Services
- I don't know whether we should apply for elderly home service for my father with dementia. Actually, is it better for the elderly to be taken care of by family members or by professionals in homes for the elderly?
- What services are available in Hong Kong to help people with dementia and their families?
- I live in a public housing estate with my mother who has dementia. As nobody else can take care of her, I have no choice but to quit the job. I have not been working for several years. I earned very little before and thus my savings are so limited that I cant afford the daily expenses. How should I do?
I don't know whether we should apply for elderly home service for my father with dementia. Actually, is it better for the elderly to be taken care of by family members or by professionals in homes for the elderly?
For the elderly dementia sufferer, the ideal is to live in a familiar environment and receive one-to-one care from family members.
However, when the carers are very tired both physically and mentally after a long time of caring, and feel that they are unable to take care of the elderly family member whose condition is deteriorating, moving into a home for the elderly is an option for the elderly person and for the family.
Even when the elderly person moves into the home, the family can still take care of him/her. They can go there to visit the person, take him/her out for meals or have him/her return home for a short time during holidays.
In fact, going into a home for the elderly should only change the location of the care of the elderly person. Family members do not have to feel guilty if they really cannot take care of the elderly relative at home.
What services are available in Hong Kong to help people with dementia and their families?
People with dementia:
1. Financial assistance
You can apply for subsidies for people with disability, integrated social security assistance, and special subsidies for entering a private home for the elderly through social workers working in medical and social departments or family service centres.
2. Day-care centres for the elderly These provide caring services to elderly people in the early or middle stages of dementia.
3. Medical services Specialist out-patient departments or hospital services of geriatric departments or psychogeriatric departments provide assessments, nursing care and rehabilitation services to elderly people at different stages of dementia. Patients with particular needs can receive specialized services from therapists and community nurses through referral by doctors.
4. Home service assistants Home service assistants help the elderly and their families to clean the house, provide meals and accompany the elderly to see the doctor.
5. Institutional services
Elderly homes subsidized by the government, care and attention homes, nursing homes and nursing homes under the Hospital Authority provide 24-hour care and nursing services to people at different stages of dementia, but the queue for such services is relatively long.
In addition, there are many private elderly homes, but the quality of their service varies. Family members should go to the home to understand their operations, and be careful in making choices; alternatively, they can visit the website of the Social Welfare Department to look up details on a particular home.
Family:
1. Family training
Family members can better understand the progress of the illness and caring skills through joining seminars and courses.
2. Family support group
A group of carers coming together, sharing experiences and supporting each other.
3. Temporary care service for the elderly In a normal institution, there will be one or two vacancies for temporary service. Family members can apply for one of these places if they are unable to take care of the elderly relative for a short period of time (one to two weeks).
I live in a public housing estate with my mother who has dementia. As nobody else can take care of her, I have no choice but to quit the job. I have not been working for several years. I earned very little before and thus my savings are so limited that I cant afford the daily expenses. How should I do?
Needing to face the financial difficulties and take care of the loved one with dementia, it is understandable that you feel desperate. However, dont be discouraged, someone can help you. You can frankly tell your relatives or friends about your hard situation to see whether they can give your financial support. You can also approach Social Welfare Department to apply for Comprehensive Social Security Allowance (CSSA) for you or Disability Allowance (DA) for your mother. Besides, you should try to share your feelings with others.
For details of the financial assistance, please refer to the information of "Financial Assistance" under the section Service Overview of this website or the website of Social Welfare Department http://www.swd.gov.hk.
TAG: Services