Senior Care Assistance - Who Will Help My Aging Parents? How to Choose a Geriatric Care Manager

Are you an adult child caring for your aging parents? Are you feeling overwhelmed? Have you wondered if your parents are safe in their own home? Are you confused by the services available and the choices to make? You are not alone. Many adult children have felt the same. The entire system of senior services is confusing and fragmented. Don't feel bad or incompetent that you are struggling to understand it all, most have trouble which only relates to the complexity of the system.

The good news is that you do not have to struggle through this alone. A Professional Geriatric Care Manager (GCM) can assist through this challenging time. What really is a GCM? A GCM is an expert consultant in senior care. A GCM is generally a Master Level Social Worker or a Registered Nurse though other disciplines can also qualify. GCMs have been around for over 20 years but their role is becoming more known and important. A qualified GCM should understand the senior system and help to make sense of it for your parent's particular situation. As adult children begin looking for help to understand the choices, they are given lists of services. Although lists can be a start, they really do not give adult children the guidance they are really searching for. A GCM provides that guidance. A GCM will first assess your parent's needs and will give professional recommendations on how to improve the situation. For example a GCM can assess your parent's health, home environment and then give a recommendation if home is still a safe and reasonable option. Perhaps staying home is reasonable if services are brought into the home; a GCM will assist in finding trustworthy services. Perhaps it is no longer safe for your parents to remain at home; a GCM will assist in finding facilities that provide quality care and will fit your parent's needs. It can become confusing to understand how care will be paid for or how insurance works; a GCM will help you in understanding these key components as well. GCMs do not just look at one piece of the puzzle ... they look at all pieces which makes the entire process much simpler for you as the adult child.

But how do you know how to choose a GCM? Let's talk about that. First, it is important to understand that care managers are not required in any State to be licensed or certified, so in reality anyone can call themselves a care manager. This may sound worrisome, but not if you follow these guidelines in choosing a care manager. The National Association of Professional Geriatric Care Managers is a great resource. You can visit their website. In order to belong to the Association, members must show advanced degrees and/or significant experience in working with seniors and families. All members by 2010 must be certified by one of several credentialing organizations many of which include passing a competency test.

As members of the Association, all members adhere to a Standard of Practice and a Code of Ethics. When you begin to look for a care manager, be sure to inquire if they are a full member of the National Association and think twice about working with someone who is not. Another important question is in regards to availability. Is the care manager only available M-F and from 8-5? If so, what would happen in an emergency after hours? It is important to ask about charges. How are charges billed, hourly, a set rate, is there a charge for traveling, is there a charge for the initial meeting? And finally another important question to ask is whether or not the care manager receives any referral bonuses (kick-backs) when referring to services. This is a crucial question. If a care manager receives bonuses for referring to certain services, whose interest are they looking out for, your parents or their own? Some referral agencies only refer to those services that pay a fee to them. This means you are not getting all of the choices - only those who have paid to be on a list (keep in mind not always, but often, the services with the best reputations don't need to rely on referrals that they have to pay for). When picking a care manager be sure it someone you feel comfortable working with.

If you take just a little time to do your homework about choosing a GCM you will find the benefits to be well worth it. Rather than trying to figure out the entire system on your own, take that time and effort to find a GCM. You won't regret it!

Embrace Care Management, LLC was founded by Mary Pitsch, a Master's Level Social Worker and Care Manager Certified with over thirteen years of experience working with seniors and families. The entire system of senior services can be confusing and overwhelming...we help simplify it. We can assist in answering the difficult questions such as "is my parent still safe to live at home?", "who can accompany by parents to their important doctor visits?", "will my parents be able to afford care?", "I live 200 miles away, how can I be sure my parents are being taken care of?". One of our Professional Care Managers is available 24/7 to assist you and your aging parent. Please visit our website at embracecaremanagement.com embracecaremanagement.com to learn more about our unique services and to read what our clients say about us. We serve the eastern side of Wisconsin. You can also visit caremanager.org caremanager.org to find a Care Manager in your area.