Helping Seniors with Post Surgical Recovery

When you have a loved one who is a senior citizen, you may find yourself in a position where you are providing a great deal of care and assistance to them on a regular basis. However, when your senior loved one requires surgery for an ailment or injury, you may not be sure of how you fit into the equation. You want to provide them with the best possible support and care, but you may not know how to help them with their post-surgical recovery process. Get to know more about helping your senior loved one through their recovery process so that you can get your loved one the care they need right here in Marietta, Georgia.

 

Go To Physical Therapy With Your Loved One

 

Whether your loved one is in the hospital or at home following their surgical procedure, they will likely require physical therapy to improve their situation and regain their strength, flexibility, and overall mobility. Allowing your loved one to go to their physical therapy sessions alone, however, would be a disservice to them.

 

Instead you should tag along with them to all of their physical therapy sessions. You should do so for multiple reasons. First, you will be able to provide your loved one with moral and emotional support while they go through the recovery process in physical therapy. Oftentimes, the simple exercises required in physical therapy are quite difficult following surgery. Having you there in their corner cheering them on and offering encouragement can only serve to benefit your loved one.

 

Another reason to go with them to physical therapy is so that you know what is going on in those sessions, and what "homework" assignments your loved one is being given by their physical therapist. This ensures that you will be able to help them at home as well and be their coach to get them up and moving (and doing their exercises) when their physical therapist is not around.

 

Consider A Short-Term Care Facility For Your Loved One

 

Sometimes, when a senior is released from the hospital following surgery, going straight to their own home is not the best or safest option for them. For example, if a senior has suffered a fall and broken bones in their leg or hip, going back home to a house full of stairs, narrow walkways, and tripping hazards may not be the best solution.

 

Instead you could find them a short-term care facility or short-term rehab center that will help your loved one transition back to living and moving on their own. These short-term facilities will provide your loved one with the assistance they need with daily living tasks as well as the physical and occupational therapy and support that your loved one needs to get back on their feet and in their home quickly and safely.

 

Now that you know a few of the ways that you can help seniors with post-surgical recover, you can be sure that you are doing everything in your power to provide your loved one with the support they need. If you have any additional questions or want to get your loved one into short-term rehab, A.G. Rhodes Health and Rehab is here to help.