What is Personal Care for the Elderly?

One of the most common types of care to help the elderly with their day-to-day activities is personal care.

Let’s dig deeper into what personal care is and what services are included.

What is Personal Care?

Personal care is a type of home care service where caregivers supervise and assist people with their activities of daily living (ADLs), including going to the bathroom, bathing, grooming, and dressing.

Personal care is a common type of home care that helps people with health conditions or the elderly accomplish the daily tasks they must do to take care of themselves.

It helps people stay in their homes while ensuring good personal hygiene, safety, and comfort.

Personal home care services are discreet and aim to help people stay as independent as possible.

What Does Personal Care Involve?

Personal home care involves helping people with their activities of daily living (ADLs).

Activities of daily living are the fundamental skills required to care for yourself.

Here is what is included in personal care services:

• Toileting (getting to and using the toilet, and cleaning themself after)
• Personal hygiene (bathing, grooming, brushing their hair, and brushing their teeth)
• Dressing (selecting appropriate clothes and dressing/undressing)
• Eating
• Transfers (moving in and out of bed/chairs)
• Mobility (moving around)

Personal care can help with each of these activities. Caregivers provide support for whichever activities the individual needs help with; the services are tailored to each individual’s needs.

A caregiver can help someone in and out of chairs and walk with them to prevent falls. They can ensure that people are using the bathroom in a sanitary manner. They can help with bathing, grooming, and dressing to ensure that the person maintains good personal hygiene.

All personal care services should include helping people with ADLs. Beyond that, the level of care provided will differ depending on the personal home care provider. Many providers also offer assistance with people’s instrumental activities of daily living (IADLs).

Instrumental activities of daily living (IDLs) as well as personal care examples are:

• Food preparation (meal prep, cooking, and cleaning up)
• Managing Medications (getting medicine and taking the correct doses at the correct time)
• Shopping
• Communication (using the telephone and sending mail and/or email)
• Managing Finances (handling their money and paying their bills)
• Housekeeping
• Transportation
• Laundry

Caregivers can help with cooking, cleaning, and shopping. They can also provide transportation and ensure medication compliance.

If you or your loved one need help with these activities as well, make sure to check that the personal care provider also offers these services.

If you aren’t sure if you or your loved one need help with activities of daily living, you can utilize our checklist to determine what level of assistance is required.

Why is Personal Hygiene Important in Aged Care?

Personal care focuses on maintaining good personal hygiene by helping people go to the bathroom, wash their hands, bathe, brush their hair, brush their teeth, wash their face, cut their nails, and get dressed.

These are tasks that many people take for granted that they can easily do each day.

As we age, health and mobility issues or forgetfulness can make these activities more difficult. As a result, personal hygiene can suffer.

Good personal hygiene is important for everyone, but it is especially important as we age.

Studies have shown that our immune system weakens as we age, which means that the elderly are more vulnerable to viruses and infections since they cannot effectively fight off antigens.

Another result of aging is that our bodies produce less collagen resulting in thin skin that is more prone to tearing, making people susceptible to infection.

Since thin skin and a weakened immune system put the elderly at an increased risk of infection, good personal hygiene such as bathing and frequent hand washing is important for their health and to prevent the spread of germs.

Consistent bathing and grooming also help people notice any irregularities on their body, such as lumps or suspicious moles that need to be checked by a doctor.

Good personal hygiene also prevents strong body odor and helps with appearance. The importance of a put-together appearance should not be underestimated; this can increase confidence and boost a person’s mood.

Good personal hygiene is essential for healthy living and well-being.

Options for Personal Care

The options for personal care for seniors are plentiful. There are a number of different facilities and services that can be used, each with a specific set of pros and cons.

Generally, your care options will be:

• Personal Home Care / Private Duty Care / Non-Medical Home Care
• Personal Care Homes
• Home Health Care
• Assisted Living Facilities
• Nursing Home Facilities

What is the Difference Between Home Health Care and Personal Care?

Personal care is a type of non-medical home care. It can also be referred to as personal home care or private duty care.

There are different forms of care under the broader definition of home care, such as personal care, companion care, and respite care.

What is Home Health Care?

You can also receive medical care at home, known as home health care.

Home health care is an out-of-hospital care service that provides various types of assistance to people who are unable to leave their homes due to illness or disability.

The services include personal assistance, nursing, physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy and medical equipment supply.

Home health workers are usually nurses, occupational therapists, physical therapists and other licensed professionals. They have basic training in the diagnosis and treatment of common medical conditions that affect the elderly population such as diabetes or heart disease.

This is more costly and mostly for seniors who suffer from health issues in their home that need support.

What is a Personal Care Home?

Personal care homes are facilities where seniors can live and receive assistance with their activities of daily living. The state licenses these residences.

Personal home care is different from a personal care home. With personal home care, caregivers come to a person’s house to help them with their activities of daily living.

With a personal care home, people have rooms at a facility that provides assistance with their activities of daily living.

Both help people with their ADLs, but the location differs.

Personal care homes can also be called residential care homes, residential care facilities, group homes, or board and care homes.

Now that we know what a personal care home is, let’s compare it to other types of facilities.

What is the difference between a personal care home, assisted living, and a nursing home?

The elderly can be residents at personal care homes, assisted living facilities, and nursing homes.

According to the National Institute on Aging (NIH), the main difference is the level of care that the facility provides.

Personal care homes provide meals and help with people’s activities of daily living. Medical care is not provided on-site. This is the lowest level of care.

Assisted living facilities provide more supervision and medical care, but not as much as a nursing home. People that need a more comprehensive range of medical care will get the highest level of care at a nursing home.

Contact a Personal Care Provider for More Information

Now that you understand what personal care is and can assess if these services are what you need, it is time to reach out to a personal care provider.

Our personal care services include providing assistance with all ADLs and IADLs, such as help bathing, grooming, moving around, cooking, cleaning, and providing transportation.

For those in the Monterey Bay or Santa Cruz area, give us a call today at (831) 708-2876 or reach us online to learn more about how we can tailor our personal care to help you or your loved one!

Grace Newman

Grace Newman is a freelance writer for hire and tutor from Danville, Illinois. She is a recent graduate with a Bachelor of Science in Communication and was an editorial intern and editor for Parlia (a Wikipedia of opinions website). Currently, Grace writes about online education at her blog www.getsmartsoon.com. When she isn’t writing, she loves playing card games, having picnics, and binging her latest TV show obsession.