Register online by visiting alz.org/sc or by calling 1-800-272-3900.

While Waterloo N.Y. was officially declared the origin of Memorial Day by President Lyndon Johnson in May 1966, it’s tough to confirm conclusively the source of the day. It is much more likely that it had many individual beginnings; each of those towns and every scheduled or spontaneous meeting of people to honor the war dead in the 1860′s identified the common human need to honor our dead, each added honestly to the growing movement that culminated in Gen Logan giving his formal proclamation in 1868. It is not important who was the very first, what is essential is that Memorial Day was established.

Memorial Day is not about dividing. It is about getting back together; it is about coming together to honor those who gave their all. Traditional observance of Memorial Day has diminished over the years. Many Americans these days have forgotten the significance and customs of Memorial Day.

Since the late 50′s on the Thursday before Memorial Day, the 1,200 soldiers of the 3d U.S. Infantry place small American flags at each of the more than 260,000 gravestones at Arlington National Cemetery. They then patrol 24 hours a day during the weekend to ensure that each flag remains standing.

In 1951, the Boy Scouts and Cub Scouts of St. Louis began placing flags on the 150,000 graves at Jefferson Barracks National Cemetery as an annual Good Turn, a practice that continues to this day. More recently, beginning in 1998, on the Saturday before the observed day for Memorial Day, the Boys Scouts and Girl Scouts place a candle at each of approximately 15,300 grave sites of soldiers buried at Fredericksburg and Spotsylvania National Military Park on Marye’s Heights (the Luminaria Program). And in 2004, Washington D.C. held its first Memorial Day parade in over 60 years.

To help re-educate and remind Americans of the true meaning of Memorial Day, the “National Moment of Remembrance” resolution was passed on Dec 2000 which asks that at 3 p.m. local time, for all Americans “To voluntarily and informally observe in their own way a Moment of remembrance and respect, pausing from whatever they are doing for a moment of silence or listening to ‘Taps.”

The Moment of Remembrance is a step in the right direction to returning the meaning back to the day. What is needed is a full return to the original day of observance. Set aside one day out of the year for the nation to get together to remember, reflect and honor those who have given their all in service to their country.

To honor the dedication, commitment, and tireless commitment of the nearly 3.1 million registered nurses nationally to increase and care for the health and wellbeing of the US, the American Nurses Association is elated to acknowledge registered nurses in all places on this selected day for the caregiving and top quality work they provide seven days a week, 365 days a year.

In tribute to Nursing: Advocating, Leading, Caring, all registered nurses in America are encouraged to proudly wear the official ANA “RN” pin or any other pin that plainly recognizes them as registered nurses, and/or their nurses uniform on May 6, 2012.

Nurses: Advocating, Leading, Caring 

Often identified as an art and a science, nursing is a job that embraces committed individuals with distinct pursuits, skills and loves because of the many choices the profession has. Nurses are caregivers, work in emergency rooms, school based clinics, and homeless shelters, among others. They have many assignments – from staff nurse to educator to nurse practitioner and nurse researcher – and perform all of them with excitement for the industry and with a strong commitment to patient safety.

National Nurses Week History    

National Nurses Week starts off yearly on May 6th and ends on May 12th, Florence Nightingale’s birthday. 

These solid dates improve planning and positions National Nurses Week as an organized recognition event. As of 1998, May 8 was designated as National Student Nurses Day, to be recognized each year. And as of 2003, National School Nurse Day is celebrated on the Wednesday within National Nurses Week (May 6-12) each year.

The nursing business has been backed and publicized by the American Nurses Association (ANA) since 1896. 

Each of ANA’s state and territorial nurses associations promotes the nursing profession at the state and regional levels. Each conducts celebrations on these dates to recognize the contributions that nurses and nursing make to the community.

If you know a registered nurse, be sure to thank him or her for their service during National Nurses Week 2012.

Here are some ways to spread the spirit of gardening in your local community.

Plant a Row for the Hungry at a Local Community Garden

In this land of abundance it’s difficult to imagine lacking access to good food at a sensible cost. However, for many Americans, finding a healthy meal is not always easy. It’s projected almost 33 million people, including 13 million children, end up with emergency food because they cannot purchase the food they need.

Hold a Plant Swap at a Local Church

The very best plants aren’t always from your community garden center or seed catalog. Alternatively they are gathered through quick cuttings or by collecting seeds from the garden of a friend or family member. These “pass-along plants” deliver both natural splendor and feeling to your garden.

Have a Spring Cleaning Green Up Day at a Senior’s Home

Spring cleaning — indoors and out — is a ritual that marks the end of winter and  the start of a new season, and like many events, it’s more fun when you share it. A senior’s home, your street, neighborhood, town park, and any other public space could use some greening up; it just takes someone to organize a small group.

Yard Sale Philanthropy

The advent of spring, coupled with longer days and higher temperatures, invokes dreams of green oases teeming with tomatoes and brimming with beans. Spring is also a time for cleaning out. This year, celebrate National Garden Month in an unexpected way-by visiting yard sales in search of second-hand stuff that every senior’s garden needs.

Organize a Garden Visit with Senior Friends, Over Tea!

Gardeners grow more than plants – every one of us has stories to share. For a change, why not share them in over tea? Socialization and admiration of another person’s garden brings joy to everyone.

Other concepts for celebrating with seniors in your community:

-Prepare or be a part of a town beautification day.

-Check out your area farmers’ market.

-Compliment a neighbor on his or her garden.

-Gather with neighbors to purchase compost and mulch in bulk quantities.

-Volunteer to plant and preserve a garden at your area library.

-Present a gardening article or essay to your community paper.

-Interview an elder to learn what foods his or her family grew when he or she was a child.

-Search for neighbors from various ethnic groups to find out about their native cuisine and gardening techniques.

-Clean up your street or a local park by picking up trash.

-Share a cutting of one of your favorite landscape or houseplants with a senior neighbor.

-Look at your gardening gear (e.g., pots, seeds, stakes) and donate the excess to a area gardening program, assisted living facility or school garden.

-Celebrate other important “green” holidays: Earth Day (April 22) and National Arbor Day (April 26).

-Volunteer at your local school’s garden.

-Volunteer at a local senior center’s garden.

-Start a neighborhood garden club.

-Share your garden’s bounty with a senior neighbor.

-Have fun doing a gardening project with a senior.

-Deliver houseplants or flowers to a nursing home, assisted living or children’s hospital.

-Donate past issues of gardening magazines to your library, or buy the library a gift subscription.

Senior Care Greenville counselors at Assisting Angels are available to talk with you about your in-home care needs including how to reduce caregiver stress while providing better, affordable care. We are an elder care agency providing Senior Care in Greenville.

If a senior in your life is receiving home care services, you might also consider asking their physician about Occupational Therapy services that are often covered by Medicare.

Occupational therapists and occupational therapy assistants focus on “doing” whatever occupations or activities are relevant to the person. It is occupational therapy’s function to get past problems to the answers that assure living life to its fullest. These solutions may be modifications for how to do a task, changes to the surroundings, or guiding people to alter their own behaviors.

When utilizing an occupational therapy practitioner, systems and modifications are custom-made for each individual to resolve issues, boost function, and assist everyday living tasks. The target is to maximize potential. Through these therapeutic strategies, occupational therapy can help men and women style their lives, develop needed skills, adjust their environments (e,g., home, school, or work) and build health-promoting habits and regimes that will let them to progress.

By taking the full picture into account—a person’s psychological, physical, emotional, and social makeup as well as their environment—occupational therapy assists clients to do the following:

•           Achieve goals
•           Function at the highest level
•           Emphasis on what matters most to them
•           Keep or rebuild their self-confidence
•           Take part in daily endeavors that they need or want to do.

Founded in 1917, the American Occupational Therapy Association (AOTA) represents the interests and concerns of more than 140,000 occupational therapists, assistants and students nationwide. The Association educates the public and advances the profession of occupational therapy by providing resources, setting standards including accreditations and serving as an advocate to improve health care. Based in Bethesda, Md., AOTA’s major programs and activities are directed toward promoting the professional development of its members and assuring consumer access to quality services so patients can maximize their individual potential. For more information, go to www.aota.org.

Home Care counselors at Assisting Angels are available to talk with you about your in-home care needs including how to reduce caregiver stress while providing better, affordable care. We are an elder care agency providing Home Care in Lauren.

Seasonal allergies, also called allergic rhinitis, cause cold-like characteristics and symptoms such as itchiness in the nose, roof of the mouth, throat, eyes and ears, along with watery eyes, runny nose, congestion and sneezing. But unlike a cold, allergies are note triggered by a virus; they are brought on by an allergic response to outdoor or indoor allergens, such as mold, trees, pollen and pet dander.

Allergies, which influence an estimated 60 million people in the United States both young and old, can really take a toll on your daily schedule, and they are a hassle both in daily life and professionally. Regardless if you’re bothered year-round or during a specific season, learning how to manage allergy symptoms can be important to restoring your ease and comfort and quality of life.

This ailment can also be costly to take care of. From 2000 to 2005, the cost of treating allergic rhinitis nearly doubled from $6.1 billion to $11.2 billion, according to the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology. Over fifty percent of that was spent on prescription and over-the-counter medications. Many experts suggest patients obtain store-brand, over-the-counter medicines as a helpful means of controlling both the allergy condition and its connected prices.

“There are a number of very effective over-the-counter treatments to address the symptoms of seasonal allergies,” says Dr. William Berger, professor of allergy and immunology at the University of California, Irvine. “In fact, to help patients save money, I would recommend many of the store-brand, non-sedating antihistamines sold at leading retailers and pharmacies, such as Cetirizine or Loratadine. These products are approved by the FDA, but cost significantly less than the brand names.”

According to Berger, many allergy sufferers will find far better relief of their symptoms by taking one of these newer, more efficient treatments now on hand in the aisle, like Fexofenadine, which just switched from prescription to over-the-counter in 2011.

“Effective management with medicines, ideally before the allergy symptoms start, is key,” he says.

When an aging loved one must have elder care, understand of the interactions between over-the-counter medications and the elderly person’s prescription drugs.

You may think that over-the-counter (OTC) medications are always safe and sound. But if you are over 65 and in addition taking prescription medications, this kind of thought can get you into some distress.

“The average number of prescription medications taken by people over 65 is five or six,” says Michael H. Perskin, MD, an assistant professor of medicine and an internist at the New York University Langone Medical Center. “As you get older, it increases and so does the potential for drug interactions.”

So how can you find useful and protected comfort from arthritis and other pain, and cold or allergy symptoms? “When in doubt, ask your pharmacist,” Perskin says. “If you have taken the medication before, it’s probably OK. But if it’s new or your other medication regimen has changed, check it out.”

You can find more information and facts about the indicators and treatments for allergic rhinitis at the American Academy of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (www.aaaai.org), or the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology (www.acaai.org).

Several states are now making driving tests for elderly or for persons who have been in three or more accidents in one year, mandatory. This is because elderly drivers are more inclined to either being injured or killed. Statistically, seniors are more often in dangerous or fatal wrecks than any other ages. The only way to effectively be certain that the unsafe drivers are off the roads is for them to be mandated to take a test to see who should and who shouldn’t be driving. A few see this as bias; while some others see it as serenity and a way to know that their loved one will be safe while on the road. Many people, especially those with senior family members, are already mindful of the potential dangers.

A fantastic option for keeping your older parent or loved one safe is to use a Home care agency that furnishes transportation. Home care agencies not only offer transportation but more to the point they provide the chance for people to keep their independence. This also avoids solitude and aids them to continue to get around to their own doctor appointments as well as run their own errands.

You’ll find a number of unique ways to find out how to get assistance in your community. Make contact with your local Area Agency on Aging. If they do not offer transportation, they can help you learn more about your options in order to find someone who does. There are also door-to-door services in most areas and driver volunteers. The door-to-door service do require you to call and give them notice on what your plans are but this may offer the most overall flexibility.

However, if you are interested in paying a fee for each designated stop you should ask about a fixed route. The fees charged are discounted at senior citizen rates and in some cases are actually free. The option available with driver volunteers usually is a great option for people who need to be taken to a specific place at certain times such as doctor appointments or senior centers. For more information you can call the National Transit Hotline Toll Free at 1-800-527-8279, they can provide you with a list of local Home care agencies that can help you find the right alternative to fit your specific needs.

Caregivers appointed through an agency are pre-trained, screened and in case they call in sick, a back-up will be available to fill in. They are trained to be knowledgeable of potential dangers and safety concerns in regards to medication, falls and aid in daily activities.

Recognizing possible risks is essential and must be at the top of the list when it pertains to senior care. A caregiver must be able to check on the care recipient daily to make sure everything is in order and if there are any medications that need to be taken, it’s done so on time. They will also be able to ensure that there aren’t any fallen objects or tripping hazards lying around the house that could cause a safety challenge. CPR and first aid is also a requirement for a caregiver in this field and will be an asset in case an emergency occurs.

Doing daily chores can become a difficult accomplishment for some seniors. Tasks like changing light bulbs, getting the mail in icy weather, grocery shopping, cleaning, and meal preparation can all be demanding. Appointing the suitable professional will give the care recipient and the family peace of mind that they can still live in their own household, yet have guidance in accomplishing these jobs that they can no longer do independently.

A caregiver will also be able to aid in personal care needs. These may include toilet help, bathing, dressing and aiding in their mobility. Caregivers can also offer companionship to seniors living by themselves. It’s easy to be doing simple things and have an accident. By having a caregiver supply on-going daily care, the care receiver will feel comfortable and feel less stress knowing that someone is looking out for their best interests and making them their top priority.

Aides are trained and know specifically what to look for and take care of to be sure your loved ones are safe, secure and provided with only the best care.

Caregivers in Lauren SC at Assisting Angels are available to talk with you about your in-home care needs including how to reduce caregiver stress while providing better, affordable care. We are an elder care agency providing Home Care in Lauren.

True, your personal aid will not be available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, but that is fine. You are able to obtain your scheduled medication reminders through an automated system, which is a phone call that will be made at preset times. This means that you do not have to fret about being hounded with calls throughout the day, and you do not have to worry about carrying on a conversation when the calls are made, considering that the calls will not be made by a live representative. Instead, the computerized voice can either tell you your medications or ask you if you are feeling well. If the answer is yes, you will be instructed to push number one; if the answer is no, you will be instructed to push number two.

Aside from obtaining medication reminders and phone calls on how you are feeling; you are going to receive the amount of particular attention that is needed to keep you healthy and alert. For this reason, you can rest comfortably at night, knowing that your medications are taken and that you are being cared for.

Home Care Greenville counselors at Assisting Angels are available to talk with you about your in-home care needs including how to reduce caregiver stress while providing better, affordable care. We are an elder care agency providing Home Care in Greenville.