Elder
Law FAX -- July 3, 2006
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Education |
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Emergency Preparedness for Older Adults and Their
Caregivers
Hurricane season is now upon us. Hurricanes Katrina and Rita reminded
us how quickly lives can be changed in the event of a sudden emergency
that disrupts our normal lives.
Recently, the National Family Caregiver Support Program, in the U. S. Administration on Aging, released a guide for older adults and their caregivers on Emergency Readiness for Older Adults and Caregivers.
The guide offers these three basic steps:
Step 1 - Know the basics. Learn about the risks your particular community
faces; know how to do things like turning off your gas and electricity;
get to know your neighbors.
For example, if you live on the Atlantic Ocean or on the Gulf Coast, find out what your community's emergency readiness plan is. What the routes for evacuation? Is public transportation available for people who cannot drive?
Step 2 - Have your emergency supplies ready. This includes items you would need to survive in your home until help arrives; it should also include a personal evacuation bag, partially packed and ready to go.
In your "stay at home" supplies, include
a first-aid kit, flashlight, portable radio, spare batteries, and food
for three to six days.
In your "evacuation bag," include many items from your stay-at-home
list, as well as a change of clothing, extra eyeglasses, medications list,
and the like.
Step 3 - Make a personal plan. Many older persons have special needs relating to medications, medical equipment, mobility, and support services; making a personal emergency readiness plan increases the likelihood that essential needs will still be met, even in an emergency situation.
If you have limited mobility or are disabled, you may be able to register with your local fire department or office of emergency services for special assistance. If you use an electric wheelchair or scooter, consider keeping your old, unpowered model around for emergency use.
If you are receiving health care services at home, ask your home health provider about emergency procedures. For example, if you depend on electric power for home dialysis or infusion, you'll want to know your options for temporary emergency power or, in the case of home infusion, you may want to discuss having a back-up drip system.
The guide is available online at http://www.aginginstride.org/emergencyprep/docs/Just_in_Case.pdf.
For more tips, see our Elder Law FAX issue
of September 5, 2005, at http://www.tn-elderlaw.com/prior/050905.html.
Elder Law FAX is published every other Monday by the Elder Law Practice of Timothy L. Takacs, with offices in Hendersonville and Cookeville, Tennessee. Visit us on the Web at http://www.tn-elderlaw.com. Copyright 2006 by the Elder Law Practice of Timothy L. Takacs. Would you like Elder Law FAX e-mailed to you free? To subscribe, please use the Elder Law FAX Subscription Form at http://www.tn-elderlaw.com/faxform.html.