Book excerpt: The only guide you’ll ever need to manage the care of your aging family FULLY REVISED AND UPDATED As our population shifts and ages, the care needs for our elders continue to change and evolve. Today’s generation of family and professional caregivers faces new decisions and challenges, as well as previously unavailable options. This thoroughly revised and updated 2009 edition of The Complete Eldercare Planner equips you with reliable, up-to-the-minute information to help you plan and manage caring for your loved ones. Comprehensive and detailed, sensitive and realistic, practical and accessible, the 2009 edition provides even more tips on prioritizing and organizing caregiving tasks, balancing work and family responsibilities, and navigating the complex maze of eldercare services. In addition to an expanded index of Internet resources and access to downloadable forms of key documents, you’ll find indispensable checklists, worksheets, step-by-step action plans, lists of questions to ask, low-cost and free alternative resources, and The Document Locator™. This new edition covers: •Getting started on creating a long-term care plan •Finding help, especially if you live far away •Managing the financial aspects •Talking to elders about sensitive subjects •Senior housing–move or stay put? •Managing medications •And many other topics of vital interest to anyone caring for an elder