Looking after the wellbeing of an elderly person with type 1 diabetes is not the same as taking care of a child with the same disease. Older adults with type 1 diabetes face the wellness issues of failing eyesight and memory, urinary incontinence, and depression, as well as being impacted by their ‘mobility, energy levels, and other age-related conditions’ says Meg Bayless, BSN, RN, a diabetes educator for the diabetes clinical research programs at the University of Iowa Health Centre.
According to Bayless, there’s the added factor that ‘Individuals living on fixed incomes may have difficulties making healthy choices in the grocery store, getting to the store, or filling all their prescriptions.’ Therefore, as their caregiver you are essential to preventing common complications such as heart disease, stroke, kidney disease, and visual impairment.
Firstly, controlling your loved one’s glucose levels lowers the risk of small blood vessel damage that can cause blindness and kidney disease. Bayless warns that ‘Fatigue, blurry vision, frequent urination, itchy skin, and sores that don’t heal can be warning signs of high blood sugar. Confusion, sweating, heart racing, passing out, or falling may indicate low blood sugar’. Also, look out for elevated cholesterol and blood pressure as this could lead to heart disease and stroke for diabetics. You can control cholesterol with cholesterol-lowering medication, proper nutrition, exercise, and weight control, and the American Geriatric Society recommends that elderly diabetics take aspirin daily to reduce the risk of stroke and heart attack, but you should check with a doctor first for the safest results.
Next, make sure your loved one has frequent scheduled, and attended, eye, foot, and kidney exams, as early diagnosis and treatment reduces the risk of more serious complications. You also need to look out for signs of depression, and could ask your doctor for a screening, as well as undiagnosed pain. Your patient may have memory problems, which means they could forget to check their blood sugar levels or take their medication, or they could be more susceptible to falling due to diabetes-related complications such as visual problems, loss of sensation in the feet, and dizziness from low blood sugar. Finally, your doctor should investigate urinary incontinence, which occurs commonly in women with diabetes and can be easily corrected.
Some final tips are that you allow enough time to provide adequate care as ‘The time required to provide caregiving, assistance in understanding the care plan, or treatment may take more time for the elderly and their caregivers’ says Bayless. It’s also important for you and the patient to be as educated as possible about managing diabetes, and the emotional and financial support that’s out there to help you both, as being a caregiver can be a strain. Finally, remember to be patient, specific and persistent when making changes as this will make them easier to follow.
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