A nine-part series for family caregivers and employers. When family caregiving roles conflict with work and career obligations.

Part 5 of 9: I have been answering a list of questions that have come via email to the weekly virtual seminar that I cohost.

Q: My parents will not admit that they are having issues, or genuinely do not feel that they have issues, so they refuse to accept hired help or even schedule doctor appointments. Any advice for convincing them to accept help before a crisis? In the last article, we discussed how to get help. For today, how do we get care into the home through the doctor?

A: Nurses have been voted the most trusted professionals for several years straight. I think doctors are not too far behind. The good thing is that many older adults respect and trust their doctors. Here is how to get care into the home through the doctor.

First, be sure to call the doctor’s office ahead of time to tell the doctor that you need his or her assistance to get a caring professional into the home. If the doctor has a nurse practitioner in their practice, that would even be better, because nurse practitioners have a different and unique way to doing patient education.

Second, ask the doctor to use two old fashion prescription pads and on one write “physical therapy evaluation for gait disturbance and home safety evaluation” and on the other one write “home caregiving assessment.” Medicare will pay for the physical therapy assessment partly because 82% of the people who need care in the home have some form of dementia, and with dementia, some patients suffer with spatial difficulties and depth perception. Very often when the physical therapist comes, they will find something to work on. If the therapist finds a need for teaching, such as a new medication, a nurse will be sent in under Medicare. Through the nurse, it would be easier to start the discussion for a home caregiving assessment.

If I can help you get care into the home, please call or email me anytime!

Katie Klem

A nine-part series for family caregivers and employers. When family caregiving roles conflict with work and career obligations.

Part three of nine: I have been answering questions that came via email to our GOING HOME, STAYING HOME questions and answer service. GOING HOME, STAYING HOME is a weekly virtual session that I cohost with other geriatric experts. There were nine questions, and this is the third of nine.

Q: How do I help my parent figure out where money is going? What can I use to help my mom set up to more easily manage her finances and her therapy appointments for the Medicare people coming to the house, and how do I know what accounts exist?

A: Money is one thing that causes conflict in family caregiving. The difficulty of handling money is one of the challenges that aging adults face every day, and it has become one of the signs that someone needs help from others. It threatens the independence of an older person. If you get too involved in managing your parents’ financial affairs, it could potentially cause a change in your role and your relationship. Our relationship with our aging parents is usually better when we remain the child. It is better to engage and retain other professionals, such as care managers, bookkeepers, attorneys, and professional caregivers.

Regarding the management of her finances and identification of where money is going and which accounts they own, I highly recommend that you consider the services of a daily money manager. A daily money manager specializes in helping people manage their day-to-day personal finances—paying bills, tracking insurance claims, organizing files, safeguarding important financial documents, budgeting, and more.

For her appointments, consider a simple calendar and ask the Medicare therapist to write down their appointment dates and times. If someone you love needs care, is coming home from the hospital or the rehab facility, and you have questions, need resources, or want to learn, join me on Tuesdays at 11 am on Zoom. No need to leave your home, office, or business. You can attend from anywhere via your computer or telephone. Call or email me for the link or call in phone numbers.

Call or email me for the link or call in phone numbers.