By Carol Marak, Carebuzz.com

Carol, one of SFL’s guest bloggers, helped care for her mom and dad and found few resources connecting her to other family members online. From that experience, Carebuzz.com was launched.

The Pew Internet American Life Project (2004) study shows that 22% of Americans 65 and older used the Internet in 2004. The number has grown 15% from 2000. The number increased again in 2006 to 34%. This study shows that “wired” seniors use the Internet in order to do various activities such as, health or medical information 66%; product research 66%, government Web sites 60%; online shopping 47 %; travel reservations 41%; and banking 20%.

Now that we’ve established the fact that seniors are online, what else are they doing there? How many seniors (50+) are on social media sites like Eons, ThirdAge and AARP? ThirdAge claims they have 1 million boomers in their database and 2 million boomers registered for their newsletter. That’s a large number, but it’s still only a small representation of sites where seniors gather.

Today, “boomers” is the leading group responsible for the care of an elder loved one. In my own experience of helping my aging parents, I found most “care information” like health, home care, and family caregiving topics on the Internet. Since I lived at a distance from my parents, I did not have easy access to their local phonebook so I went online to look for help. Most family members are doing the same, especially since distance is often a factor.

That was two years ago when I helped mom and dad. The landscape of the Web has since changed. More senior services like health Websites, support groups, geriatric care, home care agencies, home health, elder law, long-term care insurance, etc. are all popping up in cyber space. The options for family caregivers and aging seniors is now more plentiful than ever.

Now, in addition to finding the resources adult children need to find the best senior housing and senior care solutions for their loved ones, they are also flocking to community sites like Facebook, Twitter, and many others. They form relationships. They ask questions, get answers, and yes, even get referrals!

How are you using the Web to help in your senior housing decision-making?