Today's retired seniors by an overwhelming 9:1 ration fully expect to "age in place," staying in their private homes as long as they can and resisting moves to institutionalized settings. Increasingly these seniors private hire senior caregivers who help with mobility challenges, transportation and general household activities as a way to stay in their homes. When you hire a senior care worker directly, you become an employer.

HWS client care specialists field inquiries about worker classification - whether a household worker is an employee or an independent contractor - all the time.  Families call questioning whether they can treat their household employee as an independent contractor, provide them a 1099 Form instead of a W-2, and avoid the entire issue of payroll taxes.

Most older Americans have been driving since they were teenagers and want to retain the independence that comes with being at the wheel. Growing older does not necessarily mean a driver is less capable; in fact, years of driving experience may make them a more conscientious driver. But changes that occur as we age, even for those who are in very good health, may affect a senior’s ability to be a fully safe driver.

As more and more senior are opting to "age in place", the direct hiring of senior caregivers are being sought out by family members. Families have questions about minimum wage, overtime and questions about what constitutes payable hours during the care day. Often, they are not aware of the tax obligations of employing a household employee.

Welcome to the social media era, where our friends are called "contacts", our thoughts "comments" and experiences "posts" … 

More families are considering the possibility of privately hiring senior home care for someone it their family as a way to help their loved ones age in place in a safe and happy environment. This is uncharted territory for most people, and adult children who may have hired nannies to care for their children years ago wonder what they need to consider when hiring senior home care assistance.

Our aging parents deal with physical and sometimes mental declines that challenge their ability to completely take care of themselves on their own.  They don’t like the idea of moving out of their homes to a senior care facility.  How will they safely age at home, in a safe and happy environment?

Today an estimated 3.4 million senior home care givers provide support services to an aging population that emphatically wants to ‘age in place.’ To meet continued demand, the U.S. needs an additional 1.6 million caregivers by 2020. While most families turn to senior care agencies to provide support personnel to aging family members, an increasing number of families prefer to hire directly, citing both reduced costs and greater control over caregiver selection as their primary motivations.

The Nanny Community is formed by a hard working, hands on team of professionals.  I am so fortunate to network with nannies across the country, and regularly attend nanny educational forums.  I am amazed by the commitment, continuous learning, effort and passion of these women, dedicated to the wellbeing of our children and to make this world a better one! 

Monitoring an aging parent’s health

Each year, projections for the average life expectancy of Americans trend up. There are differences by gender, a man reaching age 65 today can expect to live, on average, until age 84; for a woman the average expectation is 86. In addition to these averages from the Social Security Administration, about one out of every four 65-year-olds today is expected to live past age 90, and one out of 10 past age 95.

Families of aging seniors are confronted with many choices as they navigate options to help maintain a healthy and productive life for elderly family members.  Home safety, medication management and transportation are key concerns for every family facing the naturally changing capacities seniors face as they age.  In fact, according to the Congressional Budget Office, one third of seniors aged 65 and over need some assistance with activities of daily living such as dressing and personal hygiene, shopping and preparing meals