Six Signs Your Senior Should Stop Driving

It’s the conversation that no caregiver wants to have and none of the loved ones they care for want to hear – they can no longer drive safely. It’s a conversation that requires tact, humility, and understanding. It also requires the caregiver to stick to their guns and not allow their loved one to drive when it becomes a safety issue, not only for them but everyone on the road. Here are a few signs that your senior should stop driving, and how transportation services from Touching Hearts at Home Central Kansas can help:

What Can Lead to Dangerous Driving in Seniors

Not all seniors will lose their ability to drive when they age. Sometimes it can be because key factors in safe driving are no longer functioning as well in your senior. It could be that he has poor eyesight that cannot be rectified with an updated eyeglass prescription. It might be that his hearing is reduced so he can no longer hear emergency vehicles or warning honks from other drivers. For some seniors, their reflexes slow down, making it more difficult to make sudden adjustments while driving such as braking quickly when a car pulls out in front of them.

Finally, some cognitive health issues like dementia can increase your senior’s chances of becoming confused while driving. He might get lost or drive the wrong way down a street. He may forget speed limits and drive much too fast or slow for an area.

Six Signs Your Senior Should Stop Driving

• He doesn’t enjoy driving anymore. If your loved one used to love driving and now expresses a lot of concern about how hard it is to drive or how unpredictable other drivers are, he might be struggling to navigate typical driving challenges.
• He has hearing or vision issues that make it difficult for him to connect with what is happening on the road
• around him. He doesn’t see a pedestrian crossing the street or hear the siren from an oncoming police car.
• His car has new dents and scrapes or he’s had repeated accidents.
• He’s taking too long to get places. It could be that he’s driving too slow, or he’s getting confused about how to get somewhere.
• He’s making “rookie” mistakes while driving – using the gas pedal instead of the brake or forgetting to signal.
• Others won’t get in the car with him. If friends and family are afraid to ride with him, he should stop driving altogether.

Getting Transportation Help for Your Senior Loved One

As a caregiver, providing all of your loved one’s transportation needs may be a bit overwhelming, especially if he doesn’t live with you or near you. Even if he does live with you, there may be times that you can’t provide the transportation he needs because of other commitments.

There are plenty of options for seniors who need transportation. While some of them require quite a bit of effort and may not be safe, like public transportation or ride-share programs, a home care provider can help with transportation that meets your loved one at his door. Home care helps him get to the vehicle, and then helps him find his way to his needed location once he’s at his desired destination (such as finding a specific doctor’s office in a building). When home care assistance provides transportation needs, your loved one will have security and reliability when he needs to get to important appointments.

If you or an aging loved one need transportation services in McPherson, KS, please contact the caring staff at Touching Hearts at Home Central Kansas today. Call 620-603-0685.

Touching Hearts at Home Central Kansas is a Trusted Home Care Agency Barton, Dickinson, Edwards, Ellis, Ellsworth, Great Bend, Hutchinson, Larned, Lyons, Marion, McPherson, Newton, Pawnee, Rice, Reno, Salina, Sedgwick, Stafford, and the surrounding areas.