How Do I Select the Right Home Care Provider?

How Do I Select the Right Home Care Provider?

Once you acquire the names of several providers, you will want to learn more about their services and reputations. Following is a checklist of questions to ask providers and other individuals who may know about the provider's track record. Their insight will help you determine which provider is best for you or your loved one.

• How long has this provider been serving the community?
• Does this provider supply literature explaining its services, eligibility requirements, fees, and funding sources? Many providers furnish patients with a detailed "Patient Bill of Rights" that outlines the rights and responsibilities of the providers, patients, and caregivers alike. An annual report and other educational materials also can provide helpful information about the provider.
• How does this provider select and train its employees? Does it protect its workers with written personnel policies, benefits packages, and malpractice insurance?
• Are nurses or therapists required to evaluate the patient's home care needs? If so, what does this entail? Do they consult the patient's physicians and family members?
• Does this provider include the patient and his or her family members in developing the plan of care? Are they involved in making care plan changes?
• Is the patient's course of treatment documented, detailing the specific tasks to be carried out by each professional caregiver? Does the patient and his or her family receive a copy of this plan, and do the caregivers update it as changes occur? Does this provider take time to educate family members on the care being administered to the patient?
• Does this provider assign supervisors to oversee the quality of care patients are receiving in their homes? If so, how often do these individuals make visits? Who can the patient and his or her family members call with questions or complaints? How does the agency follow up on and resolve problems?
• What are the financial procedures of this provider? Does the provider furnish written statements explaining all of the costs and payment plan options associated with home care?
• What procedures does this provider have in place to handle emergencies? Are its caregivers available 24 hours a day, seven days a week?
• How does this provider ensure patient confidentiality?

In addition, ask the home care provider to supply you with a list of references, such as doctors, discharge planners, patients or their family members, and community leaders who are familiar with the provider's quality of service.
Contact each reference and ask:

• Do you frequently refer clients to this provider?
• Do you have a contractual relationship with this provider? If so, do you require the provider to meet special standards for quality care?
• What sort of feedback have you gotten from patients receiving care from this provider, either on an informal basis or through a formal satisfaction survey?
• Do you know of any clients this provider has treated whose cases are similar to mine or my loved one's? If so, can you put me in touch with these individuals?

"Learn About Senior In Home Health Care in Austin, Texas

Senior Helpers Provides Many services in the Austin, Texas area. We provide a full array of Home Care services for seniors and the elderly living in this beautiful area. Our Home Care Services are provided by bonded and insured employees and all employees pass a National Background check.

If you need Home Care services in Austin, Bartlett, Bertram, Briggs, Burnet, Cedar Park, Florence, Georgetown, Granger, Holland, Hutto, Jarrell, Johnson City, Killeen, Leander, Liberty Hill, Manor, Marble Falls, Pflugerville, Round Mountain, Round Rock, Salado, Spicewood, Taylor and the surrounding areas we are an excellent choice with impeccable references. Home Health Care for your elderly loved ones is never an easy choice but we can promise we will do our best to make it as painless as possible. From our family to yours we sincerely thank you for considering Senior Helpers of Austin Home Health Care Company.  "

Senior Helpers Says You’re Never Too Old for Skin Cancer Awareness

In light of new FDA sunscreen guidelines, seniors and their families are encouraged to be sun smart

(July 2011) – Skin cancer is the most common form of cancer in the United States. Each year, nearly a million people in this country will learn they have skin cancer…and the risk continues to rise as you get older. Senior Helpers of Arkansas, AR, one of the leading in-home care providers of senior care in the Arkansas area, is raising awareness about new FDA guidelines regarding sunscreens, which apply to people of all ages, not just young children and adults.

“Unprotected skin can be damaged by the sun’s UV rays in as little as 15 minutes, according to the American Cancer Society,” says Moire Hayes with Senior Helpers of Central Texas. “Most skin cancers appear after the age of 45 and it’s never too late to protect yourself from the sun. We encourage seniors to get some fresh air and exercise to stay active, but their skin is more sensitive than others. Even if they’re going outside for a short 15 minute walk, caregivers are there to help them apply their sunscreen as needed.”

What We’ve Learned From the FDA’s New Sunscreen Guidelines:

Sun protection is an important public health issue for people of all ages. The FDA just released their new guidelines when it comes to proper product labeling and UVA protection:

• . . . There is no such thing as “sweat proof” and “waterproof” sunscreens. These words are no longer allowed on sunscreen labels.

• . . . Sunscreens can claim to be “water resistant,” but the company has to put a label on their product stating the sunscreen only offers 40 or 80 minutes of protection while swimming or sweating.

• . . . You must reapply sunscreen every two hours for continued sun protection.

• . . . Use sunscreen with UVA and UVB protection, also known as “broad spectrum” protection.

• . . . Only broad spectrum sunscreens with 15 SPF or higher provide any type of sun protection (15 – 30 SPF is recommended).

“The sun doesn’t discriminate against age,” say Hayes of Senior Helpers of Central Texas. “When seniors are exposed to too much sun, they risk being severely dehydrated. Our caregivers can make sure the seniors are eating plenty of fruits and vegetables, drinking water or taking a cold bath to help prevent and/or recover from dehydration. They can also provide ways for seniors to socialize without having to be out in the sun, such as taking their daily walk inside malls or museums or making sure they’re in the shade and properly protecting themselves while spending time outside.”

Give Your Senior the Gift of Sun Protection:

• . . . Special UV radiation-absorbing clothes — the Skin Cancer Foundation recommends clothing with an ultraviolet protection factor (UPF) of 30 or higher.

• . . . Wrap-around sunglasses that offer UV protection.

• . . . A hat with at least a three-inch brim all the way around — sun hats provide protection for not only your head, face and ears, but also your neck, shoulders and upper back.

• . . . Look for products that have earned the Skin Cancer Seal of Recommendation.

Sources: American Cancer Society, The Skin Cancer Foundation, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

About Senior Helpers:

Senior Helpers Provides in home senior care services throughout Central Texas servicing Austin, Round Rock, Georgetown, Cedar Park and all surrounding areas. We provide a wide range of personal and companion care services to assist seniors living independently with a strong focus on quality of life for the client and peace of mind for their families. Home care services are provided by bonded and insured employees and all employees pass a thorough background check. Senior Helpers strives to be the leading companion and personal care provider that offers dependable, consistent and affordable home care. Learn more about Senior Helpers at www.HomeHealthCareAustin.com or www.SeniorHelpers.com/RoundRock .

Computer clubs spur more seniors to log on

While technology can intimidate older people, it also opens up opportunities to socialize, access information. "Old Dogs" can learn new tricks! Read the whole thing.

Check out Austin Groups for the Elderly's "Austin Computer Learning Center". Itdelivers basic computer training and coaching to any older adult wanting to understand how computer technology can enhance their lives. By participating in our training courses, students learn to conquer their fears and embrace a new world at their fingertips.

Amazon Sales

Save 50% on Gourmet Food and Grocery Items

Senior Helpers in the Austin Business Journal

Demand growing for In Home Senior Care.

About Senior Helpers:

Senior Helpers Provides in home senior care services throughout Central Texas servicing Austin, Round Rock, Georgetown, Cedar Park and all surrounding areas. We provide a wide range of personal and companion care services to assist seniors living independently with a strong focus on quality of life for the client and peace of mind for their families. Home care services are provided by bonded and insured employees and all employees pass a thorough background check. Senior Helpers strives to be the leading companion and personal care provider that offers dependable, consistent and affordable home care. Learn more about Senior Helpers at www.HomeHealthCareAustin.com or www.SeniorHelpers.com/RoundRock .

The Fight Against Shingles Falters

By PAULA SPAN

From The New Old Age

When last we discussed why so few older people take advantage of the vaccine against shingles — a nasty viral disease with sometimes debilitating consequences that afflicts one million Americans each year — a number of New Old Age readers asked a logical question.

Because the risk of shingles rises with age, and so do the severity of the symptoms, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention currently recommends the vaccine, Zostavax, only for those over age 60. “I have wondered, why wait for age 60 to get the vaccine?” commented Eric from Sacramento. “I know of multiple people who got shingles in their 50s.”

“I was in my late 50s when I heard about the shingles vaccine a couple of years ago,” added Janem from Port Richmond, Calif. “Although I pleaded with my Kaiser doctor to give me the vaccine, she refused, citing the protocol.”
The good news, kind of, is that the Food and Drug Administration has since approved Zostavax for people aged 50 to 59. But the vaccine remains hard to find, cumbersome to get reimbursed for, and not nearly as widely used as researchers had hoped.

Read my article about it in Tuesday’s Science Times, and please share your thoughts in the comments section.

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Paula Span is the author of “When the Time Comes: Families With Aging Parents Share Their Struggles and Solutions.”

Long-Term Care - The Tool Kit

Long-Term Care -  The Tool Kit
By Gary Barg
Gramp was an extraordinarily brave and hard-working man.  In 1925, he jumped ship in  Baltimore Harbor off a Russian freighter to which he was consigned at the age of 17.  Later, he made his way to New Jersey where he started a contracting company and raised a family.  At the age of 35, when World War II broke out, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy.
By the early 1950's, he and his brothers owned four hotels on Miami Beach, but in the summer of 2000, he died penniless in a South Florida nursing home.  In only a few short years, our family had spent all of his significant savings, taking care of him and maintaining his long-term care needs.
Gramp was a craftsman and he firmly believed in using the right tool for the right job.  His old wooden tool kit was a world of wonder for his grandchildren. He never tired of explaining to us how each of the various tools worked and how each was best utilized.
If only Gramp had known before his illness that there was another kind of tool kit which needed to be assembled, a tool kit as important to his success as the old wooden one—a financial tool kit.
Gramp was like most of us.  He knew he needed to prepare for future needs and plan for adversity.  He had much of his financial tool kit filled with stocks and bonds, investment properties and an up-to-date will.  However, he realized too late that there was a staggering price to himself and his family for neglecting to prepare an appropriate long-term care program.
I have spent much of the last nine years, since founding Today's Caregiver magazine and caregiver.com, working to ensure that other caregiving families are not faced with financial ruin due to the increasing cost of caring for their loved ones, and that each caregiver's financial tool kit includes considering the option of long-term care coverage.
Caregivers understand what steps are needed to safeguard their loved one's physical and emotional health.  We must now become adept at learning the steps needed to ensure our family's fiscal health.  The lesson taught by the preceding generation and the one we must pass on to generations to come is that the tool kits you carefully assemble during your lifetime must include all instruments of preparedness to meet any situation.
Proper long-term care planning allows your loved ones financial flexibility and emotional security.
It truly is the gift of a lifetime.

http://www.caregiver.com/channels/ltc/articles/LTC_toolkit.htm

"Learn About Senior In Home Health Care in Austin, Texas Senior Helpers Provides Many services in the Austin, Texas area. We provide a full array of Home Care services for seniors and the elderly living in this beautiful area. Our Home Care Services are provided by bonded and insured employees and all employees pass a National Background check. If you need Home Care services in Austin, Bartlett, Bertram, Briggs, Burnet, Cedar Park, Florence, Georgetown, Granger, Holland, Hutto, Jarrell, Johnson City, Killeen, Leander, Liberty Hill, Manor, Marble Falls, Pflugerville, Round Mountain, Round Rock, Salado, Spicewood, Taylor and the surrounding areas we are an excellent choice with impeccable references. Home Health Care for your elderly loved ones is never an easy choice but we can promise we will do our best to make it as painless as possible. From our family to yours we sincerely thank you for considering Senior Helpers of Austin Home Health Care Company. "