What Can an Aging Life or Geriatric Care Manager Do For a Family?

This coming holiday season many long distance family members will call a geriatric care manager after spending a Thanksgiving with a declining elder Mom or Dad.

If the long-distance family members want to hire you, help them understand all the many tasks you offer. One key service is working with the long-distance family members and older client to map out a plan in the event the older family member is hospitalized.

This is sometimes best done in a family meeting with the care manager present and facilitating. This plan starts with deciding which hospital the older person wants to use. It should include whether the care manager will follow the older person in the hospital if all family mem­bers live out of town, which family member will respond to the hospitalization, and who will travel and monitor the care in the hospi­tal and make sure all tests are taken and care is delivered.

The plan should include who will arrange care at discharge and make sure all major arrangements are set up after the patient returns home. This would include medications, transportation to all medical appointments, family or private-duty care, or, if necessary, a move to an adult child’s home or rehabilitation unit. The job of following the client into the hospital is often the task of the care manager until long-distance family mem­bers can fly in. This is also a great value and sales point for care managers to market their care manager services to long-distance fami­lies. All this information should be added to the client database.

Learn more about what you can do for long distance families and give them hope when they call desperately call this holiday.

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Holiday Meltdown in Aging Family- 5 Care Manager Steps to Tame the Turbulence

Wednesday, November 18  @11am Pacific Time