GeriScope: Ultimate Elderly Care Survival Guide

Are you afraid every time your aging parent gets behind the wheel? Will they injure themselves or someone else? See the 5 signs it may be time to talk with them about giving up the keys?


Want more tips and tools to evaluate older adult driving and finding alternative transportation options, download the GeriScope Guide—The Car to learn more at www.GeriScope.com


Save it.
Share it with someone who worries too.
You don’t have to figure this out alone.

#SeniorDrivingAbility #OlderAdultTrafficSafety #ElderlyCarAccidents #AgingParents #ElderCare #FamilyCaregiver #AgingAndDriving #GeriScope #FastFactsForFamilyCaregivers

3 weeks ago | [YT] | 0

GeriScope: Ultimate Elderly Care Survival Guide

Sometimes your elderly loved one concern isn’t about their personal care—it’s life management. Medications get mixed up. Bills go unpaid. Meals stop happening. Rides become complicated. The housekeeping slips. The phone stays silent.


The Lawton-Brody Scale helps you measure how well your loved one can think-plan-do to keep life on track—key skills like managing meds, money, meals, shopping, transportation, communication, laundry, and the home.


👉 Answer the 8 questions and share with others supporting an aging loved one and subscribe to the GeriScope channel for more tools. Want a paper copy of the Lawton-Brody Scale, visit GeriScope.com.

#signsofseniordecline #agingparentsandspousehelp #familycaregiver #instrumentalactivitiesofdailyliving #IADLs #LawtonBrodyScale

3 weeks ago | [YT] | 0

GeriScope: Ultimate Elderly Care Survival Guide

You don’t need a medical degree to notice when something isn’t right. If your aging parent or spouse is struggling with bathing, dressing, eating, getting up and around, using the bathroom, or incontinence, these are clues—not failures.


The Katz Index helps families name what they’re seeing by measuring the things your loved one has done on their own since they ditched diapers—the most basic personal care tasks tied to dignity, safety, and health.


👉 Answer the 6 questions and share with others supporting an aging loved one and subscribe to the GeriScope channel for more tools. Want a paper copy of the Katz Index, visit GeriScope.com.

3 weeks ago | [YT] | 0

GeriScope: Ultimate Elderly Care Survival Guide

The Bristol ADL Scale measures #ADLs, #IADLs, and abilities unique to dementia, including staying oriented to time (knowing the day or distinguishing morning from night), staying oriented to place (finding rooms, recognizing home, or avoiding exit-seeking), and staying engaged in hobbies and activities without constant prompting or supervision.

This video quickly walks you through all 20 questions so you can see for yourself.

1 month ago | [YT] | 0

GeriScope: Ultimate Elderly Care Survival Guide

Caring for someone with dementia means watching more than just memory changes. It means noticing how well they handle the everyday tasks that keep them clean, comfortable, safe, and connected to the world around them. That’s why experienced caregivers and healthcare professionals often look at three categories of abilities: #ActivitiesofDailyLiving (ADLs), #InstrumentalActivitiesofDailyLiving (IADLs)—also known as Life Management Skills—and a third, dementia-specific group of abilities that aren’t measured by traditional tools.


ADLs are the hands-on personal care tasks your loved one must do each day—bathing and grooming, getting dressed, eating and drinking, moving safely around the home, using the toilet, and maintaining bladder and bowel control. When these slip, families often see the earliest signs that an older adult may need more direct support.


Life Management Skills, or #IADLs, are the everyday tasks that keep life running smoothly. They include staying in touch with others through phone, mail, or email; shopping for food, toiletries, and essentials; preparing safe and nutritious meals; and keeping the home clean and in good working order. They also involve doing laundry, managing medications, handling money safely, and arranging transportation to appointments, events, and gatherings. These are the “think-plan-do” skills—tasks that require memory, judgment, sequencing, and organization. When these begin to falter, it’s often a sign that your #agingparentorspouse needs more consistent help behind the scenes.


But for people living with dementia, there’s a third category of abilities that begins to change—abilities not captured by standard ADL or IADL measures. This is where the #BristolADLScale becomes an essential tool. It looks at dementia-specific skills such as:
- Orientation to time — knowing the day or date, distinguishing morning from night, or avoiding repetitive questions about the time.
- Orientation to place — recognizing familiar surroundings, finding the bathroom, navigating rooms safely, or understanding that they are at home rather than trying to leave.
- Hobbies and activities — participating in favorite pastimes, following instructions, staying engaged, or joining in without constant prompting.

When changes appear in these dementia-related abilities, they provide families with crucial insight. These shifts can indicate when a loved one needs more structure, greater supervision, or additional safety supports. Understanding where abilities are slipping helps caregivers respond early—protecting dignity, improving safety, and easing the emotional toll of uncertainty.


The Bristol ADL Scale brings all three domains together—ADLs, Life Management Skills, and dementia-specific changes—to give caregivers a clearer, more complete picture of what their loved one can do today and where help is needed tomorrow.
If you’re beginning to see subtle changes, this tool can turn worry into understanding and confusion into direction. And most importantly, it gives family caregivers the confidence to take the next step with compassion and clarity.


Watch and learn how the Bristol ADL Scale can help you and your family.


#signsofseniordecline, #dementia #AlzheimersDisease #activitiesofdailyliving #ADLs #instrumentalactivitiesofdailyliving #IADLs #timeandplaceorientation #hobbiesandgames #GeriScope #agingparentsandspouse

1 month ago | [YT] | 0

GeriScope: Ultimate Elderly Care Survival Guide

This is another “big picture” moment for the whole Home for the Holidays series. Today’s video brings together the eight Instrumental Activities of Daily Living:
• Using communication tools
• Doing laundry
• Managing medications
• Handling finances
• Arranging transportation
• Cleaning & maintaining the home
• Shopping for goods & services
• Preparing meals

These are the “life management” skills that keep homes running and people independent — and they often show the earliest signs of change.

If this week has opened your eyes to new concerns, this one video lets you step back, see the whole picture, and feel less overwhelmed.

Watch today’s IADL summary and revisit any of the 14 individual videos anytime.
You’re not alone — and GeriScope is here to help you talk, plan, and care . . . together.

#signsofseniordecline, #agingparentsandspousehelp #seniortechnologyuseproblems #managemedications #unpaidbillselderly #seniortransportation #preparing meals #housekeepinghomemaintenancechallenges #shoppingstruggles #doinglaundry #caregiveradvice #familycaregiver #GeriScope #elderlyindependence

1 month ago | [YT] | 0

GeriScope: Ultimate Elderly Care Survival Guide

In this quick video, you’ll learn the six ADLs that every medical professional, care manager, social worker, and long-term care insurer uses to understand how well an older adult is functioning at home: Bathing, Dressing, Eating, Mobility/Transferring, Toileting, and Continence.

If you’re visiting family for the holidays and feel like something is changing—but can’t quite name what—you’re in the right place. This video helps you see what professionals see, so you can become a more competent, confident, and courageous caregiver.

👉 Download The Compass guide to learn more about each ADL.
👉 Subscribe for more tools and tips to support your loved ones.
👉 Share with someone who needs clarity during this holiday season.

#ActivitiesofDailyLiving #ADLs #FamilyCaregiving #AgingParents #HomeForTheHolidays #GeriScope

1 month ago | [YT] | 0

GeriScope: Ultimate Elderly Care Survival Guide

Give a great BIG Thank You to the elderly caregivers in your life that help out in zillions of ways throughout the year. Take an entertaining peak at just a few of the things they do and roles they play in the health and well-being of your loved one. Spot a few that apply to your family and want to give them a shout out by sharing the video with them along with a personal message. It’s the best e-card they may get this season.

1 month ago | [YT] | 0

GeriScope: Ultimate Elderly Care Survival Guide

Yesterday you saw the signs. Today, you’ll learn how to make sense of them.

After Thanksgiving, families everywhere have the same thought: “Something’s not right… but I don’t know what it means.”

Today’s video introduces you to the two gold-standard tools for understanding what you observed:


The #KatzIndex for #ADLs and the #Lawton-BrodyScale for #IADLs.

These aren’t medical tests. They’re simple, practical ways for families to identify where daily tasks are slipping — and where support might be needed next.
If this Thanksgiving raised concerns, these tools give you language, clarity, and direction.


And remember — we reveal the full wrap-up videos this weekend:
➡️ Saturday: The 6 ADLs
➡️ Sunday: The 8 IADLs
Subscribe now so you don’t miss them.


#signsofseniordecline, #agingparentsandspousehelp #instrumentalactivitiesofdailyliving #IADLs #familycaregiver #GeriScope #elderlyindependence #LawtonBrodyScale

1 month ago | [YT] | 0

GeriScope: Ultimate Elderly Care Survival Guide

Ever done the Thanksgiving grocery run with an aging parent? It reveals a LOT.
- Missing ingredients.
- Buying the same item three times.
- Skipping heavy items because they’re hard to carry.
- Uncertainty at checkout.
- Difficulty managing lists, errands, or payments.

Today’s video focuses on the Instrumental Activity of Daily Living called Shopping for Goods and Services — one of the most complex “life management” skills we all take for granted.


If you noticed small slips during this year’s grocery trips (or felt uneasy about what was missing in the fridge), this quick video will help you understand what those moments might be signaling.


Watch today → and get ready:
Tomorrow’s video — Preparing Meals — is the big one.

1 month ago | [YT] | 0