Personal Financial Planning For A Loved One With Dementia

It is estimated that over 5 million people are living with some form of dementia in the United States alone. As the population continues to increase, these numbers are expected to rise. There are various types of dementia, such as Alzheimer’s Disease, Vascular Dementia, Frontotemporal Dementia, and Lewy Body Dementia. When a loved one has been diagnosed with dementia, it can be challenging to know how to help them plan for their future financial needs. This blog post is all about personal financial planning for a loved one with dementia to help you understand your options and decide what course of action is best for your situation.

Obtain A Legal Power Of Attorney –

The first step that needs to be considered is getting a legal power of attorney (POA) to manage your loved one’s finances and affairs if they cannot make decisions independently. There are five different types of powers, but only two main types are used the most, the limited power and the general power. A limited power is required if your loved one can’t handle some tasks themselves like cashing checks. At the same time, there is no need for a limited power since it plays an insignificant part in the process of ensuring that the patient is well taken care of in the long run. You are usually always better off with getting a General Power of Attorney so you can make all the decisions in the future and not be limited by only having a special or limited POA.

Medical Directive And A Living Will –

The second thing, which needs to be considered in the process, is a medical directive, which is a document that will let the doctor know what type of treatment and care your loved one wants to receive. Having this information early on can be extremely helpful. It will also save the doctors some time if they have all the information beforehand. A third thing that should be considered is having a living will. This document will indicate what the patient owns and the specific elements that need to be considered when managing the patient’s financial situation.

Seek Out Quality Palliative Care Early –

On the other hand, it is vital to consider the critical factors in avoiding the emergence of any form of financial burden. In this situation, the patient must face losing their capacity for independent living and their overall physical and mental condition is decreasing rapidly. In these situations, good quality palliative care could help patients be as comfortable as possible, avoid suffering during this treatment process, and help provide the care their loved one wants to receive. Having this information early on can be extremely helpful. It will ensure that the welfare of the individual is improved in the end. There are many facets associated with the situation and work towards enhancing the different aspects related to proper health.

This is an excellent article with a lot of great information: https://www.alz.org/help-support/i-have-alz/plan-for-your-future/financial_planning

Conclusion –

In summary, financial planning for an individual with dementia is very fundamental. It ensures that the individual has access to the best quality of life possible and allows them to live as comfortable as possible. This planning should be done with the help of a well-versed professional in this area. The professional can provide accurate advice and recommendations tailored to the individual’s unique needs. The presence of the various channels of proper financial management plays a significant part in handling the multiple entities. It should be noted that each type of dementia has its own unique set of characteristics and challenges, which will require different types of financial planning. For example, a person with early-onset Alzheimer’s disease may only need assistance with budgeting, paying bills, and routing financial assets to cover their future expenses, but they are able to handle all of their other daily activities by themselves. This would be much different for someone with late or advanced dementia.

Reach Out To A Professional –

If you need some proper guidance, assistance, and overall financial help for your loved one living with dementia, reach out to the caring and certified credit counselors at Advantage CCS. We’re here to help you and your family during all the stages of life. We’ve been helping people since 1968!