Four Practical Steps to Take When Your Senior Gives up Driving
At some point your elderly family member may finally have to stop driving. That means that some practical changes need to go into effect and your elderly family member may need your help to facilitate those changes.
Get Advice from the DMV
Elder Care Media, PA: Seniors and Driving
The Department of Motor Vehicles has helped caregivers and seniors deal with this situation before and they can give you advice now. Contact your local DMV office or the Secretary of State if that’s how your state handles licensing. Let them know what’s happening and determine what needs to happen for your elderly family member. Your senior may be able to keep her identification with a label that indicates she cannot drive or she may need new identification altogether.
Contact Her Insurance Company
Your senior’s insurance company is next on the list. If your elderly family member isn’t going to be driving any longer, she doesn’t need insurance, either. This is especially true if you’re going to be selling or giving away the car. This can also free up some of your senior’s budget to put toward other things. Let the insurance company know when your elderly family member will officially stop driving and determine what they need from you.
Figure Out How to Handle the Car
The next step is going to involve the car itself. If your senior can or wants to sell it, that might be the best option. Some families like to hold onto the vehicle, though, which might be a good idea if your senior’s car holds some sort of sentimental value or if it’s a true classic. Getting it out of your senior’s garage or driveway is probably a good idea, though, because it can help her to avoid feeling as nostalgic about driving.
Make Sure Your Senior Has Transportation
Just because your senior isn’t driving anymore that doesn’t mean that she’s never going anywhere. She still needs to have a way to get from one place to another, even if someone else is driving. Elder care providers are a great choice for this, because they can help your senior with other tasks at home, too. Whenever she’s ready to go somewhere, they can help her to go right away.
Deciding to give up driving is not an easy choice. Your elderly family member may finally be at that point, but that doesn’t mean that she’s completely okay with the idea. Make sure to support her as well as possible during this time.
If you or an aging loved one are considering an Elder Care in Media, 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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