Elder Care in Robinson Township PA: What Can You Do to Help Your

Elder Care in Robinson Township PA

Strep throat can be a miserable condition for your aging parent to go through, but it can also be a dangerous condition for your aging parent. Elderly adults have less effective immune systems than younger people, which means that they are more likely to contract an infection or illness, and have a more difficult time fighting them off if they do occur. If they contract strep throat, your aging parent could experience severe complications including scarlet fever, inflammatory disease of the kidney, rheumatic fever, and infections of the blood, tonsils, skin, sinuses, and middle ear.
Helping your aging parent to cope with their strep throat can get them through this illness more quickly and reduce the chances that they will suffer further infections, illnesses, or complications.

Some of the things that you can do to help your aging loved one cope with their strep throat and get healthier faster include:

Encourage them to rest. The body heals best when it is sleeping. This is the time when your parent’s body will fight off the infection and work to get stronger. Encourage your loved one to get as much rest as they can. Discourage them from leaving the home until they are not showing a fever and have been on treatment for a minimum of 24 hours.
Offer plenty of fluids. Lubricating the throat helps to reduce pain and scratchiness, and aids in swallowing. Getting plenty of fluid also wards of dehydration, which puts your parent at greater risk of illness and infection. Encourage water and hot tea rather than carbonated or caffeinated beverages.
Warm salt water. Gargling with warm salt water helps to ease the condition by reducing swelling, easing pain, and providing lubrication. Stir ¼ teaspoon salt into 8 ounces of warm water and encourage your parent to gargle with it for 30 seconds. Be sure that they do not swallow this water.
Offer comforting foods. Eating is important to encouraging healing when your parent is fighting an infection. Offer foods that are comforting and soothing to your parent so that they are more willing to eat and will not experience worsened pain when they are eating. Foods such as soup, cooked apples, frozen yogurt, mashed potatoes, scrambled eggs, fruit pops, and pureed foods are all easy for your parent to eat and can soothe the discomfort of their throat. This helps them get nutrition that strengthens their body and reduces their pain.

If your elderly loved one is dealing with strep throat or you are worried about their health as they age in place, elder care can be extremely helpful for them. An elderly home care services provider can be with your aging parent as they are recovering from their infection or illness to help them make the most of this recovery time and move forward in a healthier way. Their personalized services can also help your parent to avoid further infections and illnesses by encouraging a healthier lifestyle that strengthens their body and improves their resistance.

If you or an aging loved one are considering elder care in Robinson Township, PA, please contact the friendly staff at Liken Home Care. Call (412) 693-6820 or (855) 856-0551

Source: http://www.mayoclinic.org/diseases-conditions/strep-throat/manage/ptc-20165966