating consequences.
One important element of being prepared for a potential emergency is having an emergency kit packed and ready for use. This type of kit should be ready for them at all times throughout the year, but it is crucial that you also update this kit to address the new challenges that might arise during the different seasons.
As the winter weather approaches, now is the time for you to make sure that their emergency kit is adequately primed for winter emergencies. This way if there is a weather emergency that leaves your aging parent stranded in their home without power, you can feel more confident that they will be protected.
Some of the items that you should be sure to add to your aging parent’s emergency kit as you update it for winter weather:
• Extra outerwear, including gloves, hats, scarves, and thick socks
• Blankets
• Towels they can use to block under doors and around windows to prevent cold air from getting in
• Enough bottled water to give each person who might be in the home at least a 3-day supply at one gallon per day
• High calorie foods, including energy bars, dried fruits, nuts, and even miniature candy bars that will keep up their energy and help their body stay warm
• Emergency cell phone battery and charger
• Battery or crank-operated radio
• Flashlights with extra batteries
• Bright fabric and reflectors to make them visible to any emergency help services
• Hand warmers
As a family caregiver it is also critical that you have an emergency kit in your vehicle to manage any emergency situations that might arise while you are out of the home, especially if your aging parent is with you. Some items that you should add to this emergency kit to prepare you for the winter weather include:
• First aid kit
• Pocket knife
• Sleeping bags
• Tow chain
• Cat litter or sand to help increase traction in the event that your vehicle slides off of the road or becomes stuck
• Whistle or horn to draw attention and help others find you to provide help
• Charger adapter so that you can charge your cell phone in your vehicle
Something that you should consider having in your vehicle that is easily accessible any time that you need emergency assistance is a pad of paper and a pen. This will enable you to write down any instructions or other information after you call for emergency assistance. It also lets you write a note that includes your name and contact information that you can leave in the vehicle if you need to leave it behind.
Source: http://ready.wi.gov/winter/HowToMakeAKit.asp
If you or an aging loved one are considering Caregiver Services in Darby PA, please contact the caring staff at True Direct Home Health Care today.
Doc, as he is called by everyone - staff, patients and clients - first experienced home health care and hospice care while as a colleg student at King's College as he cared for his mother every day while she first battled COPD and then lung cancer. It was during this time that he came to understand that caring for a patient was more than just clinical expertise.
"Admittedly, my strongest attribute is my communication skills and the simple fact that I love to help people. Even the smallest thing you can do for someone really can mean so much to them long term. In fact, it could change them forever. That's what providing quality personal home health care should be all about."
In his spare time, he cooks for homeless shelters and children's music and arts events. He also is highly involved in his local youth sports soccer academy as a coach and Board member.
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