HELP WITH SHOPPING SERVICES FOR THE ELDERLY
As we get older some day-to-day tasks can become more challenging. This may be because of reduced mobility and frailty which restrict our independence. There are a variety of factors as to why an elderly person may not be able to get out to the shops. Eating well is important to maintain good health, no matter what your age. Therefore, being able to shop for food is critical for older people to live well at home. There are different types of support services available to help those who may live alone shop for food. This includes home delivery services and internet shopping.
If your loved one needs care and support at home a live-in carer can provide help with daily tasks, including grocery shopping and running errands. We carefully match a professional carer who will meet your loved one’s needs and their lifestyle.
They will support them to maintain a healthy and balanced diet, whilst ensuring their needs and preferences are met.
The carer will also facilitate all the social aspects to help with shopping services for the elderly. Our carers will help your loved one plan their shopping, so they have what they need, as and when they wish. This means your loved one can continue to enjoy life as they always have.
Here we explain the types of shopping support services available to the elderly and how live-in care can help with everyday tasks, shopping and social activities.
Why elderly people may need help with shopping
According to Age UK, 19% of people aged 80-84 say they have problems with shopping for groceries. This rises to 60% for those over 90 years old. Older people may have difficulty getting to the shops, especially if they live in rural areas. Not all older people are able to continue to drive or may not have a car. Problems with mobility may present problems with getting around the shops. Stores that have good stacked on high or low shelves are a problem for some. Carrying heavy grocery shopping from the supermarket may also be a challenge.
Many older people struggle with technology and online shopping. They may also prefer to get to the shops for social interaction with others. However, in 2019 an Office for National Statistics (ONS) survey found that more than half of UK adults over 65 are now actively shopping online. During the Covid-19 pandemic this number is likely to have grown. Older people have been reluctant to go to the shops given the risk of transmission and infection. Many elderly people have been classed as vulnerable and unable to go out at all, relying on online shopping or the help of others.
What shopping support services are available?
There are a few different shopping services for the elderly available according to your loved one’s needs and preferences.
Escorted services
The local authority may provide an escort or transport service to help your loved one get out to the shops. This means they can remain as independent as possible and continue to enjoy interaction with others. The service may be just transport or transport and extra assistance around the shops, so they can get all the groceries they need.
Home delivery services
Most leading supermarkets offer groceries delivered directly to your home. You can create a shopping list of groceries for your loved one and then get them at home as and when you need them.
Internet shopping
Many elderly people use internet shopping, not just for groceries but for other items like clothes and household goods.
There are some charities that will offer a service to do all your shopping via the internet on your behalf. This is particularly useful for those who do not wish to or are unable to navigate the internet.
Live-in Care
With a live-in care service, you can stay in the comfort of your own home with care and support provided by a well-matched professional carer. They will focus on ensuring you can live with as much independence as possible. They will help you to live well and enjoy life. Carers provide support with the tasks of daily life. This includes planning food and food shopping for the elderly. It also includes running errands, cooking nutritious meals, help with internet shopping, picking up prescriptions and attending appointments with your loved one. The service is highly personalised to meet an individual’s specific needs, choices and preferences.
Personalised food shopping for the elderly & grocery shopping services
For most people a daily or weekly food and grocery shop is an essential part of routine. For many browsing round the shops picking the food you want is a pleasure in daily life. Whilst it can be a laborious process for older people, for many it is a personal activity that enables them to have choice and independence in their life.
A live-in carer will be flexible and can help you with food shopping as much as you wish. For some this might be help with planning the weekly menu and what foods and groceries need to be purchased. For others they can accompany you to the shop to provide support. Whilst others may ask the carer to take control of the whole process removing the burden completely, whether that is going to the shops or doing online shopping.
They will get to know you and your preferences and wishes, whilst ensuring you have the support you want and need. A carer will ensure that you have all the food you need to have a healthy, balanced and nutritious diet. This includes cooking food for you and if you wish eating with you and socially enjoying food together.
With a live-in care service, your carer is trained in medications management. This means that they can be responsible for ensuring any prescriptions are ordered and collected in time. This can be particularly helpful for those who are unable to get out of the house. Having a carer take on this task provides much-needed reassurance that your loved one will not run out of important medications.
A concierge to help with shopping services for the elderly
At The Good Care Group, we know through our experience of supporting thousands of families how precious time is – for everyone. Our fully managed service is valued by families as it reduces the burden or organising and managing a care arrangement for a loved one. This is particularly helpful when families do not live near their loved ones and have busy lives themselves.
As part of the fully managed service, we can now offer our clients a concierge service. This is access to specialist personal assistance for household and lifestyle management, entertainment, travel, transportation and holiday planning and help with shopping for the elderly. This alleviates the responsibility and time required to organise and manage these yourself. Our concierge service can be accessed 24-hours a day via telephone, email or an online website. Services include anything from arranging a tradesperson to fix a boiler, booking a table at a restaurant, organising a gift for a relative or booking a much-needed holiday. Our carer will help your loved one to access the service and source the things they need.
Everyday assistance with errands, administration and social activities
In addition to the tasks of daily life a live-in carer can support you with errands, admin and organising social activities and events, both in and out of the home.
Assistance attending appointments
A live-in carer will support your loved one to attend appointments out of the home. This can be an appointment at the GPs or hospital, or an opticians’ appointment. This means you do not need to be there if you are unable to as the carer will ensure they get there on time and any outcomes can be communicated to you.
General administration
If you loved one needs help and support with general admin, a live-in carer can provide this.
They can ensure bills are paid when needed, mail is opened and organised and help with letter writing. This can be very reassuring for your loved one to know everything is organised and in order.
Facilitating social activities and events
A dedicated live-in carer will be there to make sure your loved one’s life is enriched and they socialise as and when they wish. This might be help with getting to social events and activities, including exercise classes, meeting up with friends, going out for lunch to a restaurant or attending church. They will also be there to facilitate socialisation in the home. Organising a dinner party or a family celebration.
Arranging care at home
Once you have decided a live-in care service is right for you and your loved one – we are here to help. We will conduct a comprehensive assessment of your loved one’s needs. This covers not just their care needs, but how they wish to live their life. The assessment informs the care plan which will be created by an expert care manager, guided by clinical experts. The plan of care guides our professional care team to deliver the highest quality care to your loved one, whilst making sure all their nutritional needs are met.
Why our clients choose us
A perfectly matched care team
A live-in care service usually involves two carers working a two-week rotation. They will be carefully matched working with you and your family. We make sure they are skilled and equipped to meet all your care and support needs. Our focus on matching means the care team chosen share common interests and backgrounds. We know this means life is enjoyable for everyone. Your care team really get to know you and your needs, which means you get consistency of care.
Expertly trained carers
All our professional carers are required to complete our leading training programme before they care for our clients. Our programme has been created with leading charities and clinical experts. It goes beyond mandatory requirements in the care sector. Carers are then equipped to provide high-quality care and support for those living with specialist conditions. Our carers never stop learning new skills to further enhance the care they provide.
Continuity of care
Unlike an agency we employ our carers. This means they are committed to us, as we are to them. Carers enjoy the security of being employed, which means they stay with us longer. Those who work for agencies move around more. For families this means that you get continuity and consistency of the same care team caring for your loved one. This means high-quality care can be achieved with improved outcomes and no disruption to your loved one’s life.
In-house clinical experts
We have a dedicated team of in-house clinical experts. This includes a specialist consultant nurse, who also provides Admiral Nurse services to those living with dementia. Our management team consists of nursing professionals. They guide our carers to provide safe and effective nurse-led care at home. We also have our own in-house Occupational Therapist (OT) who works closely with healthcare professionals and our care teams. Our OT provides guidance and advice that enables people to live well in their own home with any equipment they may need. These experts lead, monitor and support our care teams to delivery best practice nurse-led care at home.
Innovative care technology
Unlike any other live-in care provider, we have our own online care community. Families, healthcare professionals and carers can access up to date information about the care being provided. It enables more effective monitoring, which means issues can be responded to efficiently. For our families it provides a reassuring window into the care their loved one is receiving. Our carers also use the online community to share ideas and support each other. It provides a vital connection which is important when remote working. Carers will use the online community so their clients can enjoy time online. This includes video calls with family, so they feel connected. Clients can use it to shop online or browse the web.
Improving health outcomes
Every decision we make is driven by delivering improved health outcomes for our clients. Our digital technology allows us to predict risk and shape the care we provide. We measure health outcomes. We want to know we are improving the quality of our clients’ lives every year.
Our health and well-being aim to reduce:
- Challenging behaviours
- Antipsychotic drugs in dementia care
- Falls in the home
- Hospital admissions
- Re-admission to hospital
- Urinary tract infections (UTIs)
- Chest infections
- Carer stress
They aim to promote:
- Independence
- Well-being
- Excellent nutrition and hydration
- Enjoyment in life
Highest service rating from care regulators in England and Scotland
Unlike introduction agencies we are fully regulated in England and Scotland. This means the care and support we provide is regularly inspected. We are the only dedicated live-in care provider in England to achieve an ‘Outstanding’ rating by the Care Quality Commission (CQC). We have achieved this rating in all five measures – safe, effective, caring responsive and well-led. In Scotland, our service has been inspected by the Care Inspectorate (CI). It has achieved the highest rating of a 6 (Excellent) for quality of care and support and 5 (very good) for staffing, management and leadership. We know this provides families with peace of mind that their loved one is receiving the best possible care.
A fully managed service
Families benefit from our fully managed service delivered by care experts. This means you do not need to worry about supervising and managing the carer looking after your loved one. Our professional carers are supervised by an experienced care manager and supported by clinical experts. We provide this support 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Your dedicated care manager will be on hand to support you, your loved one and our carer teams. We invest in our care management team to ensure they have enough time to give the support everyone needs. With our fully managed service, families do not have the burden of managing the care arrangement themselves. We know this means families can have peace of mind, whilst enjoying quality time with their loved one. They do not have to worry about the tasks of caring.
Local teams with national coverage
We operate throughout England and Scotland with a local approach to management of our teams near you. Each dedicated care manager local to you has only a small number of clients to support. This means they can provide higher levels of monitoring and support than other home care providers. It also means a highly personalised approach to care can be delivered.
TALK TO US ABOUT LIVE-IN CARE SERVICES
Find out more about how we can help your loved one to live well in the comfort of their home – call us today.