Why Take a Safe Swallowing Course?

If you work in Aged Care or are at home caring for an elderly loved one, you have a huge amount on your plate. There’s not only the health aspect of care, maintaining as much independence as possible but there’s also the social aspect and then of course the every day tasks of toileting, medication, eating and drinking and of course, of paramount importance, your own mental health.

I know when my parents were at a point in their lives when they needed support in their care, it fell to our family to provide that support of course. Fortunately for me I have two sisters who recognised our parents’ needs and were more than willing to share that support.

Initially when my father had issues after surgery, it meant many, many two hour trips to hospital to visit him and to support our Mother. We were lucky to have very supportive staff at the hospital who cared for our Dad. When our Mother reached a similar point, again we were able to take her to doctor’s appointments and support her desire to maintain as much independence as she could.

In terms of supporting their daily needs, we were able to implement a number of strategies and aids that I had learnt working in the aged care sector. Without this valuable knowledge, we not only could not have provided the care they needed but it would have placed an increasingly massive strain on us all. Navigating what’s needed to provide the best care and to ensure the carer is looked after, is absolutely paramount.

Being aware of what to look for regarding the eating and drinking risk that many of our elderly experience empowers the care giver, be it at home or in a residential setting. It can be terrifying when a resident chokes or continually has ill health due to the more insidious aspiration or when they simply are not eating and drinking well enough to maintain their health.

Education not only helps provide the best care for our elderly loved one, it empowers the carer, making your job easier and more assured and enjoyable.