Maintaining Your Independence As Your Parents Age * Making A Plan > Decide on a caregiver - Yourself - Family Member - Outside options > Determine a power of attorney - Durable (Someone to help with financial decisions) - Medical (To help in decisions such a surgery/ advanced directives/ DNR) * Care Giving For Parents > Record keeping is essential - List of medications -Important papers (for example--- social security / insurance cards) all kept in one place - List of community resources * Caring For Yourself > Central record keeping for yourself > Adequate sleep > Planned recreational activities > Accept help from others - Family - Friends - Paid assistants * Maintaining Your Independence > Special needs trust fund set up prior to parents’ health decline > Develop a plan to off-set income loss when there are fewer people in the household * Budgeting > Determine what to cut/reduce - Newspaper - Cable - Landline telephone - Cell phone package > Supplementing -Public transit vs. private transit * Resources > Senior Care > Home Health Agencies > Respite Programs > Hospital/Nursing Home Social Workers > Online resources for Senior and Disability Care