Each year throughout the United States more than 2.5 million people are involved in vehicle accidents. Of these, more than 400,000 will die. As a family caregiver, particularly if you are a multigenerational caregiver who cares for both your elderly parent and your children, it is extremely important to recognize these risks and understand what you can do to protect yourself, your loved ones, and others on the road. April is National Distracted Driving Awareness Month. This is the ideal opportunity for you to evaluate how you approach the responsibility of driving and to make meaningful changes that can reduce the risk of potentially catastrophic accidents.
Use these tips to help you reduce distraction when driving during National Distracted Driving Awareness Month and throughout the rest of the year:
• Take the time to plan out your route and get driving directions before you start driving. This will eliminate the need to program the GPS, check your phone for directions, or look at a map while you are driving
• If you do need to re-evaluate your route, have someone else in the vehicle do it, or pull off of the road
• Do not adjust the radio, choose a song on your phone, or otherwise adjust entertainment while driving
• Do not answer your phone if it rings. If you are expecting an important phone call and you absolutely must take it, pull off of the road before answering
• Avoid eating while driving. This causes you to take your hands off of the wheel and look away from the road
• Do not lean down to pick up anything or reach for anything in the vehicle while driving
• Never read a text message or send a text message while driving
• Keep music at a reasonable volume so that you can easily hear the motorists around you
• Never apply makeup or change clothing while driving
• If your parent needs assistance or care while on the road, have someone else in the vehicle with you o that you do not look away from the road to handle such tasks.
If you have found that your caregiver responsibilities are more than you can handle effectively, or you simply feel that your aging parent would benefit from more diversification in the attention, assistance, and support that they receive on a regular basis, starting home care for them might be the ideal solution. Having an in-home care provider with them ensures that your senior loved one will get everything that they need on a regular basis so that you can take a step back, focus on the other obligations and needs that you have in your life, and feel confident that they are still happy, healthy, safe, and comfortable. This can not only improve your elderly parent’s quality of life as they age in place, but can reduce your caregiver stress and enable you to better focus the time, energy, and effort
that you can apply to their care needs in the way that is best for them and for you. When it comes to handling your parent’s needs outside of their home, you can trust this care provider to give your elderly parent safe and reliable transportation that enables them to get where they need and want to be when they need and want to be there without always having to wait for you to be available. This enables them to be more independent and handle more of their tasks on their own, which supports better mental and emotional health, increases motivation, and relieves more of your stress.
Source
https://www.defensivedriving.org/stopping-distracted-driving/
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/news/distracted-driving-awareness-month/
http://www.nsc.org/learn/NSC-Initiatives/Pages/distracted-driving-awareness-month.aspx
http://distracteddriveraccidents.com/25-shocking-distracted-driving-statistics/
IF YOU OR AN AGING LOVED ONE ARE CONSIDERING IN-HOME CAREGIVERS IN LAS VEGAS, NV, PLEASE CONTACT THE CARING STAFF AT GOLDEN HEART SENIOR CARE. CALL TODAY 702-800-4616.