Quick Answers
“The following FAQs are based on actual stories and knowledge I have gained from over 25 years of service to seniors. It has brought me so much joy to be in their lives”.
- Justyn Rae Coronado, RN
What is hospice?
Hospice is a type of health care that focuses on quality of life after a terminal diagnosis has been determined. Hospice care can take place anywhere, including in your home or a facility. Hospice provides extra support for pain management and tends to the emotional needs of patients and their loved ones. Hospice support is invaluable at the end stage of life, and is easily covered by insurance to qualified individuals. Hospice also does not always mean that someone is at the end of life. I have seen a handful of people “graduate” from hospice and actually get better when focusing on quality of life and their peace in the end.
What is home health?
Home health is a team of care providers that can provide physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, wound care, and other skilled nursing services. Just like hospice, home health can come into a home or facility and provide extra care and support. Unfortunately, Medicare will only cover one or the other, home health or hospice. If someone is falling frequently or has lost conditioning, home health is always a good thing to bring up at doctor’s appointments. Home Health is always a good thing to bring up at the next doctors appointment.
What is memory care?
Memory Care is a community that provides support for patients with Alzheimer’s, Dementia, or other types of behavior problems. They usually provide more frequent and specific activities, as well as a secured setting. Some Assisted Living Facilities (ALFs) are appropriate for most people living with dementia. An ALF can provide cueing, basic care, medication management, and life enrichment. Environmental change can cause someone’s mental abilities to decline, so please do what you can to advocate for your loved one to age in place whenever possible.
What should we look for when choosing a care community?
Look at the staff. Do they look happy to be there? Do the residents look happy? Is anyone socializing? Activities create community, and if people are not socializing, the life enrichment is most likely not good. If the staff are not happy working there, they may be understaffed or underpaid. How does the place smell? If the staff has time to collect trash and keep smells down, then they most likely will have time to do your Mom’s hair. Ask the residents how they like the food. Also, it is okay to ask how long a director and a managing nurse have worked there. Long-term retention in these roles helps a community stay strong.
What about finding a caregiver or hiring home care?
Home Care agencies tend to charge families between $30-$35/hr and often have a minimum of 3 hours per visit. The great thing about home care agencies is that they can ensure there is always someone there. However, they may not guarantee it is the same person as yesterday, or that this person has any training, but they will get someone there. Facilities and Home Health Agencies are having a hard time with staffing right now, due to only paying caregivers $12-15/hr. There may be exceptions to that, and I hope that there are, but the most common complaints I hear are the quality of caregivers that arrive, and their lack of experience.
Another solution is to find someone in the community through word of mouth. These are often diamonds in the rough as they are caring individuals burnt out with facility work and have moved into the private sector. A fair wage for these individuals is $20-25/hr. Your local Senior Center can provide lists of caregivers, foster care homes, and other local resources.
You can also reach out to your local senior center for information about their caregivers.