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Home Health Care Aides


JTC

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They are also called Personal Care Aides and occasionally a Companion.

 About a year ago the town I live in had a Social Worker call me concerning an aide. I really didn't know why. I came to think it's because all my family has passed on and whatever friends I had in the 1990's have moved to other states. I am disabled, I was dx with spinal stenosis, and other neurological ailments. I no longer have a car and my savings are gone. However, I am able to dress, wash, and cook for myself. I even do my own food shopping. It's nice to have help carrying the groceries but I usually have to do it alone. I'm 67 but if not for the neurological issues I get by. I am very lonely. I want a companion but I'm told Medicare won't pay for that. Originally I was approved to have an aide 4 hours 3 days a week. (please realize I knew nothing of this, how it should work) I was assigned an aide who was a 32 yr old woman who was very pleasant to have around. But she was lazy and called in sick 1 or 2 days a week. But when she was here she was like sunshine for my life. A day came when I really needed her and she didn't come in and I lost my temper. I rarely do that because I do my best to live as the scriptures say we should.        That was 3 months ago.

   Now things are worse. At least my first aide was American and fluent in English. I only speak English. They gave my case to a  different agency and most of their aides can't speak English, some understand it but they can't speak it. What am I supposed to do for 4 hours if I can't converse with the person. It gets worse. This agency doesn't even send the same person all the time. I never know who is going to show up. This is causing me a great deal of anxiety. I can't even sleep anymore. And they have me over a barrel. As part of this I get medical transportation which I need desperately. I can get around a little but I need a walker. Taking a walker on a bus is difficult. If I give up the aide I lose the transportation. (btw, I pay for this monthly) I feel like this is a racket to take advantage of disabled senior citizens who don't have family.

   I don't know what to do. I need the same aide to come here and she has to be fluent in English. I only speak English.

  Thanks for letting me vent.

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Are there no people in your church who visit the housebound etc in the church?

Doesn't your minister visit you?

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Thanks for the suggestions. The only churches I can get to without a car are Catholic churches. I really can't handle going in them and people who attend Catholic churches don't stick around for coffee & cake. I live in a very ungodly area, I'm usually the only person who ever speaks of God. Even when I had a car I never could find a good church. I'm not saying there aren't any at all, but they may be an hour car ride away.

   Thanks you, I'm just very frustrated.

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7 hours ago, JTC said:

I don't know what to do. I need the same aide to come here and she has to be fluent in English. I only speak English.

  Thanks for letting me vent.

Hi JTC. Sorry for your turmoil and the plight you presently face. I will be praying for improvement for you.

 I do not have an answer, but I have faced similar situations and have done battle with the system(s).

Are you on any  Insurance especially an HMO that is associated with your medicare? Are you restricted to a particular doctor or medical group because of your selection of insurance at this time?

I found that  some doctors that are contracted with certain Insurance companies are unfortunately more confined to the budget of the insurance company than they are interested in you personally.  And yes the home care is very low grade, a bit of a useless "benefit". Perhaps at this time of year it is time to look at a very different insurance company and program as a start.

I fought for my own family that was under a  HMO that was not providing proper care. I did file a protest  with Social Security Medicare, and eventual twice won  better care for longer periods of time than the contracted agancies were willing to provide before the filing of my protests with SS.

If you can  please look at changing your own insurance program . This is the time of year for renewals or changes for next year.

  

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Also call Hospice ask if they have Empath in your area. Ask if you may speak to a counselor there for future reference and present day needs. Tell them your problem. They may know of help and they may be your help.

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4 hours ago, JTC said:

Thanks you, I'm just very frustrated.

I'm just trying to add some way of getting help, if your in America you might call welfare, they may be able to add to your services, I know it's unfair, but if you've worked all your life sometimes your stuck.

There's got to be other services around, it's just finding out how to get them.

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You might try talking to a manager that oversees the home care agency.   You need to insist that you need an English speaking aide.   If that agency doesn't have English speakers, then ask to be reassigned to another agency.

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On 9/7/2019 at 5:05 PM, Neighbor said:

Also call Hospice ask if they have Empath in your area. Ask if you may speak to a counselor there for future reference and present day needs. Tell them your problem. They may know of help and they may be your help.

I'm confused, I thought hospice was only for terminally ill cancer patients, I'm not that sick. I have a terrible case manager, often she's downright nasty. I requested a different one but they don't listen. This whole thing is very confusing. The main company is called Centers Plan For Healthy Living. They are the people I have to pay every month. They also have a contract with a transportation co. that sends a car when I need one. They also barely speak English and I'm never sure if we understand each other. They are so difficult to use that I avoid going to doctors that I need. According to Centers Plan for Healthy Living (CPHL) I can only have the transportation service if I also accept an aide coming here at least twice a week for 4 hours each day. It's fine if I have a good aide but what do I do with a stranger that can't speak English. I send them home. For 2 weeks I had a great aide. She was American, very smart, a great work ethic, very friendly, and she wanted to learn to play Chess. So I was teaching her and playing Chess made the 4 hours go by fast. However, she was only 20 and she had to go back to collage. She was even a nursing major which means she knew a little about illness. She attends a local collage but this is a tough semester for her so I think she had to stop working for awhile. She was supposed to call me but my phone broke : (             I finally got another phone so next week I can make some calls. It's really tough when you don't have any one you can call for help.

    I already had CPHL change the co. that sends the aides once, they don't want to do it again. I also keep hoping that maybe the great aide I had will come back. If I change aide agencies she won't be able to come back even if she wants to. One aide told me I'm an easy person to work with. She said I'm not a slave driver and I always help them do what I ask them to do. So maybe the girl who went to collage will come back. She was like the granddaughter I never had. She's even attending the same collage I graduated from in 1978. I miss her.

I need God to help me.

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That's nice you had a good aide for two weeks who spoke English and you were teaching her to play chess.   I wonder could you teach a little English to the non-English speakers?   Maybe pass the time that way, a little?

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6 hours ago, JTC said:

I'm confused, I thought hospice was only for terminally ill cancer patients, I'm not that sick. I have a terrible case manager, often she's downright nasty.

Hi JTC,

First; Hospice is far more than a cancer comfort facility, way more, and no you do not have to be terminally ill to benefit from information about  hospice. They also have Empath which is a division  for assistance with needs that are not terminal. That is why I suggest calling them and asking to speak with,  and or meet with, a counselor from their organization. Have them come to you is best.

Secondly; You  mention your case worker. The case worker  is employed by whom? Is it a case worker from Social Security or from Medicare, or from a Company like Aetna or United healthcare or Blue Cross  or one of several other companies that provide for you instead of Medicare.  For instance, I have Aetna premier ppo. You may have selected a company that employs your case worker through yet another company set up by your doctors group or your doctors may contract with  them  for their own compensation. If so changing your Medicare Advantage company and plan to another company and plan is an option. 

I had to do battle with Optima for  one of my own family members. I protested the decisions of their case worker to Social security within the 48 hours that a protest must be filed to challenge  any of their decisions. I won twice,  I understand winning is a rarity. But one can always change the company entirely. Each  year an election of coverage for the next year is made. That time is fast approaching. It is time to do research  as each year companies change the details of their policies.

The coverages and the choices available and costs, if any, vary greatly  based upon where one lives! My policy may  or may not be available where you live as example.

The first question I would want to know is who employs my case worker? Is it an insurance company? Is it Social Security? Are you dealing with a government agent, or a private corporation employee?

My guess is your case worker is an employee of the company you have selected for your medicare advantage or medicare supplemental insurance, and not a employee of Medicare nor Social Security.

If still confused perhaps Hospice through it's Empath division may aid you. Otherwise do call Social Security direct and ask for help in understanding your options and for learning who this case worker that has your care assigned to them is working for. I am almost certain it will be an employee of a doctor's group that has contract with  a private insurance company that is providing you  with an HMO medicare advantage insurance program. Their first interest is to make sure you do not cost them too much out of their income from medicare for providing you  your care under their contract price with medicare.

Yes it does get confusing, deliberately so in my opinion as the caseworker's employer does not want you realizing that they work for your doctor's group  probably under a separate entity name. Again their real goal is to make a profit, and to do that they need to keep the expense of helping you very low. I suggest getting away from such groups and get a policy that allows you to select any doctor as my own policy by Aetna does, along with some other company's policies.

It is hard, it is frustrating,  but it is also necessary   in order to do the battle well. May God provide you  with the energy required  to do so.

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