Finding a Good Geriatric Care Manager

Over at BusinessWeek, Lauren Young has a helpful article about how professional geriatric care managers can help families and how to find a good care manager for your own parents. She says, “…care managers oversee many things busy or far-flung family members might not be able to stay on top of: vetting nursing homes and assisted living facilities, overseeing home health aides, providing guidance about applying for federal, state, and other benefits. They may also tend to more day-to-day tasks, like making sure that rugs in a parent’s home don’t slip and that refrigerators are stocked.”

Young goes on to say, “They often have some background in nursing or social work. Linda Fodrini-Johnson, president-elect of the National Association of Professional Geriatric Care Managers, estimates that 35% of the group’s 2,000 members have nursing degrees and 50% have social work or counseling backgrounds...When choosing a care manager, find one with experience dealing with issues similar to those of your relative. If a parent has a complicated medical history, consider hiring someone with a nursing background to coordinate care among doctors, who often don’t talk with each other, says Julie Davis, managing editor of Parentgiving.com, a caregiving Web site. And make sure there is good chemistry with your family.”

At A Servant’s Heart, we offer both social workers and nurses to serve as care managers. We believe that having both disciplines on the team is the best approach, so that we can offer the best focus for clients’ needs.

See the entire article at The Elderly: Finding a Good Geriatric Care Manager

Tagged as: care managers, case managers, geriatric care manager, Nurses, selecting a care manager, social workers