What to Consider When Moving an Aged Family Member Overseas
If you are moving abroad for a lifestyle change or a new job opportunity, it can be a stressful experience if you have to move any aged family members with you. Elderly parents can find this event particularly stressful as they tend to be less adaptable to change than younger family members. Moving with an aged person in Singapore can pose certain issues if they have medical complaints. The older generation often struggles with changes in their routine, even for a day, with an international move likely to take its toll. Despite the difficulties, with careful planning you can help reduce the stress to make their moving day more of an adventure than a chore.
Contact Your Travel Agent
If you’ve set a moving date and know when you will be travelling, it is important to contact the company you will be travelling with. If you are flying, contact your airline and let them know your family member is elderly and may require assistance. If they require wheelchair or disability access to the aircraft, you’ll need to take measures to ensure the right equipment is on standby. This is also helpful if you are travelling on a ship or by train.
If you are driving, a minivan or SUV provides greater legroom and more room to stretch out if necessary.
Ask for Assistance
If you have other family members who can come with you on the trip to help out, it may ease your stress levels. Packing your belongings can disrupt your daily routine, potentially leaving elderly family members without their creature comforts. If they have certain posture-adjustable equipment they use daily, this will be particularly noticeable. By hiring a Singapore packing and moving specialist such as Allied, you can use your furniture until closer to the moving date. You can put off packing any of your aged family member’s belongings until the day of the move.
Prepare Your Family Member About Their New Address
If you have a new home ready and waiting, whether temporary or permanent, draw them a floor plan or show them pictures online of the property. Let them get used to the layout of the entrance, the location of their room and the bathroom before you arrive. This will allow them to adapt more easily, which will help if the bathroom or a drink from the fridge is required in the middle of the night.
Attend to Their Medical Needs
Talk to their doctor and find out if there are any suggestions to help make the move more comfortable. Make a plan for their medication and, if there is a time zone change, ask when medication should be administered so they don’t miss dosages. Ensure you have adequate amounts of any medication or medical devices that are needed and ask your doctor to write a letter in case there are questions when you first arrive.
Once you arrive, it is very important to find a new doctor and get them up to speed regarding any medical requirements, current medicines and their administration routine, so make that one of your priorities. Not all countries supply the same pharmaceuticals, so talking to healthcare professionals in advance can allow for drugs changes to occur before you move.
We Can Help
Moving can be stressful, but when moving with an aged person in Singapore, you may find it hard to cope nearer the moving date. The team at Allied can shoulder a lot of the strain. We offer help with customs, visas, packing and, of course, transporting your belongings to arrive safely at your new residence.