What Are Geriatric Care Managers

When helping an elderly member of your family put their long-term care and financial needs in order you may quickly discover that you need some professional help. Geriatric care managers are professionals that can give you that needed assistance.

Geriatric care managers (sometime called private care managers for the aging or healthcare advisors) are professional counselors or guides who, on a one-time or ongoing basis, help assess long-term care needs and organize services to meet those needs for a fee. They can be particularly useful when family members don't live in the same city as the person who needs the care. But they are also extremely valuable because of the increasing complexity of the healthcare system along with legal and financial matters can often be way too much for a family member to be able to be aware of and address. By using such a service can save a lot of money in the long run why insuring that unneeded stress is avoided.

Unfortunately many people only have the yellow pages to depend on when choosing health services ranging from home care to assisted residential living services. Geriatric care managers can assist with placing elders in different types of assisted living, residential care, and nursing facilities. They can also be invaluable in guiding you through the maze of home health care and supporting services needed for long term care in the home. Care managers are generally familiar with residential facilities and can help find a facility that meets the elder's care needs and ability to pay. Geriatric care managers can evaluate home care agencies as well. They may know of difficult to find services that may supplement care provided by an agency or of individual caregivers who can fill gaps in home care. And they can help you set up a coordinated program of care among several providers. They also follow up, monitoring ongoing care and helping make changes as necessary.

Despite a care manager's expertise, decisions about long-term care are too important to leave solely in the hands of any one advisor. Even if your geriatric care manager is highly qualified and you feel is extremely competent in their job, you should still do some research of your own. Check with friends, relatives, physicians and any other potential sources of information about possible care options. The internet can be an invaluable free resource of information regarding these matters. You should also meet with all caregivers and visit any residence the care manager suggests. Keep in mind that you know best the abilities, needs and personality of the elder who requires care. Also the more you learn about long-term care choices and participate in the decision making process, the better able you will be to choose among the alternatives a geriatric care manager may offer.

How do you go about finding geriatric care managers in your area? As with other long-term care resources, your personal physician, a local senior citizen center or friend and neighbors might be able to refer you to a geriatric care manager.