May is stroke awareness month. Every year around 800,000 people experience a stroke. This leads to someone dying every 4 minutes. “It is 
the No. 5 cause of death and a leading cause of disability in the United States.” [1] The sad thing about this statistic is that up to 80 percent of strokes can easily be prevented. How can you prevent this from happening to you or a loved one? Let us first take a look at what a stroke is.
A stroke occurs when blood flow to a certain area in the brain is cut off. Since oxygen is cut off from brain cells, they begin to die and the ability to control muscles and memory is lost. Depending on where the stroke occurs in the brain determines the severity of the problems to follow. “Some people recover completely recover from strokes, but more than 2/3 of survivors with have some type of disability.” [2]
So how can you prevent a stroke from happening to you or a loved one? Remaining at a healthy weight, having good blood pressure, not smoking, exercising, treating atrial fibrillation and taking good care of your body are all great ways to prevent a stroke. However, for some of us it is too late. When this is the case, homecare is a great resource to have when adjusting to life after a stroke.
How Home Care Can Help
A trained CarePlus caregiver is able to provide proper assistance with daily activities to people suffering from the effects of a stroke. Having home care helps these individuals live more comfortably and spend less time trying to adjust to everyday demands.
Customized Care Plans
Having home care assistance not only helps when completing daily tasks, but often times leads to an improvement in overall functionality of the individual. Since the probability of having another stroke increases more than 40% within 5 years of the first stroke, a CarePlus caregiver can create a customized plan for your loved one to address a variety of needs and monitor them should another stroke take place. Our care plans include, but are not limited to:
- Transportation to medical appointments
- Monitor for FAST (Facial drooping, Arm weakness, Speech difficulties and Time of stroke or reoccurring stroke)
- Preparing nutritious meals and assisting with feeding
- Transferring from bed to wheelchair to chair, as needed
- Help with restroom use, bathing, dressing and grooming
- Positioning to achieve proper alignment when on bed rest
- Medication and personal safety reminders
- Light housekeeping, running errands, and scheduling events
- Offering friendly conversation and emotional support
- Encouraging and planning social activities and exercise
Information & Resources
To request a free in-home assessment in Gaithersburg, Bethesda, Rockville, MD and beyond, contact CarePlus Home Health Care at 301-740-8870 or contact us here.
Don’t let your loved one’s stroke control their life or yours. Help them enjoy daily living by taking small steps to reduce stress for everyone involved. For more information about the National Stroke Association, please access their website here or call 1-800-787-6537.
[1] What is Stroke, “American Heart Association | American Stroke Association.” http://www.strokeassociation.org/STROKEORG/AboutStroke/About-Stroke_UCM_308529_SubHomePage.jsp
[2] What is Stroke, “National Stroke Association.” http://www.stroke.org/understand-stroke/what-stroke
