Concierge caregivers Archives ⋆ Cathy Cress

How Do You Brand Geriatric Care Management?

October 10, 2020

Branding is one of the most important parts of your marketing plan.

Do You understand how to create one for your company? Successful companies like Coca-Cola, Kleenex, and Band-Aid have one important thing in common: a strong brand. In fact, their brand names have become generic terms for all similar products in their niche. If you cut yourself, do you ask for a bandage or a Band-Aid? They are the ultimate brands. They have gone into the lexicon.

Geriatric Care Management and Aging Life are not so lucky.

What is a brand? – A brand is made in the mind, not manufactured in a plant” Understanding branding and how it significant it is to your GCM- start-up can mean success for your for profit’s geriatric care management business. Geriatric care management is not a well know brand nor is the new brand ALCA after 35 years.So your company has to do everything it can to get your own brand known in the area you serve. How? Although often associated with just advertising, your own branding is essential to everything your company puts in front of current and potential clients: business cards, brochures, web site, trade show booths, letterheads, e-newsletter, and so forth.

Branding Is About Managing People’s Image of Your Agency

You need to make sure that the image is one that is in line with your company values and the benefits your company provides. With geriatric care management that is about concierge care as you can only deliver services to the upper 10%.By taking the time to manage expectations and build positive gut feelings about your company, you establish yourself as a trusted leader in your market.

Your brand identity is built upon your key messages

Your messages are about the unique customer benefits that you provide, and the expectations you set for your target audience.

By consistently delivering the same symbols, messages, and design, you are reinforcing those messages, creating a link to your brand, and building an identity for your business that people will remember.

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The 2 Deadliest US Sites of COVID-19 Nursing Homes & Prisons

May 2, 2020

PRISON INMATES AND NURSING HOME PATIENTS NOT 6FT APART – 6 FEET UNDER

70% of inmates in federal prisons have COVID-19. In Kansas, the Lansing Correctional Facility had a riot of inmates over COVID-19 lack of care or protection It took the rebellion to get the coronavirus testing PPE and care. The Bureau of Prisons in Kansas confirmed finally that 79 staff have coronavirus and 88 prisons and prisoners dead.

Older residents in nursing homes cannot rebel like prisoners. Many can’t even walk. The Atlantic Magazine just published an article, We are Killing Elders Now. The writer states “In at least six states, these fatalities account for half of all COVID-19 deaths, and according to the World Health Organization, half of all coronavirus fatalities in Europe have been traced to nursing homes too. Some of this mortality is linked to long-term-care facilities that are shoddily run or that violate health standards. But most of them are doing the best they can with what they have. And they don’t have much”.

KAISER FOUNDATION NURSING HOME STAFFING AND USE OF PPE NOT REQUIRED IN MOST STATES

Kaiser reports -Staff Screening. It is more common for states to recommend rather than require daily screening of staff for illness in NFs (24 states recommend, 16 states + DC require)

Use of PPE. More states recommend (23 states) than require (7 states + DC) staff to use PPE

Two States that require testing for coronavirus of ALL residents of nursing homes are Maryland where 556 have died as of the Washington Post article. and Tennessee

THE FEDS HAVE NO CMS FEDERAL GUIDELINES OR REPORTING

We have no federal guidelines for safety testing according to an article by the Kaiser Foundation

It is now estimated that 16,000 deaths have occurred in nursing homes and that is without the federal government revealing any numbers and not making available any testing. But the numbers are probably huge- if we could just do testing.

CMS announced it would have a meeting of a “panel” of experts “ sometime at the end of May”. After probably 20,000 older people died and the feds did nothing this shows their sense of urgency about this pandemic’s national “elder cleansing”.

WHAT CONNECTS PRISONS AND NURSING HOMES – CONCENTRATION CAMPS

So, what is the connection between the viral spread of COVID-19 in nursing homes and prisons- 6 feet ? Prisoners and residents, in nursing homes, and prisons cannot social distance. Jails and prisons have human beings crammed together with no choice. Nursing homes have 2 beds or if you are on Medicaid three to a room. Neither group has a choice to social distance. They are ” concentrated” as in concentration camps or death camps.

Do SOMETHING – HELP NURSING HOMES PREVENT MORE CARNAGE

So, as someone who has spent her career in aging, I am calling out to everyone, especially professional in aging – do something. Since the feds appear to be doing little- call your congressman, write a letter to the editor.

BE KIND LIKE RACHEL MADDOW REPORTS LA JEWISH HOME LA WAS

Rachel Maddow suggests calling your local nursing homes and see what they need. Be kind like the LA Jewish Home was to a smaller nursing home LA Brier Oaks. They wanted to test their residents and had no tests and the larger LA Jewish Home had tests and shared them with the smaller as a good neighbor. What they found was ravaging but it also showed caring and generosity. Care and be generous and show the helpless elders in nursing homes in your town you are opposed to -nursing home being prisons or concentration camps.

What Type of Care Provider Do You Recruit for Older Concierge Clients?

March 27, 2020

Medicare Does Not Fund Long Term Care

Concierge Clients are sadly the only clients a GCM or ALCA experts because of income inequity in the US and the fact that Medicare does not cover long term care, like home care and geriatric care management.

You Are Only As Strong As Your Weakest Link

So you must serve the top 10% of aging Americans as those clients to have your ALCA business or GCM business make money and thrive. But to deliver the gold standard services that concierge care demands, let’s take the weakest link in your business- your care staff. You are only as strong as your weakest link. These incredibly important employees’ skills will measure how clients really rate you.

First and foremost you need highly skilled care providers with a CNA background or years of experience. But older generations, especially entitled clients, are likely to be

less trustful of an individual with numerous visible tattoos and a Mohawk. They would rather have a clean-cut employee wearing a uniform. You want background checked employees with experience with demanding clients and willing to be servile and assertive and know when to use either.

The care providers for concierge clients should be

WELL GROOMED
WELL DRESSED
SERVILE
GOOD COOK
GOOD TABLE SETTERS
WILLING TO BE CONFIDANTE but under GCM supervision and control

For COMPANION CARE hire

Sophisticated employee
Can Order Opera theater tickets
Accompany to these events

GCM has to:

Set Boundaries with clients
Care providers can cook French Cuisine but with “Heavy Care “– Priority -must have transfer skills and CAN or HHA skills
Cannot often get gourmet cook who changes diapers

CONCIERGE NON -medical CAREGIVER’S SAMPLE to do list

Doing her groceries shopping or grocery home delivery
Post office run
Pet-care
Waiting in line at the DMV
Taking the car for Car repairs, oil change, car wash
Event planning- GCM
Gift-buying
Plant care
Picking up dry cleaning
Running miscellaneous errands
Making travel arrangements
Mail pickup
chef services
Dinner reservations
What Cannot do
Performing bank transactions, such as depositing or withdrawing money, or shopping for the client without pre-arranged payment through the store could pose a liability
Assist with finances, online banking, bill paying/tracking
pickup of prescription medications -Only GCM to do because of medication abuse and liability
Open mail unless all checks already forwarded to another account
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