Discussing the possibility of your senior no longer getting behind the wheel can be a sensitive subject to approach, but sometimes it is a necessary one, not only for their safety but for the safety of others as well. If your senior is experiencing any of the following, it may be time to discuss other options for your senior’s transportation, such as home care.
- Difficulty Seeing Clearly: If you notice that your senior is having trouble with their depth perception, seeing stop signs or pedestrians, or they are having too many close calls, it might be time for them to stop driving. Vision impairment is a normal part of aging but it is also very dangerous for your senior to be experiencing this difficulty while driving.
- Difficulty Maneuvering Through Traffic: If your senior is having trouble making an appropriate lane change, constantly missing their turn off, or swerving in and out lanes, it is time for them to no longer drive. The inability to properly maneuver on the road is a hazard for your senior and other drivers on the road and can ultimately cause an accident.
- Refusal to Drive at Night: If your senior has expressed concern about driving at night or downright refuses to drive at night, this is a sign that their vision has started to fade and they should no longer be behind the wheel. Difficulty seeing at night is usually one of the first signs that your senior should no longer be behind the wheel.
- Decrease in Reaction Time: An important part of driving is the amount of time it take for the driver to react to a sudden situation, i.e. a child running into the road, another driver hitting their brakes, or someone swerving on the road. If your senior has started to experience a decrease in their reaction time to something as simple catching an object with their hands, it may be time to discuss other options for their transportation.
- Increase in Traffic Tickets: Sometimes you may not notice or your senior may not want to tell you that they are having trouble driving and getting around, until you learn they have had an increase in traffic citations and tickets. An increase in traffic tickets is indicative of your senior failing to follow traffic laws and should not be driving and that a home care aid may be beneficial for your senior.
As hard as it is to discuss this subject with your senior, it is in their best interest and the best interest of others for them to utilize an alternate form of transportation once they start exhibiting any of the above signs. Home care can greatly assist your senior with all of their transportation needs, whether it is to an important medical appointment or just to the store, home care will make sure your senior arrives safely.
If you are considering senior care in Portage, MI, for an aging loved one, please call the caring staff at Fresh Perspective Home Care at (269) 329-4717. We are here to help!
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