Eldercare For Dummies

Rachelle Zukerman, PhD (Woodland Hills, CA), is a gerontologist, licensed clinical social worker, and Associate Professor of Social Welfare at the UCLA School of Public Policy and Social Research. Dr. Zukerman taught clinical gerontology as a visiting professor at Hong Kong University and was a 1998—99 Fulbright Scholar to Taiwan where she taught counseling methods for elderly clients and their families.

• Introduction. Part I: Entering the World of Caregiving.Chapter 1: Eldercare Basics.Chapter 2: The Elderly Are Like Vintage Computers.Chapter 3: Old Age Is a Family Affair: Deciding Who, What, Where, and When.Chapter 4: Where to Turn When Your Elder Needs a New Home.Part II: Mastering Everyday Challenges.Chapter 5: Sleeping Well Means Doing Well.Chapter 6: Helping Finicky Eaters.Chapter 7: Helping Elderly People Be All That They Can Be.Chapter 8: Sharing the Caring.Chapter 9: Growing Closer and Dearer: Improving Relationships.Part III: Keeping Elderly Folks Safe and Sound.Chapter 10: Living Well with Chronic Medical Conditions.Chapter 11: Just Say “Yes” to Health-Giving Drugs.Chapter 12: Protective Doohickeys and Thingamajigs.Chapter 13: Dealing with Leaky Plumbing and Other Incontinence Problems.Chapter 14: Getting Out and About.Part IV: The Blues, the “Good Old Days,” and Other Senior Moments.Chapter 15: When the Clouds Roll In: Dealing with Depression.Chapter 16: Managing Anxiety.Chapter 17: All About Alzheimer’s Disease.Chapter 18: Managing the Distressing Behavior and Emotions of Confused Elderly.Part V: Making the Final Years Golden.Chapter 19: When “The Apple of Your Eye” Needs a Peer.Chapter 20: Keeping Your Elder at the Helm.Chapter 21: Keeping the Bill Collector from the Door.Chapter 22: Helping Spiritual and Religious Elderly “Keep the Faith”.Chapter 23: Ensuring a Good Death.Part VI: The Part of Tens.Chapter 24: Ten Tests to Help You Assess a Nursing Home.Chapter 25: Ten Ways (More or Less) That Elders Hide Their Feelings.Index.