Dr. Eboni Green
October 29, 2021
As people grow older, it becomes harder for them to do the daily tasks they’re accustomed to performing alone. There comes a time when our elder friends must seek outside help from friends and family. Life slows down at a certain point for everyone, and it’s often necessary for elders to have aid from a caregiver.
So, if a family member can’t take care of themselves, it’s best to help ease their struggles. This includes taking care of their homes. So how do you go about cleaning while taking care of your elder family member? Here are a few practical ways to keep homes clean and fresh.
Before tackling the cleaning tasks, the loved one’s spouse or family should organize their cleaning routines and maintenance lists. Carry this out first. It’s good to know about common clutter hotspots in every home and other necessary information to keep their home hospitable.
Go through each room in their home and create a checklist of everything that needs maintenance. Maybe the elder has lots of laundry they need to do regularly, or perhaps they use the kitchen often. Take notes on their routine and the activities they spend time doing on an average day.
After creating a checklist, arrange your tasks in order of importance. For instance, you might place vacuuming the most oversized rooms every day first on the list. Alternatively, you might prioritize dusting off high shelves. Either way, it’s crucial to know what your loved one wants first and foremost.
By prioritizing their routine tasks, you show initiative, and your elder loved one will feel more appreciated. You should also take time to get to know them more if you aren’t close already. This way, you can grasp what’s vital to their needs better.
One of the overlooked effective ways to keep homes clean and fresh is keeping laundry in check. Laundry doesn’t just include clothes that need a good wash. It also encompasses everything else that might need a thorough cleaning.
Linens, towels, and blankets are vital for keeping your patient healthy and happy. Fabrics trap lots of dust, debris, and bacteria, creating a festering pool of potential illnesses. So make sure you’re doing a load of laundry for your loved one daily to stay on top of cleanliness.
All in all, caring for an elder is a lot of work. You must spend time getting to know their routine while being there in case of emergencies. Appreciate the time you have caring for them—they’ll appreciate you, too.
