Six Benefits of Skilled Nursing for Seniors with Diabetes
Diabetes is a complicated illness. When seniors find themselves facing a new diagnosis of diabetes, they can easily become overwhelmed. Skilled nursing care can be the help that seniors most need during this confusing time. Nurses can help with glucose monitoring as well as insulin management and learning what to watch for in terms of complications.
Help Monitoring Blood Sugar Levels
Monitoring blood sugar levels regularly is essential for patients who have diabetes. This can be a difficult set of skills for seniors to master, however, especially if they were diagnosed later in life. Skilled nursing care visits the senior at home and helps to make sure that blood sugar levels are checked and that they’re in the ranges recommended by the senior’s doctor. This help is essential for aging adults who are experiencing mobility problems or cognitive changes.
Assisting with Insulin Injections
Some seniors may need insulin to help regulate their blood sugar levels. Managing these injections can be even more complicated to handle for many seniors than even testing blood sugar levels. Skilled nurses can make this task a lot easier and help both seniors and family caregivers know what they need to do with insulin management.
Watching for Complications
Another big concern for diabetic seniors is that they’re at a much higher risk of developing complications like kidney disease, cardiovascular disease, and nerve damage because of uncontrolled diabetes. Skilled nursing care provides aging adults with an expert who can recognize the earliest stages of these complications and ensure that they have help right away. By catching and addressing complications early, seniors are less likely to experience serious health issues as a result of diabetes.
Offering Education and Support
There’s a lot to learn when it comes to managing diabetes, and that is true for both seniors dealing with this new chronic health challenge as well as the family caregivers helping them. Skilled nurses are able to share education with their patients and offer support. They can even help with finding things like support groups, which can offer even more emotional assistance.
Reducing the Risk of Hospitalizations
Diabetic seniors might be at a greater risk of hospitalization, particularly if they’re dealing with more than one health issue. Skilled nursing care helps to reduce the likelihood that seniors might have to be hospitalized. That can be costly both financially and emotionally. It’s much more important to catch health complications early before they become so severe that they require hospitalization.
Improving Quality of Life
Quality of life can feel pretty low when seniors are dealing with a diabetes diagnosis. Skilled nurses offer personalized care and help that is tailored to meet the specific needs of their patients. What this does is improve diabetes management, improve health outcomes, and improve overall quality of life, as well. This all helps seniors to get back their sense of independence and improve both mood and confidence.
Skilled nursing care is an essential resource for seniors who are diabetic. They offer hands-on assistance with glucose monitoring, insulin management, and education about diabetes. All of this is crucial to keep diabetic seniors as close as possible.