Activities of Daily Living

The Activity of Daily Living (ADL) is a common term, which is used in the field of Medical Care. The term ‘ADL’ refers to self-care activities of an individual which includes bathing, feeding, dressing, grooming, preparing food and leisure. The term ‘ADL’ was coined by a renowned healthcare professional named Sidney Katz and his team members of Benjamin Rose Hospital based in Cleveland, Ohio, U.S.A. The concept of ‘ADL’ was introduced back in the year 1950 with the objective to track the abilities and functional status of an individual.

An activity of daily living is very essential especially in the case of younger children and senior citizens since they have not the ability to perform their daily activities or manage by themselves during that age. They require the support and assistance of their parents to execute their day-to-day activities.

Now let us discuss some of the activities as well as the instrumental activities of daily living.

The activities of daily living are some of the regular activities, which are performed by an individual in their day-to-day life. Some of them are as follows:

• Personal hygiene including bathing, grooming and dental care.
• Dressing – The ability of an individual to choose appropriate clothes and dress by themselves.
• Eating – The ability of an individual to feed by themselves apart from preparing food.
• Self-control -The ability of an individual to utilize a restroom to maintain and balance his/her continence..
• Shifting – An individual’s ability to move or shift from place to another without the support of other people.

The instrumental activities of daily living are an integral part of our daily life. It is very essential for an individual to become self-sufficient and independent. Some of the instrumental activities of daily living are mentioned below:

Developing good communication skills:

The ability of expressing oneself about how they feel and doing without any difficulty. It also includes attending phone calls, interacting with your friends and relatives.

Transportation:

An individual should be able to either drive independently or hire any available modes of transportation such as bus, cab or an auto by themselves.

Preparing food:

An individual should be able to prepare food or avail it through the means available. Food preparation is one of the basic qualities a person should possess.

House Chores:

The individual should be able to run the house on their own. Filling groceries, shopping and all the miscellaneous chores that require to run the house.

Intake of medications:

Taking accurate quantity of medications at the right time and dealing with re-fills is very essential in the life of an individual.

Managing and handling finances:

An individual should be well acquainted with operating a bank account, writing cheques and paying bills all by themselves.

Both Activities of daily living and Instrumental activities of daily living are crucial in a person’s survival. If the person lacks any of these abilities and living alone, it is time for their bloodline to seek help from the assisted living or caregiving professionals.

Role of Assisted Living Facilities in Elders Lives

The assisted living facilities help the elderly in performing both the daily activities and instrumental activities. The caregivers at these facilities will be well-qualified and ensure the elders living a quality life.