Because
We Care
What Services Can Help Us?
Introduction
If you are a caregiver and need help, chances are that assistance
is available in your community. There are many different government
and privately funded services that may be available. Most of the
programs and services mentioned in this guide are federally funded
through the Older Americans Act. You can get information about
these services and programs in communities throughout the nation
by calling the Eldercare Locator
at 1-800-677-1116. Staff is available from 9:00 A.M. to 8:00 P.M.
EST, Monday-Friday.
While some services are free, others are fee-based. In-home and
community-based services that you might find helpful include:
- Personal and in-home services
- Home health care
- Transportation
- Meals programs
- Cleaning and yard work services
- Home modification
- Senior centers
- Respite services including adult day care
Personal and In-Home Care Services
Personal and in-home care assistants help with bathing, dressing,
preparing meals, house cleaning, laundry, toileting, and other
personal “activities of daily living.”
Home Health Care
Home health care includes such care activities as changing wound
dressings, checking vital signs, cleaning catheters and providing
tube feedings. Home health care staff also may provide some personal
care services and light housekeeping.
If the older person for whom you are caring is recuperating
from an accident, operation, or illness, he or she may be able
to receive
home health care assistance through a Medicare certified
home care agency. If older persons cannot care for themselves
because of physical functioning, health problems, or because
they no longer are able to mentally process things, they may
be eligible
for skilled nursing care or physical, speech, or occupational
therapy. In these cases, home health care also may be available.
Ask your older relative’s doctor if your family member
is eligible for these services.
To find out more about home health care, check “Home Health,”
a publication by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services
(CMS)—formerly the Health Care Financing Administration
(HCFA)--the federal agency that administers the Medicare program, or
talk to the doctor who is caring for your family member.Medicare
usually pays for home health care services for two or three hours
a day, several days a week, and for the medical care provided
by a doctor, nurse, or other health professional. Such care tends
to be for a limited time.
If the person for whom you are caring has a limited income and
assets, he or she may be able to receive home health care, personal care, or hospice services as well
as occupational, physical, or speech therapy through Medicaid (a federal-state
program, administered by CMS at the federal level). Some older
persons with limited assets and income are eligible for help through
both the Medicare and the Medicaid programs. If this is the case,
your care receiver may be able to obtain personal and/or home
health care services on a long-term basis instead of being cared
for in an extended care facility. Otherwise, in-home and community-based
services may be available through an Area Agency on Aging.
Middle and higher-income persons often pay out-of-pocket for
personal and home health care services. If you hire staff
through a home care agency, ask the agency how they screen their
staff and if staff is bonded. Agencies charge you for the costs
of doing business; i.e., for management, administration, and recruiting
workers. This can be quite expensive, but there are ways to make
help more affordable. For example, you can explore the possibility
of directly hiring a personal or home health care assistant. If
you choose to hire help, be sure to check
their qualifications and references carefully. Remember, you will
then be an employer, and you may need to cover Social Security
and other benefits. (See the Section on How Do I Hire a Home Care Employee?)
Respite Care
Respite care can be a voluntary or paid service. It can be provided
in your relative’s home, in an extended care facility, such
as a nursing home, or at a senior center or adult day care center.
Respite care can extend for a few hours or for several weeks.
It provides the caregiver with opportunities to take care of personal
affairs, to get some rest, or to take a vacation.
Transportation
Transportation
services are vitally important to older persons with limited mobility.
Transportation enables them to go to their doctors, to the pharmacy,
and to attend to day-to-day activities.
Many public mass transit systems
are fitting buses and other vehicles with hydraulic lifts and
other aids to assist older persons and others that have physical
disabilities. Sometimes several transit systems operate independently
of each other. Transportation options may be available through
private companies and private non-profit organizations. These
include public fixed-route, demand-response, ride sharing, volunteer
drivers, limousines, buses, vans, and regular and special purpose
taxis. Some services provide an escort to assist older people.
To arrange transportation for an older person in your community, contact
your local Area Agency on Aging (it is listed under “aging,”
“elderly,” or “senior services” in the
government section of your telephone directory). Area Agencies
on Aging provide older persons and their caregivers with specific
information and assistance in getting transportation and other
supportive services in the community.
If you want information about safe driving and older drivers
you may want to contact the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration.
Meals
Good nutrition can help to improve health and control a range of
conditions and diseases. The National Elderly Nutrition Program, funded by the Administration on
Aging, provides meals to older persons in need and their spouses.
Older persons who participate in the group meal program have an
opportunity to socialize, receive nutrition education, and take
part in other activities, including health screenings.
Elderly persons who are ill or frail may be able to receive a
government-subsidized home-delivered meal. To find out about home-delivered
meals programs and other meals programs, please contact the National
Eldercare Locator or your State or Area Agency on Aging.
If these meals are not available, see if your grocery store prepares
food orders for pick-up or if it provides home-delivery service.
A growing number of grocery and meal services are available via
the Internet including some that offer organic, ethnic and kosher
foods. Many local restaurants deliver meals without additional
charge and some even offer senior discounts on meals. A growing
number of resaurants offer special low-fat and low-salt meals.
There also are local and national franchised meals delivery
services. These are listed in the yellow pages of the telephone
directory
under “foods—take out”; some can be found on
the Internet.
Cleaning and Yard Work Services
An Area Agency on Aging may be able arrange for chore and yard
maintenance services or put you in touch with religious, scout
or other volunteer groups that provide one-time or occasional
services to older persons who need help. Of course, you can
hire
a cleaning service or yard maintenance firm, but this may be
more expensive than hiring someone that works as an independent
ontractor.
Home Modification, Improvement, and Weatherization Programs
Home modification and
repair programs can make homes safer and more energy efficient.
They can result in greater independence for an older person with
disabilities. The Home Modification Action Project at the University
of Southern California’s Andrus Gerontology Center has online
consumer oriented information
and publications on accommodations and modifications and how to
pay for these. There is information on how to make dwelling units
safe for persons with Alzheimer’s
Disease. There also is information for builders, a library of useful
publications on housing adaptation, and links to other useful
web sites.
Senior Centers
Seniors Centers
offer older people a safe environment where they can take part
in a range of activities led by trained personnel that promote
healthy lifestyles and where they can develop a network of friends.
Meal and nutrition programs, information and assistance, health
and wellness programs, recreational and arts programs, transportation
services, volunteer opportunities, educational opportunities,
employee assistance, intergenerational programs, social and community
action opportunities and other special services are often available
through a senior center.
Adult Day Care Services
For older persons with serious limitations in their mobility,
those who are frail, and those who have medical and cognitive
problems, adult day care centers
can provide care in a safe, structured environment. Adult day
care can provide relief to working caregivers and respite for
full-time caregivers. Adult day care services
include personal and nursing care, congregate meals, therapeutic
exercises, and social and recreational activities.
Most adult day care centers, like senior centers, are supported
through public and non-profit organizations. Fees may range from
a few dollars a day to close to $200, depending on the services
needed. The National Council on the Aging maintains a directory
of adult day care centers and links to other related
sites.
Additional Resources and Reading Lists
The Administration on Aging-operated National Aging Information
Center Internet Notes home design web page is full of
web sites that provide useful information on home modifications,
home design, and home safety for the elderly.
To find out about eligibility requirements for benefits under
both the Medicare and Medicaid programs, go to the Health Care
Financing Administration’s dual
eligible web site.
Back
to Previous | Main | Next >
|