Doris Inc : A Business Approach to Caring for Your Elderly Parents

by Roberts, Shirley

• ISBN13: 9781118100226
• ISBN10: 1118100220
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2011-12-05
• Publisher: Wiley

Summary

Elder care is an emotional rollercoaster ride: watching parents slowly deteriorate, trying to help while still having a life of your own, and facing your own eventual mortality can be overwhelming. When Shirley Roberts' father passed away six years ago, her life was put on hold as the demands of caring for her elderly mother began to take over her life. A lot has changed since then. Using her business prowess, Shirley teamed up with her brother David, a financial advisor, and developed what they called Doris Inc. By tackling the situation with their business skills, they found ways to ensure that their mother, Doris, was given top quality care without Shirley or David having to completely sacrifice their own lives. Much of their success has come from sound financial management and a financial planning tool that determined if and when Doris would run out of money, and what to do about it. Doris is now being well taken care of and she is as happy, comfortable, and well looked after, and Shirley has peace of mind and free time to pursue her life's interests. In Doris Inc., Shirley offers not only advice on how to cope, but proven strategies and a financial planning tool that worked for her. Discover the caregiver strategies of Doris Inc. for finding balance in your life, learning to maximize the quality of life for an elderly person, and confront and plan your own not-so-golden years so that you can have a fulfilling life now and build a plan for those who will be caring for you in the future.

Author Biography

Shirley Roberts is a graduate of the Ivey School of Business. She ran her own consulting firm, Market-Driven Solutions Inc., before becoming a published author and a consumer trend-spotter, whose research and advice were sought by media and large corporations. Shirley was a board member of Parkinson Society Canada from 2006-2009 and was the primary caregiver of her mother for seven years.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments	p. vii
Introduction	p. 1
My Heart-Wrenching Caregiving Dilemma	p. 3
Creating Doris Inc. to Take Better Care of Mom and Me	p. 19
Finding Balance in My Life	p. 39
Planning for the Stages of Decline	p. 59
Financial Planning for Senior Decline	p. 77
Elder Proofing to Reduce Preventable Crises	p. 111
Navigating the Health-Care Maze and Advocating for Mom	p. 127
Choosing the Right Type of Living Arrangements	p. 149
Finding the Best Retirement Residence with Mom	p. 173
Finding a Good Nursing Home for Mom	p. 185
Dealing with Dementia	p. 205
The Last Life of Doris	p. 233
Appendix: Caregivers'Palliative-Care Guide	p. 249
Index	p. 253
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