Elderly sensitivity training is fundamental to transporting elderly patients in a kind, compassionate and truly understanding way. No one knows what it’s like to be 70, 80, or even 100-years-old unless they have been there themselves. Thankfully, there are training programs that can help even the most youthful individuals relate to older generations. For example, opening a pill bottle is easy to someone in their thirties but if you ask this same person to open a pill bottle while wearing gardening gloves, suddenly the simple task gets rather complex. Elderly people face these same sorts of challenges on a day-to-day basis.
We naturally lose the ability to conduct tasks that were once easy as we age; it’s just a part of getting older. Understanding these things is a must in order to provide superior non-emergency medical transportation for elderly individuals. We are adamant about providing all of our drivers with elderly sensitivity training, thus granting them the ability to relate with patients on a much higher level.
What Is Elderly Sensitivity Training?
Elderly sensitivity training is a course or program that teaches people what it is like to be in your seventies, eighties, nineties and beyond through hands-on activities. We can all imagine what it might be like to be old but the physical and mental changes in the body tend to be much different and more extreme than people assume.
Many of these programs go above and beyond, transforming ordinary twenty, thirty and forty-year-olds into old people using all sorts of odd tactics. For instance, some programs may advise participants to put dried corn kernels in the soles of their shoes in order to demonstrate how bad your feet hurt as you age. Another common activity referenced above includes strapping a pair of gloves on and asking participants to open a pill bottle, simulating the lack of finger dexterity that comes with old age.
These sorts of experiences are life changing. Participants regularly leave with a newfound appreciation for how little the elderly complain after seeing what it’s like to walk in their shoes. When someone can really relate to how someone else is feeling there is a huge change in interaction.
Why Is Elderly Sensitivity Training So Important In Our Industry?
We are trusted to provide non-emergency medical transportation to elderly patients, but how can we adequately do so if we don’t know what it’s like to be elderly? Simply put, we can’t. We have to walk a mile in their shoes to provide the best services possible. Not only in regards to compassion, but also in the formulation of the processes we use to get seniors out of their homes and into their appointments on time.
Every one of our team members has been through the proper training so that they have actually walked in senior shoes before. They may be fit and active now, but they know from first-hand experiences what it is like when you start to lose this fitness and agility. As a result, they know just when to step in and help, and what to do to make seniors feel as comfortable as possible every step of the way.
We have a number of regular senior clients that adore our drivers, and not just because they have great personalities and are highly reliable. Thanks to sensitivity training they are equipped with the know-how to practically read minds, they almost always know just what to do without the patient having to say a word. This is the true value of elderly sensitivity training at work.
There are generational differences to take into consideration as well. Knowing how to best communicate and get things across to elderly patients is important, as you don’t want to confuse or offend anyone due to a generational gap. Elderly sensitivity training works to close these gaps so that everyone works together better.
It is important that drivers also know how to handle different disabilities commonly associated with ageing. Some elderly patients are confined to a wheelchair or need to be transported by stretcher; others have canes, crutches or back supports. Knowing how to interact with unique disabilities is key to keeping everyone safe and comfortable. By ensuring all of our drivers have adequate training in these areas there are no surprises and they know what to do in any situation.
Undergoing elderly sensitivity training is a life-changing event. People come into it thinking it can’t be that hard to be elderly, and they quickly learn just how strong and brave the elderly community is. This newfound appreciation leads to greater compassion and a higher level of care, which we are proud to provide at Stellar Transportation.
Whether you are looking for transportation yourself or searching for reliable elderly transportation for your loved one, you can trust Stellar Transportation to go above and beyond. Contact us today to learn more about our local and long distance non-emergency transportation systems for elderly, wheelchair, and stretcher patients in Florida and beyond.