The demographics, they are a-changin’. According to the Rural Health Information Hub, there are currently more than 46 million adults 65 years of age and older living in the United States. By 2050, that number is expected to grow to nearly 90 million. What does this mean for America? By 2030, one in five Americans is projected to be 65 years of … Read More
Using Time Spent at the Holidays to Evaluate When It’s Time to Look for Care Options
As we enter the holiday season, families will have the opportunity to spend concentrated time visiting aging loved ones. While of course providing the backdrop for quality time together, the holidays also are the prime time to assess how seniors are doing and whether there might be care needs that should be uncovered and addressed. Merrily Orsini, home care marketing … Read More
Hospice Makes a Difference for Families Facing a Life-Limiting Illness
Caring for a loved one and helping that individual age in place, in the comfort of his or her own home, is a gift. But caregiving can also be emotionally and physically draining, especially when a loved one is facing end of life issues. According to Brent Korte, Executive Director of EvergreenHealth Home Care, choosing hospice care for a loved … Read More
What to Consider When Choosing End of Life Care
Imagine a specialized type of care that addresses the spiritual, emotional, and physical needs of an individual with a life-limiting illness. Imagine that this care is delivered by a team of compassionate experts, specially trained on end-of-life symptom management, who address the needs not only of the individual, but of the immediate family members. Imagine that this type of care … Read More
Hospice Provides Care for Families and their Loved Ones
While home care options for a terminally ill patient may not seem like a novelty today, this type of care was unusual as recently as the mid-1950s. Dame Cicely Saunders, a British registered nurse, pioneered the notion of caring for terminally ill patients, addressing their pain and symptoms, as well as attending to their emotional and spiritual needs. A key … Read More
Family Caregivers and Professional Caregivers Unite in Common Care Goals
In the summer of 1994, Gary Barg was a video producer living in Atlanta and preparing for an assignment to cover the Olympic Games. With a few weeks on his hands before his assignment kicked into high gear, Barg traveled to south Florida to support his mother who was caring for her parents. For those two weeks, Barg stepped into … Read More
Factors to Look for When Selecting Quality In-Home Care for Your Senior Loved One
If you’ve decided in-home care is an appropriate solution to help your parent as he or she is aging in place, you’ve probably begun completing your due diligence by asking for recommendations from friends and family members, researching online reviews for local agencies, and possibly even scheduling interviews with prospective home care agencies or individual caregivers in an effort to … Read More
In-Home Care Is Critical in the Changing U.S. Health Care Industry
Twenty-five years ago, when Allen Hager, executive chairman of Risemark and founder of Right at Home, first got into home care, 8% of the United States GDP was spent on health care. Today, it’s nearly 18% and expected to hit 20% within the next several years. Hager explains that escalating costs and a societal responsibility to provide long-term care for … Read More
How the Home Care Industry Is Working to Meet the Needs of Today’s Consumers
Choosing a home care agency for a senior loved one can be confusing. There are a number of questions that must be navigated to determine whether home care is covered through Medicare or Medicaid, and if so, how much is covered? There are also questions about the level of care needed. Does the senior need skilled nursing assistance, companionship, or … Read More
In-Home Care Is Preventative Health Care
Historically, health care in the United States has functioned by addressing crisis. For older adults, that may mean hospitalization due to illness, a chronic health condition, or a fall. Unfortunately, once a senior enters the hospital for treatment, a cycle of readmission can ensue, with patients getting better and being discharged, only to return with a complication, or similar issue. … Read More
How Long-Term Care Insurance Can Help You Age at Home
Did you know that about 70% of people over age 65 will require some type of long-term care? That’s according to Maryglenn Boals, CLTC, LACP, President of MgBoals & Associates, LLC, a locally and nationally recognized leader for her work in the field of senior care options. The reality, according to Boals, is that Medicare won’t fully cover long-term care, … Read More
Quality Counts in Home Care – Interview with Laura Page-Greifinger, BSN, MPA, Founder and CEO of QIRT – Quality in Real Time
More than 30 years ago, Laura Page-Greifinger, BSN, MPA, was a nursing student who may not even have been able to describe what is home health care, but after she was assigned a rotation with the Visiting Nurse Service of New York, all of that changed and she found her passion in home care. After graduation, she would go on … Read More
Plan Ahead to Help Seniors Age in Place
Help Choose Home Podcast: Interview with Steven H. Landers, MD, MPH, President and CEO of the Visiting Nurse Association Health Group, Inc. While there is much uncertainty in the world today, one thing we can count on: we are all getting older. Aging brings about change, but aging doesn’t have to bring about a loss of independence as you evaluate … Read More
How Technology Is Helping Seniors Remain Safely in Their Homes
Heraclitus, the pre-Socractic Greek philosopher, said, “Change is the only constant in life.” In the field of technology, this is particularly true. And while one can argue that not all change is positive, the constant evolution of technology has provided us with a myriad of products that make our lives easier. Laurie Orlov is a tech industry veteran, writer, speaker, … Read More
Building an Efficient Team for Your Senior Loved One: Care Managers, Caregivers and Technology
Peter Sosnow, Integration Leader for Humana at Home, was literally born into a home care family. His father, Larry, started Patient Care, Inc., a home health care company providing services in New York and New Jersey. Because of his family’s background in the industry, it seems only natural that Sosnow would choose home health as a career path. In his … Read More
Understanding Aging in Place Home Care Options, Coverage, and Costs
Help Choose Home Podcast: Interview with Jeannee Parker Martin Perhaps you know a bit about in-home caregiving, but you aren’t really sure if it’s an option for your senior loved one. Where do you find out more information about aging in place? What types of care services are provided? How much does in-home care cost? Does Medicare or Medicaid cover … Read More
Help Choose Home Podcast: Interview with Cathy Cress, MSW
Choosing Home Care Services for Your Aging Parent Cathy Cress, MSW, shares suggestions for how to go about assessing senior care options and helping aging parents make decisions on the Help Choose Home podcast, which can be accessed on iTunes, Google or other listening devices. In The Wizard of Oz, Dorothy says, “There’s no place like home,” a sentiment that … Read More
Help Choose Home Interview with Deborah Hoyt
The Benefits of Care at Home for Senior Loved Ones The saying “everything old is new again” is an apt description of the home care industry in the United States. One hundred years ago, home- and community-based care were the norm. Doctors and nurses made house calls to tend to patients. Then, modernization brought brick and mortar hospitals, skilled nursing … Read More
Help Choose Home Podcast: Interview with Sheila McMackin
How Quality Home Care Makes a Difference in the Care of Senior Loved Ones The National Association for Home Care and Hospice, Axxess, and corecubed are aligning resources to educate the public about the many benefits of the in-home care industry by launching a national digital grassroots campaign to educate consumers and professionals about the health benefits of choosing in-home … Read More