Different options for elder day care include respite and full time. Either in-home care or that at a center, including one that specializes in senior health or a certain condition such as Alzheimer's disease, are other options for daytime elder care. There are also community service groups that may visit elderly people during the day to check on them or drive seniors to doctor's appointments or shopping trips.
For seniors who are able to live alone and function fairly well, a drop-in type of daycare that may include being driven on errands or someone coming into the home to do light housekeeping is ideal. Some elder day care options include community center programs that provide social companionship for seniors who live alone. Other types of programs help the elderly with gardening or home maintenance tasks.
There are also in-home health care workers who may monitor an elderly person's blood pressure or other conditions. He or she may also provide elder day care to cleanse a wound, take blood samples to the local lab and/or make sure the senior is taking his or her medication as prescribed. A geriatric health care worker may also provide in-home daycare that includes feeding, toileting and bathing.
Respite care for seniors differs from drop-in or regular daycare in that it is done to relieve the regular caregiver. The elder's regular caregiver, who may be a relative, is given a break or respite from looking after the senior person. The respite care may be as short as several hours. In addition to in-home elder day care respite options, drop off care at a seniors' center may also be given for a few hours at a time. Respite elder care is considered important to prevent caregiver burnout.
Full-time elderly day care often takes place in a seniors' center as opposed to a private home unless a live-in caregiver works in the house and lives in a suite or room. Typically, a family member drops the senior person off at a care center in the morning on the way to work, much like parents drop off a young child at a childcare facility, then picks him or her up after work in the late afternoon or early evening. While many adult centers provide general elder day care, some specialize in providing daycare for those with certain conditions or diseases such as Alzheimer's or Parkinson's.
