ELDERLY CARE SERVICES

Common problems in old age:

• Delirium – Serious disturbance in mental abilities that results in confused thinking and reduced awareness of surroundings.
• Depression – A mood disorder characterized by loss of interest in activities, causing significant impairment in daily life.
• Dementia – A chronic or persistent disorder of the mental process caused by brain disease or injury and marked by memory disorders, personality changes, and impaired reasoning.
• Incontinence – It is the lack of voluntary control over urination or defecation.
• Orthostatic Hypotension – A form of low blood pressure that happens when standing up from sitting or lying down.
• Falls – An event which results in person coming to rest inadvertently on the ground or floor or other lower level.
• Dizziness – An altered sense of balance and place, possibly described as lightheaded, feeling faint or as if head is spinning.
• Osteoporosis – A condition in which bones become weak and brittle.
• Polypharmacy – It refers to the use of multiple medications in a patient, commonly being on 5 or more medicines.
• Multiple Joint Pain – especially painful during movements.
• Frailty – It is a state of increased vulnerability resulting from aging associated decline in reserve and function across multiple physiological symptoms.
• Failure to thrive – It is a condition which includes weight loss, decreased appetite, poor nutrition, and inactivity.
• Elder Abuse – It is a single or repeated act or lack of appropriate action, occurring within any relationship where there is an exception of trust, which causes harm or distress to an older person.
• Chronic Disorders –
  • Diabetes Mellitus – Increased blood sugar level over a prolonged period causing symptoms like increased urination, increased thirst.
  • Hypothyroidism – A condition in which thyroid gland does not provide enough thyroid hormone.
  • Hypertension – Increased blood pressure could be due to aging also.
  • Dyslipidemia – Abnormally elevated cholesterol or fats(lipids) in the blood.