cover image Stages of Senior Care: Your Step-By-Step Guide to Making the Best Decisions

Stages of Senior Care: Your Step-By-Step Guide to Making the Best Decisions

Paul Hogan, Lori Hogan. McGraw-Hill, $18.95 (292pp) ISBN 978-0-07-162109-0

Using their experience running a successful international company providing in-home, non-medical services for seniors, husband-and-wife founders of Home Instead Senior Care offer a helpful guide for families choosing among home care-giving and other assisted-living options for aging or ailing parents. The Hogans believe in helping seniors stay in their homes as long as possible, and knowledge is their most powerful tool in securing that goal; this well-researched volume is packed with information, advice and resources aimed at managing and ameliorating the sadness, confusion, guilt and anxiety of making quality-of-life decisions for a loved one. Emphasizing the need for planning, the Hogans offer a list of signs that indicate it's time to consider additional care, as well as a thorough exploration of the options, including pros and cons, questions to ask and other factors when choosing among home care, senior centers, assisted living and nursing homes. The Hogans also consider options for children who live far away from their parents, and advice on what to do when siblings find themselves in disagreement. Recognizing that there is no one-size-fits-all solution, this salient volume compassionately addresses a full range of hard-to-discuss subjects, including funeral services and bereavement.