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Older adults who care for partners with dementia or Alzheimer's disease are at risk of burnout and stress. Families often focus so much attention on the person with dementia that they forget to notice that their spouses are having health problems of their own.

Caring for someone with dementia can be exhausting especially as the disease progresses. People living with dementia can exhibit behaviours that are difficult to manage. Behaviours such as wandering, incontinence or calling out often occur at night.

When is the right to consider nursing home care? Many families agonize over moving a loved one into nursing home care. For some families the decision is out of their hands. A sudden stroke or fracture of the hip can make caring for an elderly loved one at home impossible to manage.

We all need social interaction. It's a basic human need. Unfortunately many older people can outlive their friends and family. Opportunities for making new friends and going to social events can be limited, especially for people who live alone or are limited by chronic disease.

Recently I was very touched by a friend's need for companionship. He's 92 years old, lonely and feeling depressed. He's keen on meeting someone special just to share a few laughs and enjoy the simple pleasures of the day (He's not sure how many he has left).

 National Missing Persons Week recently focused on the growing problem of older people with memory loss or dementia going missing. After many years working in aged care homes I can think of numerous incidents where residents wandered off the premises despite security systems in place. Panic stricken staff would take in turns driving around the block looking for a resident who would despite their years walk at a striking pace. Most were heading home, to the shops or in some cases the local club.

One of the most difficult aspects of caring for an ageing loved one is knowing when and how to get help. If you are living many kilometres away from a loved one assessing a family member's health care needs over the phone is virtually impossible. 

Many older people are reluctant to accept help at home and will insist that they're coping. To get a realistic idea of the care needs of an elderly family member you really need to go and stay with them for a couple of days or organise an aged care assessment.

A push by the Australian Nurses Federation to ensure a workable resident to nurse ratio in our nursing homes does not appear to have raised public opinion or outrage. Over the years I've noticed residents getting frailer and frailer. It's not uncommon to have a ward of residents that require full assistance with feeding and toileting. However, nursing ratios have pretty much stayed the same and many registered nurses have been replaced with less qualified staff.