Seniors At Home Helps the Frail Find the Right Help
  • Seniors

Seniors At Home is celebrating 25 years of providing home care services! As the largest provider in Northern California, we know how hard it can be to find the perfect match. So many in our expanding population of elderly and disabled urgently need care. But, unfortunately we’ve seen some alarming trends as people choose unlicensed caregivers for themselves or family members. UCLA recently published a report on the unregulated home care industry asking,  “Who is minding the people who are minding our elders?”

“Most of us don’t realize that unless caregivers are part of an agency, no one is held accountable if something goes wrong,” says Traci Dobronravova, MSW, Associate Director of Seniors At Home, which has provided homecare services to thousands of seniors and their families. “Some people choose to find independent caregivers on Craig’s List or through friend’s recommendations, but if you go that route, you need to understand the risks involved.”
Here are five important tips:
    1. Get references.
      Speak with people who have experience with the caregiver you are considering. Seniors At Home screens and trains all our caregivers so you know they are good candidates. We also connect you with previous clients so you can learn about their experience.
    2.  Understand what a caregiver can—and can’t—do.
      A caregiver can help patients with activities of daily living, such as bathing, walking, and light cooking. A caregiver legally cannot offer direct health care, such as administering medications or oxygen and hooking up IVs.
    3. Hire a licensed agency that will provide you with a great caregiver.
      Here’s why. Unlike many independent caregivers, licensed agencies, like Seniors At Home, are responsible for their employees. Seniors At Home has been recognized locally and nationally for our comprehensive care and we do the following critical steps.

      • Take full accountability for our employees which means that you have recourse if there were ever any issues with a caregiver, and that our caregivers are highly motivated to maintain their good standing with Seniors At Home.
      • Conduct extensive background checks on all our caregivers.
      • Ensure that your caregiver has professional training as well as ongoing training.
      • Ensure that your caregiver is bonded and insured.

 

  1. Choose a caregiver who is part of a team.
    As needs increase, it is good to have someone who is connected with other resources. Seniors At Home offers you teams of professionals such as care managers, registered nurses, and geriatric social workers. We make sure that coordination is seamless. 
  2. Plan ahead.
    Call us. Don’t wait until you or your loved one is in a crisis situation because that’s when people get desperate and make less informed decisions. Take the time the right match now. You can also join Seniors At Home’s Futures Program free of charge. Seniors of any age—from their late sixties to their nineties—sign up for the Futures Program when they are healthy and desire to make an advance plan and get peace of mind about their care before it is even needed.  

Thanks to our donors, our expert home care services are available to everyone, including those who cannot afford to pay the full cost.

Learn more about home care services and how Seniors At Home has helped many in times of crisis: call 415-449-3777 or visitwww.seniorsathome.org.
 

 

Posted by Admin on October 4, 2013