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Private Caregivers

Tucson Caregivers July 27, 2017 Uncategorized

Private Caregivers

You may hear the term “Private Caregivers” thrown around quite a bit when Home Health Care is mentioned. By all rights, you should. SO.. what are private caregivers,what is their main function, what do they cost and are they right for for my loved one?

What is a Private Caregiver?

By definition, a private caregiver (home) is a person, or sometimes a nurse that tends to someone, generally the elderly who have now reached a point where daily functionality has become an task they cannot complete, and they need assistance to handle the day to days, such as:

Personal care – bathing / dressing, hygiene, transfers, and ambulation
Homemakering
Meal prep and cleaning
Medication reminders
Possibly transportation needs

Private caregivers can generally be found through a local Home Health Care Service and can sometimes be covered by full coverage medical insurance or possibly if planned for, a medicare supplement insurance plan which covers home care needs in the plan.

It’s important to always find your private home caregiver from a reputable service. these caregivers have been properly trained and vetted for you and your loved ones protection. As technology has increased, it has been easy for independent caregivers, to advertise themselves to those in need. Sometimes at fairly deep discounted rates. This is a usual practice to prey on those who may not have coverage or cannot afford the current rates. Be cautious if you were to go this route, crime and theft among the aging is rampant. Mainly because the victim has no idea it’s even happening, secondly it’s due to lack of follow up by loved ones. Checking bank accounts, phone bills and grocery receipts on a regular basis is a great first step in protecting your loved one from any criminal activity in the first place, but using a fully licensed service with vetted staff reduces these possibilities greatly.

Understanding Hospice Care

Tucson Caregivers July 15, 2017 Hospice

Understanding Hospice Care

Understanding hospice care can be difficult and confusing. One of the most important questions you can ask when faced with a serious or fatal illness, is how to care for that loved one. It is a question that should be taken seriously and only answered after much due diligence. One of the biggest mistakes family’s make is lack of preparation due to magnitude of the scenario. Remember, you are not alone, and there are options.

It is important to have a plan of action when dealing with a loved ones illness. How can you increase the quality of life? Who will be the primary caregiver? What are the expectant cost, and who will cover them? these are all valid questions, that should be planned for as soon as possible.

One of the first decisions, is who will be the main point of contact and speak for the loved one in care. This helps cut the confusion when others become involved and have questions themselves.

These decisions can be made more thoughtfully and with less stress if they are made when the loved one can make those decisions with you, so try to plan accordingly.

Know When Hospice Is Needed

There may or may not be a perfect time for hospice care. National averages show that hospice care is generally needed for about 20 days. Once again those 20 days are focused on quality of life.

It’s important to make the decision in a timely fashion, once you come to the conclusion the care is needed. If deciding when that time has come is difficult for you, then consider a few of these signs:

The health of the loved one is declining, symptoms of the illness are increasing thus reducing quality of life, your doctor recommends it is time for hospice.

Who To Discuss Hospice With

The first thing you will want to do is find a Hospice Specialist in Tucson or call Arista at 520-333-0333. You will walked through all of the options available to you and your loved one. Remember, not all hospice is the same, and you must always make a decision based on what’s best for your loved ones.

Paying for In Home Health Care in Arizona

Tucson Caregivers June 25, 2017 Uncategorized

In-home senior care is an alternative to care in a nursing home. However, hiring a caregiver, especially if a full-time caregiver is needed, can be expensive, so paying for In Home Health Care in Arizona can be difficult. Medical insurance often does not provide for non-medical caregiver assistance. In the state of Arizona, it costs an average of $19/hr. to hire a non-medical caregiver and $22/hr. to hire a medical caregiver. This ranks Arizona as the 32^nd most affordable state, adjusted for per capita median income.

State-Sponsored Programs Providing In-Home Care Assistance

Arizona Non-Medical, Home and Community-Based Services (NMHCBS) is a state-funded program intended to assist with the cost of providing non-medical services to seniors. The major criterion for eligibility is that the senior needs assistance with several aspects of daily living, such as bathing, grooming, eating, dressing, using the bathroom or mobility (like walking or getting from a wheelchair to a bed). Seniors with Alzheimer’s or severe physical disabilities often qualify for this program. The program is intended to enable seniors to receive in-home care rather than entering a nursing home.

Although there are no income or asset restrictions per se for eligibility for NMHCBS, recipients cannot be qualified to receive Medicaid services.

For more information in the Tucson area, call the helpline at the Pima Council on Aging.

Home-Delivered Meals

If you’re a home-bound older person or you live with a disability, you may be eligible to receive meals. PCOA and its dedicated community partners will perform an in-home evaluation. For more information, visit the Pima Council on Aging, call 520-790-7262, or email help@pcoa.org.

Federal Medicaid-Related Program Options

Many states have Medicaid “diversion programs” to use Medicaid funds to provide eligible seniors the option of in-home care rather than entering a nursing home. Since federal Medicaid money is used for such programs, recipients are generally required to meet federal Medicaid eligibility requirements.

The AHCCCS, Arizona’s Medicaid administration unit, offers a Medicaid waiver program entitled “Arizona Long-Term Care System,” or ALTCS. The requirements are that the recipient be age 65 or older, have a disability, and require nursing home-level care. The program offers Medicaid-funded assistance to pay for in-home senior care as an alternative to a nursing home.

Paying for In Home Health Care in Arizona

There are many factors to consider when choosing in-home care for a senior. A major issue is cost, and to make the decision, it is important to know what state and federal funding help is available. Another important decision is whether in-home care or nursing home care is the best option for a given person. To discuss your home health care needs in the greater Tucson area, call our office at (520) 333-0333.

Needing Home Health Care

Tucson Caregivers June 5, 2017 Uncategorized

Needing Home Health Care is more common than ever. Seniors coping with a variety of health conditions use home health care. Seniors that suffer from a chronic disease that limits their ability to manage their health on their own or requires medical treatments that only a nurse can provide. Seniors that are recovering from an injury or sudden illness may also need home health care services to help them heal properly and recover some of the abilities they lost due to an injury or illness. The goal of home healthcare is to provide seniors with the immediate medical care they need while helping them gain the ability to care for themselves.

Needing Home Health Care

After a hospitalization, it is common for a senior to need a fair amount of assistance to fully recover. Seniors do not heal as fast as younger people do, and they are more susceptible to serious injuries from minor falls and accidents. They are also more prone to suffer from acute medical problems such as a stroke that can severely limit their physical abilities. In some cases, seniors may not be able to return to their home right away, but may need to stay in a rehabilitation center or nursing home during recovery to receive more intense medical care and treatments. Those seniors that are well enough to return to their home may still face significant challenges that require significant skilled nursing services or therapies.

Once a senior is well enough to return to their home a home health care agency should meet with them to fully evaluate what needs they have and recommend the services that will help them achieve as much independence as possible. This evaluation will also be based on the expected results of full recovery. A home healthcare agency will review a senior’s medical records and speak with the senior’s physician to help determine the types of services the senior can benefit from and what the realistic expectations and abilities the senior can work to regain.

Occupational Therapy for Seniors

One of the most helpful therapies seniors can receive from a home health care agency is occupational therapy. The name occupational therapy can seem a little misplaced when discussing a senior that has been retired for quite a long time, but it is really therapies to help a senior regain an ability to perform their tasks of daily living. Occupational therapists work to help seniors perform tasks like dressing, grooming, bathing, and using the toilet on their own again. There may need to be changes to a senior’s home to enable them to perform these tasks without the risk of injuring themselves. Occupational therapists also teach seniors to use assistive devices properly when necessary to compensate for lost abilities. Equipment such as walkers, adjustable toilet seats, and hospital beds may be necessary to help a senior perform daily tasks, but with the help of occupational therapists, seniors can often adapt to the needed changes.

Home health care is typically provided to seniors on a short-term basis. Medicare covers many of the home healthcare seniors often require, but there are restriction on the length of treatment by a home healthcare agency. Home healthcare agencies that participate with Medicare are well aware of the restrictions Medicare puts in place and will design their care plan with the financial aspect of the treatment in mind.

Medicare Rules on Home Health Care

Tucson Caregivers May 10, 2017 Medicare

One of the most common questions in our industry is “What does Medicare cover” it’s asked daily. We at Arista, thought we would help with this by bringing you some of the answers directly from Medicare and Medicare rules on home health care.

If you qualify for the home health benefit, Medicare covers the following types of care:

Skilled nursing services and home health services provided up to seven days a week for no more than eight hours per day and 28 hours per week (Medicare can cover up to 35 hours in unusual cases).
Medicare pays in full for skilled nursing care, which includes services and care that can only be performed safely and effectively by a licensed nurse. Injections (and teaching patients to self-inject), tube feedings, catheter changes, observation and assessment of a patient’s condition, management and evaluation of a patient’s care plan, and wound care are examples of skilled nursing care that Medicare may cover.
Medicare pays in full for a home health aide if you require skilled services. A home health aide provides personal care services including help with bathing, using the toilet, and dressing. If you ONLY require personal care, you do NOT qualify for the Medicare home care benefit.
Skilled therapy services. Physical, speech and occupational therapy services that can only be performed safely by or under the supervision of a licensed therapist, and that are reasonable and necessary for treating your illness or injury. Physical therapy includes gait training and supervision of and training for exercises to regain movement and strength to a body area. Speech-language pathology services include exercises to regain and strengthen speech and language skills. Occupational therapy* helps you regain the ability to do usual daily activities by yourself, such as eating and putting on clothes. Medicare should pay for therapy services to maintain your condition and prevent you from getting worse as long as these services require the skill or supervision of a licensed therapist, regardless of your potential to improve.
Medical social services. Medicare pays in full for services ordered by your doctor to help you with social and emotional concerns you have related to your illness. This might include counseling or help finding resources in your community.
Medical supplies. Medicare pays in full for certain medical supplies provided by the Medicare-certified home health agency, such as wound dressings and catheters needed for your care.
Durable medical equipment. Medicare pays 80% of its approved amount for certain pieces of medical equipment, such as a wheelchair or walker. You pay 20% coinsurance (plus up to 15% more if your home health agency does not accept “assignment”—accept the Medicare-approved amount for a service as payment in full).

Long Term Care Insurance

Tucson Caregivers April 22, 2017 Uncategorized

One way for you to plan ahead for an older loved one’s health support is to shop around for the right long term care insurance plan. While private health insurance plans, Medicaid and Medicare may cover some related costs, these typically do not offer comprehensive coverage. Long-term care insurance supplements those programs so when you need to use it, you pay less out of pocket. AARP explains that long-term care is not considered a medical expense, which leads to coverage gaps or commonly called the doughnut hole.

Some of these additional insurance plans can also be quite pricey, however. There are many financial institutes across the country that offer these kind of programs – you should take time to research several companies and the kind of plans they offer to ensure you can comfortably pay the monthly premiums while still getting the coverage you want your loved one to have.

It’s also important to note that prices on these policies tend to increase as a person ages. If you want to invest in long-term health insurance, you shouldn’t wait until your loved one ages for several more years or develops a serious health concern. The younger and healthier someone is, the lower those premiums will be.

Shop Around

Theres absolutely no shortage of long term care insurers available to us. Starting with the earlier mentioned AARP, to lesser known insurers around the globe. After checking with the AALTCI, we found some interesting stats:

The average applicant for long term care insurance is 55-64, as stated before, the earlier the better.

Daily Benefit amounts range, but $99-$200 per day seems to be the average.

The highest percent claimant age group, is 80 yrs old and above.

Though these stats will vary, it still shows the importance of additional care in this age of healthier longer life. In future articles, Arista will be sharing what you should look for in home health care and hospice care.

Home Health Care Cost

Tucson Caregivers April 3, 2017 Uncategorized

Home Health Care cost, or long term care, can be one of the most expensive endeavors you or a loved one must manage.

While most seniors have a plan in place to handle such needs for themselves through retirement, be it through retirement or pension programs, 401(k)’s or even a personal savings account, the costs of long-term care are usually unaccounted for or not even thought of. As a result, many seniors who end up needing this specialized care don’t have the money to fund a long term plan.

If our seniors don’t have enough to cover such debt, their family and loved ones usually end up having to cover the cost. These cost can range from $1,400.00 to $7,500.00 per month depending on many different factors, such as: is it home healthcare, or private facility care.

Statistically speaking, nearly 70% of all seniors will need some sort of at home, or extended stay care once past the age of 65.

Rather than taking that risk, adults and their family’s should start to save money for these needs before the time comes. Home health care cost should never dictate quality of care, but unfortunately, it is a large factor.

Generally though, family’s don’t start thinking about these options until it’s too late or they start and there’s never enough. There are long term care insurance plans that can be purchased later in life which can cover some of theses needs. Like most insurances though, the sooner you start, the lower the premium, most premiums are for life, so don’t wait. Over the course of the year, Arista will will be adding several tips to follow to not only choose a provider but to also tackle how to prepare for it.

“Long-term care is not considered a medical expense.” See our next article for some answers to this long term dilemma.

Speech Pathology

Tucson Caregivers March 15, 2017 Uncategorized

A patient is someone who intently needs more extra attention and gentle care than before. There are numerous types of care, like speech pathology, that are needed regularly.The methods and techniques we use to comfort and support our patients would actually measure the period of recovery for a patient. So in other words, recovery depends on how you treat and look after your fellow patient who needs that extra attention. As long term patients are mostly seniors citizens, most of their family care takers are actually unable to provide that 24 hour attentions and support these patients seek. It is indeed an unfortunate draw back for these patients but what could be done as everyone has to work hard and move forward for a better tomorrow. Due to this busy life of the family members and lack of time they have actually puts these patients into a situation of breaking their illness into a worse stage scenario. In order to prevent these unfortunate incidents we are lucky enough to have home health care providers who actually are there to send in caretakers for these patients and look after them through speech pathology and other necessary treatments.

Most of the patients prone to face this lonely situation at home are all at the age category of 50 and above. Indeed it’s a generous age which naturally intends to seek more attention, love and care. Which is the main reason for health care providers to train their staff with speech therapies and other indirect techniques to treat these patients with much happiness and a hope for tomorrow. People over 50 years and above have to maintain a continuous practice of speech in order to keep the functions of the brain activated with vocabulary, grammar, expressions and pronunciation. These four functions of language would tent to die if not practiced for a long period of time. Health care providers how train their staff to provide these necessary practice for language and speech development. This treatment is generally essential for all elderly patients seeking for recovery.

There are also some other functions provided by home health care providers which are practiced with patients. Motor speech, swallowing, spoken language comprehension, memory and also spoken language expressions which can provide a major help for these patients. A continuous practice of communication by specialized speech pathologist could ideally provide a great and exceptional service to the patient’s ultimate requirement.

We are fortunate enough to have a range of home health care providing services in the present. Many private organisations conduct this mean of service and promise to deliver a great mean of service in order to wish speedy recovery for needy patients. These private or public home health care service is now available world wide providing a great service for patients around the world. This mean if of service is also a major benefit for family members as they could count on the assurance promised by these health care services. Indeed it a genuine technique to provide a better and happier recovery for all elderly patients who seek that extra care.

Home Health Care in the Tucson Area

Tucson Caregivers February 28, 2017 Home Care

The Home health care industry in United States consists of several medical services, which are readily available at a location of choice or the home of any individual. They include palliative care, caregiver services, hospital care, home health and many other related services. The services offered are usually being administered by a group of medical professionals. The ability to get all the medical needs catered at home has contributed towards the increased demand of home health care services in America.

From various studies, which were conducted in the recently, it has been identified that the demand for home health care services is increasing at a rapid pace. The terms “Home” and “Care” have contributed towards the above mentioned fact. These are the two most fundamental services that are being offered to the people in need. The majority of seniors who live in America prefer to be treated at the comfort of their homes. They don’t want to attend any facility to go for the treatments as such facilities can make them feel uncomfortable. They would also feel better while being treated at home.

Home health care facilitators are in a position to contribute towards the mental health of people as well. Seniors will get the opportunity to maintain the mental health and wellbeing in a convenient manner while they are being treated at the comfort of home. This would assist them to get the required treatments in an effective manner. For example, this process has the ability to reduce the number of hospital re-admissions by a significant amount.

With home health care services, people have access to treatments and medical staff at home, where they feel comfortable to live in. This can provide effective results when treating certain health conditions.

Tucson, Arizona is a retirement community. The demand for home health care services in Arizona, and nationally, is increasing due to all the prominent benefits that are associated with it. On the other hand, the increasing elderly population can also create an impact. As per the statistics of 2010, about 11.8% of the people who live in United States are over 65 years old. This is a considerable percentage and the home health care facilitators need to be developed in order to cater their specific requirements. On the other hand, the number of seniors in the country is increasing at a rapid pace. As per the current statistics, it has been identified that the percentage of people who are over 65 years old would grow to 19% by year 2030. Moreover, the oldest group of people in United States would be about 19 million. In order to accommodate the needs of all these people, there should be a good supply of home health care services.

When the demand for home health care services is increasing, there should be an increase in the supply as well. It is the time to think about the changes that need to be accommodated and then act accordingly.

We serve Tucson, Marana, Green Valley, Vail, Sahuarita, Nogales, Rio Rico, St. David, Oro Valley and Benson.

Hospice Care

Tucson Caregivers February 15, 2017 Hospice

Approximately ninety percent of all hospice care in America occurs in homes. This statistic points to a couple of things. It highlights that not only is this type of care the norm, but that the demand for care is at an all-time high, as well.

One of the benefits of hospice care is that it can occur in just about any location. Hospitals and senior care facilities alike can work with this arrangement. Even so, people by and large prefer to receive this type of end-of-life care in the comfort of their own homes. It isn’t hard to understand why. At the same time, it is also important to appreciate just how substantial the need for home hospice care is right now. Furthermore, it’s a need that is likely to continue growing as time goes on.

The Demand for Home Hospice Care In America

The CDC reports that there are over 1.5 million hospice patients in America. A quick Google map search for hospice in Tucson displays over 40 providers in the local Tucson area, including in-home care services. Home hospice care can be realized in a variety of different ways. Hospice care is designed to provide support for not only the individual, but for the family and even friends of that individual, as well. However, the main purpose of hospice care is to make things as comfortable and manageable for the individual as possible, once that individual has accepted that death is near and inevitable. Hospice care is not inherently designed to treat the condition, whatever the condition may be. At the same time, treatments can be used in the name of keeping the patient comfortable. Everything about hospice care is designed around keeping the patient as comfortable as possible.

This is perhaps why so many people prefer to receive hospice care in their own homes. None of us like the thought of dying in a rest home or hospital. If we can enjoy our remaining time surrounded by familiar things and faces, we can come to terms with everything that might be going on. The concept of home hospice care can be beneficial to the families and friends of the individual, as well. It can help everyone to accept an unfortunate eventuality.

Home hospice care isn’t generally a 24-hour service, although it can be. It can include physical and psychological efforts to keep the patient comfortable. It often involves working with more than just that individual. This is challenging work that allows care workers to service the community in a unique way. As the baby boomers get older, the demand for home hospice care in America is only going to increase.

Click here for more info about Tucson hospice care.