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Sun 19 Jan, 2003 07:15 am
Quote:Faraway Relatives Turning to Geriatrics Experts
January 19, 2003
By SUSAN B. GARLAND
TWO years ago, when her widowed mother in Sun City, Ariz.,
lost consciousness, fell and cracked some bones, Merle J.
Wexler, who lives in Virginia, could not run over to help.
Nor could her brothers, who live in California and North
Carolina. Her mother had delayed seeking medical treatment.
When the dizzy spells and falls escalated, the three
decided that their mother, Anne Popkin, now 84, needed
someone to watch over her, but they didn't want her to be
in a nursing home. So Ms. Wexler, 55, and her brothers
turned to Grace Lebow, co-director of Aging Network
Services, a geriatric care management company in Bethesda,
Md. She referred them to Pam Bednar, a social worker in Sun
City.
http://www.nytimes.com/2003/01/19/business/yourmoney/19CARE.html?ex=1043976865&ei=1&en=ec0dc6f3aa87bf99
Geriatic care managers are members of a fairly new profession, providing some measure of peace of mind and good communication for concerned family members, but there are risks and uncertainties. Does one have to be professionally trained and credentialed to fulfill this role? Does anyone have any experience, good or bad, with such long distance caregiving?
sumac, Good question. As with any long term medical care such as in nursing homes, you're going to find different qualities of care. One of the best methods to insure that your parent(s) have the best of care is to first visit and observe how the patients are treated. Look for under-care; bed-sores, patients walking unassisted outside looking lost, number of caretakers per patient, type of food served, and how the staff treats their patients. Make surprise visits to make sure the quality of care is consistently maintained. These regular inspections are not practical for people living in distant states, so it might be necessary to find a third party organization that will do the inspections for you. c.i.
I find it sad that of the three adult children of that woman, none could go to her immediately. Obviously money wasn't an issue, home care is expensive.
My Gparents lived at home with 24 hour care until my Gma died this fall. My Gpa was brought to one of my uncles' house. Of my mom an's generation, all but one of 5 kids live within several hours. All of them made regular visits to check on their parents and the staff at the house.
I think that services provided by groups like the aging network services noted above are very important. I just hope that old lady's kids go to visit her too.
My wife's mother will be coming to live with us next month after we've had some respite when her sister took her in for eight months. I told g'ma she can stay with us as long as she likes, but I expect my wife's siblings to pitch in in caring for her once in awhile too. c.i.
Sounds like a good compromise Cic.
I would assume that in most areas there would be some sort of certification or licensing programs for geriatric care facilities. Many U.S. states require licensing before allowing in home care.
If I were in this situation, I would look for a department of senior services in the area. Hopefully they would have a list of recommendations.
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