Essential Items for a Senior Care Ready-Bag

Let’s get your aging family member ready to get out the house.

We’ll make a packing list of the most important items to bring when spending time outside of the home.

Common examples include overnight respite care or hospital visits. The senior who you’re admitting into the care facility is going to need some things to stay healthy, comfortable, and entertained.

Caregivers enjoying respite care, can enjoy it with more peace of mind when they know their loved one has everything they need.

Hip Hip - Great Job, My Fellow Caregivers!

What’s a Senior Care Ready Bag Good For?

The purpose of a “Senior Care Ready Bag” is to have essential items the senior would need, if they had to leave the house right now. 

Some caregivers prepare “Ready Bags” or “Go Bags” for the express purpose of hospital stays: the “Hospital Bag”. Some caregivers anticipate emergencies, like power-outages, no running water, or Michigan snow-ins.

It’s not all gloom and doom. It’s nice to be prepared with senior care goodies, even for non-emergencies.

You can keep it in your front closet. You can keep it in your car.

You can call it the “Caregiver Go Bag” when it contains items for both the senior and their care partner.

Caregiver Go Bag Packing List

1. Medication and Treatments

Examples:

• Full supply of prescription medications and easy-to-understand pill containers
• Pharmacy items recommended by your doctor (like dietary staples, covid masks,  specialized medical equipment)
• General first aid kits for transportation and on-the-go (water and food, and a small flashlight/batteries)

Pack enough medication to last the entire time out of home. If it’s uncertain, then be plan for extras - just in case.

2. Documents and Paperwork

Examples:

• Identification items (photo ID)
• Copies of important medical/legal documents (insurance cards, Medicare/Medicaid cards, legal documents)
• Patient fact sheet or care instructions

When the “Go Bag Destination” is a healthcare facility, you need to bring all documents, instructions, and paperwork to enable the care team to quick complete intake and provide the kind of care you want.

A reactive approach (pretty good) is to have the required legal and medical documents the care facility asks you for. A proactive approach (even better) is to write down what’s important to you on paper so the care facility has it in-hands in plain English. 

Now you flipped the documentation onto them for a change. They take you more seriously, knowing you have high expectations for quality care - written down on paper.

If you’re on top of your game, and your family member has dementia or Alzheimer’s you can register your aging family member with a Wandering Response Service, and include this document with service contact information.

3. Clothing and Personal Care

Examples:

• Change of clothes (complete, comfortable, and weather-appropriate outfits)
• Toiletries and personal care items (oral care, bathing/showering like shampoo/soap, lotions/creams)
• Continence solutions
• Spare eyeglasses, hats, or other helpful daily accessories

Healthcare staff appreciate a family caregivers efforts to neatly pack pack the seniors clothing items. 

You get extra points for packing complete outfits individually. These are all the clothing and accessories my dad (Parkinson’s and dementia) needs in one summer day, for example: Adult Diapers, Socks, Shirt, Pants, Shoes, Glasses, Ballcap, Drive Brand Walker.

Not all care facilities do laundry, so plan as many outfits as needed for however many days/night they’ll stay.

4. Comfort and Entertainment

Examples:

• Snacks and bottled water, especially non-perishable foods and easy to eat on-the-go meals
• Comfort items and engaging activities (smartphone and charger/powerbank, iPad, Kindle or another favorite gadget, books, photos, calendar, puzzles, or whatever gives them a nice way to pass the time)

Without family members and home comforts, what’s gonna keep your aging family member from twiddling their thumbs during their stay in respite care?

Closed doors present deep fears for family members admitting a senior to a care facility. Beyond basic human necessities, are they going to get any kind of companionship, emotional, or spiritual support?

Summary

Pack some stuff for your aging family member before they go on an overnight stay. They’ll thank you and you’ll thank yourself. Plan it with the person in mind: “Prescription Meds” and “Personal Favorites”. You’ll be able to relax better, knowing they’ve got all their critical and cherished things beside them - while you are not by their side.