Preparing for Disasters
Planning for the 'what if's' is a wise thing to do. A disaster
could happen to any one of us at any time. The Red Cross has
excellent 'how to' plans outlined on their web site and each
local Red Cross office welcomes you to contact them for further
assistance as you plan and prepare for a disaster. See The Red
Cross
Another really good resource for preparing ahead for an unknown
emergency or disaster is the National Safety Council - see
National Safety Council
Both the Red Cross and the NSC make the suggestion to designate
a contact person outside of the state that you live in. This is
the person that you and everyone in your family will call to
'check in'. Think of this person as 'home base'.
You could actually take this a step further and arm the
designated contact person with vital information that could
actually ease some of the fears and frustrations of loosing
virtually everything you have to disaster. A software program
has been developed that is so easy to use and access that you
will want to at least take a look at it.
An easy method to record and maintain vital records is through
the software program called Life-Ledger. You record what medications you
take, the name of your doctor, what you are allergic to, where
you've stored original documents such as; insurance policies,
title to the home, health care directives and so forth. Your
contact person is provided the password to access all or part of
this private record.
What if your mom lived alone in Florida and her community was
hit by the wrath of a hurricane? She was evacuated to a local
hospital and in shock. The hospital learns that you are the
adult daughter, the next of kin and contacts you.
They will ask you what medications your mom is on, who her
doctor is, and other questions regarding her health status. If
you had the Life-Ledger you would simply provide the
hospital with a password and they are able to print off all the
information within seconds. This quick access to accurate
information is just one of the many benefits of planning ahead
by recording and then safely storing such details.
If your loved one lives alone ....
We receive most of our inquiry calls from the adult child. In
order to properly assist the family we need to learn what the
monthly income of the senior is, what assets there are, if there
is a Power of Attorney, if mom has pre-planned her memorial
service, what kind of medication, the attending physician, and
so forth. We ask the same questions as any service will ask
prior to contracting with them.
Nine times out of ten, the adult child does not know the answers
to these questions. Many families are close guarded about their
'personal information' and won't let their adult children in on
the facts. Yet, these family caregivers are taking on the
responsibility of trying to put together services for their
loved one. It is frustrating for this adult child.
Gathering this information once and then keeping it updated with
changes is a wise thing to do. If you are working with your
parent's to prepare this information, you will appreciate the
fact that once it's done, you don't have to ask them again. It's
another reason why the Life-Ledger makes so much sense.
If your loved one does live alone - or is dependent upon you for
advice and assistance, this is the perfect time to broach the
subject of disaster preparedness with him or her. Recent events
have made this a topic of conversation and may be the 'in'
you've been waiting for to discuss the what if's with a parent
that has been reluctant to your offering of help and advice.
This is the opportune time to talk about all the other 'what
if's' Ask your mom or dad, 'What if (God -forbid) you had an
accident, a stroke or something else that left you unable to
speak for yourself?' This is the platform to begin discussing
health care directives, power of attorney and other legal
documents that would give you, the trusted adult child, the
legal right to speak on behalf of your mom or dad.
Find out where the original documents (deed to the house,
insurance policies, stocks, bonds, etc.) are stored and
recorded?
Great resources to help you walk through this process
systematically with your mom and dad are in our Caregiver's
Resource Page. The following are all Certified Senior Approved
Services:
Preparation of Legal Documents - guided
self-help all of the U.S In Ohio Attorney Mary Ann Thomas - Elder Law, Probate,
Wills, Living Wills, Estate Planning
Kevin Plank, Certified Financial Planner and Vicki Mannarino, CEBS Estate Planning,
Elder Financial Advice, Long-term Care Health Insurance
Do it Now, an organizational workbook that helps
you help your loved one to organize important papers - all of
the U.S.
The Caregiver's Resource Kit - Empowers
you with education, information and 'how to's' - all of the U.S.
Truce - a self-help book that shows
you how to handle conflicts within the family and broach those
subjects with your loved ones' that are often times embroiled
with emotions
Life-Ledger - a safe secure method to record and
maintain vital records (try it free for seven days - cancel any
time, no contracts)
Complete Organizational Services - a
service that will help you organize - these folks are experts at
helping seniors work through the daunting task of finding out
what's stored in those boxes in the attic, garage and basement.
Coming soon! For those of you that would like to advocate for
senior safety within your community - the Coalition for Senior
Safety Handbook is nearly ready for publication. This handbook
provides you with step-by-step instructions on how to form a
local community effort to help protect seniors against crime,
abuse and to create a disaster preparedness program for your
community. Be the first to learn of the release by going to Coalition for Senior Safety