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3 Things You Need to Know About Finding Home Care for Your Parents

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As children, we want nothing but the best for our parents. Sometimes, that means letting them live at home instead of an assisted care facility. Your parents will have a better time spending their days with the family – including their grandchildren – and you can keep a closer eye on them along the way.

Taking good care of parents at home, however, can prove to be a big task to tackle. This is where home care services come in handy. Before you can start providing your parents with the support they need, however, you need to first find a good service provider. Below are three essential tips you need to know about finding the best home care for your parents.

Start by Finding the Right Agency

shutterstock_423588148_300Home care services are usually provided by registered nurses. You can either get in touch with a qualified nurse directly or work with a home care agency. The latter is usually the better option, since you don’t have to worry about a lot of things.

For starters, the agency will handle all the necessary checks for you. This includes the background and qualification checks required to ensure the nurses that will be taking care of your parents are qualified. In most cases, you can even ask for specific requirements.

Finding the right agency is also easier. There are plenty of service providers to choose from. You can read reviews and get past references of the agencies you are interested in using too. Other information will make choosing the right one to work with even easier.

Compare Agencies and Their Service Offers

Never go for the first offer you come across. As mentioned before, there are plenty of agencies and home care services to choose from. Do a quick Google search and you’ll find at least 30 home care service providers near you. The best way to find the one to hire is by comparing the agencies and their service offers.

Get quotes from multiple agencies. You can do this by either contacting each agency directly or getting estimates using online price aggregators. You can save a lot of time and money along the way too. The healthcare industry is very competitive these days, so you will be able to get great deals and special offers rather easily.

Trust Your Feelings

Always interview the agency and the nurse (or nurses) that will be taking care of your parents directly before making any purchase decision. There are important details to spot during the interview, but you can always rely on your feelings. How comfortable you are with the agency and the nurses should be taken into consideration.

For example, you can find top nurses with an online RN to BSN degree from Arizona State University or other top universities across the country just by getting in touch with the right agency. The extra qualifications mean the nurses have better skills in healthcare, which in turn means your parents will get the best care they need.

You can even ask a trial period before making up your mind. Once you are fully comfortable with the agency and the nurses, you can sign up for the full service. It’s the best feeling in the world; knowing that you’ve provided your parents with the best care they can get.

Content supplied by Click Intelligence

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Natural Remedies For Eczema – You Still Need to Research Them

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Natural remedies for eczema – there are many available, including natural oils and herbs. Eczema is really hard to deal with – the itch – it can actually take over your whole life. It can really over-shadow things. Anyone who has eczema will know that the prescribed medication is steroid cream. There are drawbacks to using steroid cream which you may have experienced or have discovered. A major drawback is that steroid cream can actually thin the skin. Another drawback is that it does not work! It covers the problem – it creates a film over the top of the eczema. You will notice if you use steroid cream that as soon as you stop the eczema actually comes back worse than before you started.

When searching for natural remedies for eczema unfortunately you will still have to look into the product. You need to still check the ingredients. I realised this on my searches. I was constantly on the internet looking for an eczema natural cure. Within my hours spent, I came across one that claimed to be natural – the results looked great and so did the testimonials. Then I scrolled down to the ingredients and sure enough it had Hydrocortisone in it.

Different people experience eczema in different forms, such as, cracked skin, tiny bumps, inflamed or weeping. Whichever of these relates to your eczema I know that night time sleeping will be unbearable for you. If you have a young child with eczema the fact they are not a good nights sleep can actually make the whole thing worse.

Eczema is particularly hard to cope with in young children and unfortunately that is where it usually begins – in children under 5. I have had first hand experience with this. My sons eczema began on his first Christmas. The time we spent trying to rid him of eczema after this was not a pleasant journey and one that I would not wish on any parent.

For more information on eczema and to see how our eczema nightmare came to an end visit my blog or Squidoo.

For more information on eczema and to see how our eczema nightmare came to an end for us visit my eczema natural remedies blog or my eczema Squidoo lens

Basic Baby Products You Need for Newborns

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Having a baby is exciting, but preparing for his or her arrival can be overwhelming for first-time parents. You need to prepare the baby products you will need long before your child arrives. Buying these items can be very expensive if you do not know what to prioritise.

Babies need many things as they grow up, but during their first few weeks, they do not need much. Create a layette list to help you prioritise important items. A layette list is a list of basic items your baby will need for the next nine weeks after birth. Use the layette when shopping for items to avoid making unnecessary purchases.

Baby Furniture and Other Baby Gears

Many first-time parents cannot wait to find a crib for their little one. This is one of the most important things you should buy for the baby. Get a childproof baby crib. There are many cribs with rounded sides and non-toxic finish in the market. You can also save money on children’s furniture by getting a convertible crib. There are products that serve as a crib and a changing table at the same time. You can transform these into a full-size child’s bed later on.

You should also invest in a good child car seat. This will be useful not only for the first few months, but until your child is two years old. Buy waterproof cover for both the car seat and crib mattress to ensure your baby does not leave any stains on your cloth cover.

A baby monitor will also come in handy if you are a busy parent. Having a baby monitor will let you do household chores without having to check on your baby. Many monitors can cover different distances. You can also choose whether you want the traditional audio baby monitors or a wireless digital video baby monitor.

Clothing Needs

The number of clothing items you need to buy depends on how often you do laundry. Get five to ten rompers for day use, and the same number of sleepers or nightgowns. Make sure you buy cotton rompers, as cotton will keep your baby cool without irritating his or her skin. Get a couple of cold weather sleepers if you live in cooler areas. You will also need five to seven pairs of socks and mittens to keep your baby warm. Get a couple newborn hats as well, especially if your baby arrives in winter.

Bath Items

Decide whether you want to use disposable diapers, cloth nappies, or both. Disposable diapers have chemicals that may cause rashes and other skin problems. Cloth nappies, on the other hand, will require frequent washing. Get two packs of disposable diapers or enough reusable ones to last a couple days. Babies can use as many as ten in a day. You should also have a pack of baby wipes and three to five washcloths around. Have a waterproof pad and baby power ready for diaper changes.

You can buy a hooded towel or use an adult towel for bath time. Make sure you only use gentle baby wash for your baby’s head and body. Shampoo is too harsh, especially on a newborn’s skin. Finally, buy baby nail clippers and a digital thermometer. You can purchase other baby products later, but these are the basics you will need for the first nine weeks.

Abigail is a first-time parent who loves to share advice on baby products for newborn babies, such as cloth nappies, rompers and other layette requirements.

What You Need to Know About Baby Eczema Treatment to Cure Your Baby in Less Than a Week

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It is not pleasant watching your baby suffer from eczema and even worse when you can’t control it. Although baby eczema looks the same as the eczema adult suffer from, the difference lies in the treatment of it. The baby can’t do much for itself, which means the parents have to manage the intervention, but the problem is the parents aren’t always around and baby doesn’t understand its condition so it just goes on scratching making the lesions worse. In this article you will learn about the symptoms, causes and treatment for baby eczema so that you can understand better what you are dealing with and how to get it under control.

The various trigger factors that cause baby eczema are similar to those that cause eczema in adults. Allergies, dry skin, physical irritants in contact with the skin, climate changes, certain types of cloth, etc. Babies have very sensitive and delicate skin which means they are much more prone to suffer from it. There are two types of eczema that only babies suffer from: cradle cap and nappy rash. Cradle cap is essentially seborrheic dermatitis which manifests around the scalp, brows and ears of the baby resembling a cap. The nappy rash is usually a result of urine and excrement irritating the skin in the nappy area. Sometimes it occurs in combination with a bit of thrush (yeast infection).

As far as the symptoms go, eczema in babies and eczema in adults present the same. Both display the typical dry, red and itchy skin with weepy and crusty lesions in more aggravated conditions.

When it comes to the treatment of your baby’s eczema, there are many things you can do to intervene to treat and prevent it. Here’s what you must do:

At bath time, avoid making the water too hot as this will make things worse. Keep the water luke warm. Bathe baby daily and don’t use any strong soaps, bubble bath or perfumes that could irritate the skin. After the bath, pat the skin dry gently until semi dry. Do not rub vigorously, as this will dry the skin out too much. Immediately after drying, moisturize all over with moisturizing cream or lotion to “lock in” in water from the bath.

Mosturise often. Dry skin is very prone to eczema, so you need to prevent skin form drying out. Don’t use scented products with complicated formulas or that contain alcohol. Stick to regular aqueous cream or baby lotion. Moisturise at least twice daily and especially after every bath as described above.

Certain foods can trigger eczema, so pay close attention to what your baby eats and how it reacts to the food. The usual suspects here are dairy products, nuts and eggs. When you identify a certain food that triggers your baby’s eczema, eliminate it or at least limit the intake.

Bedding and clothes: Clothing that makes baby sweat and irritate the skin such as synthetic clothing (like polyester) and wool can facilitate eczema. Pure cotton clothing and bedding is the answer to the problem here. It is natural and soft and is not conducive to making bay sweat too much.

Environmental factors: If you have air conditioning in your house, don’t allow the air to become too dry. Also vacuum your carpets frequently to keep the house free from dust mites, pollen and dust.

Prevent scratching at all cost. This is something that can make baby eczema treatment very difficult. Eczema is aggravated greatly with scratching. Adults understand this and can stop themselves from scratching. Babies scratch instinctively and do not understand that this makes matters worse and you are not always around to stop them. As proactive measures you can keep your baby’s nails trimmed and have it sleep with mits to prevent scratching.

Luckily babies usually outgrow their eczema. Some will continue to suffer from it, but with age also comes the understanding of eczema that makes controlling it easier. In severe cases topical creams or ointments with antihistamines or corticosteroids may be indicated, but always consult with your pharmacist or doctor before using them Preventing baby eczema is definitely better than treating it, and implementing the above points will make your life (and your baby’s) much easier.

Wilhelm Greffrath is a practicing community pharmacist in South Africa that has a grievance with bombastic medical explanations for simple things. Check out his website at project-33.com to learn everything you need to know about eczema in simple terms. You will also find ways to beat eczema permanently.