Now is a great time to remind your senior how important hand washing is for aging adults. Spending time at an adult day health care center is an easy way for her to get practice washing her hands properly and as often as she really should in order to avoid getting sick.
Seniors and Hand Washing
Germs are everywhere that your senior goes on a daily basis, even in her own home. Luckily, there is an easy way for her to remove most of those germs before they can do anything detrimental. Hand washing is important for people of all ages, but it can be especially vital for your aging family member. That’s because your senior’s immune system may be compromised due to other health issues, medications, and chronic conditions. Keeping dangerous bacteria, viruses, and germs out of your elderly family member’s system helps her to avoid having to battle them at all.
Hand Washing and Health Issues
If your elderly family member is already battling health issues, like heart disease, getting sick with a cold or something worse can cause undue stress on her heart. By practicing good hand washing hygiene, your elderly family member may be able to remove those germs from her hands and keep them from getting inside her body, where they then multiply and take a toll on her health. Adult day health care professionals can help your elderly family member keep tabs on all of her health concerns so that she’s doing all that she can to keep herself healthy.
When Is Hand Washing a Good Practice?
It’s impractical to encourage your senior to just randomly wash her hands all day long. It’s a much better idea to establish some situations when it’s most important. Some of those situations might include:
- Before eating or cooking
- Before and after dealing with bodily fluids
- Before tasks like testing blood sugar levels
- After blowing her nose, sneezing, or coughing
- After touching pet foods or treats
- After touching trash cans
- After using the bathroom
- After being around anyone who might be sick
There might be other situations that make sense for your senior, too. Adult day health care providers can help her to remember when it’s a good idea for her to wash her hands.
Proper Hand Washing Techniques
Washing hands properly matters a lot. The water doesn’t have to be hot at all, but plain soap should be involved. Lather hands well and rub the soap into her hands for at least 20 to 30 seconds. Make sure to get in between fingers and under fingernails if at all possible. Rinse hands well and then dry them carefully. If water and soap aren’t available, hand sanitizer can work in a pinch, but try to remind your senior to wash her hands as soon as possible.
Proper hand washing is vital for your elderly family member and for everyone who helps her. Just following this one simple practice can reduce your senior’s likelihood of illness by more than you might realize.
Oxnard Family Circle: Safe, Reliable, Social and Fun!
If you need respite and/or help with caring for your loved one in any corner of Ventura County, CA (Oxnard, Port Hueneme, Ventura, Camarillo, etc.), talk to the caring staff at Oxnard Family Circle, Inc. today. 1-805-385-4180
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