Help & advice
What to do, in what order, when a parent needs more help at home. New here? Start here.
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Smart Sensors to Check on a Parent Who Lives Alone, No Camera
How door and motion sensors, a voice assistant's emergency service and fall-detecting radar can check on a parent living alone without a camera.
What Medicare and Medicaid Pay for to Help a Parent Age at Home
What Original Medicare covers (walkers, commodes, hospital beds), what it won't (stairlifts, grab bars), and where Medicare Advantage, Medicaid, the VA and taxes can help.
How to Help a Parent Get Out of Bed Safely at Night
The CDC's three-step way to get out of bed, the bedroom setup that prevents night falls, and how to use a bed rail without the entrapment risk.
Holiday visit checklist: 12 signs a parent needs more help at home
What to quietly look for when you visit a parent over the holidays, and what to do if you notice changes.
Home safety checklist for aging parents, room by room
A printable room-by-room checklist to make a parent's home safer, starting with the fixes that prevent the most falls for the least money.
How to talk to your parent about getting help at home
Words that work when a parent insists they are fine: how to raise safety concerns while protecting their dignity and independence.
Mom fell. What do I do now? The first 48 hours
A calm checklist for the first two days after a parent's fall: what to check, who to call, what to ask the doctor, and how to keep it from happening again.
The caregiver's checklist, by email
A short, practical note each week for families helping a parent stay at home. Start with our free room-by-room home safety checklist.