Home Health Care Aides

[JTC]

On 9/8/2019 at 9:25 PM, Neighbor said:

Secondly; You  mention your case worker. The case worker  is employed by whom?

Hi Neighbor,   I'm sorry, somehow your response got overlooked (by me) until today.  My case manager is not a case worker, furthermore I know who she works for. It's a company called Centers Plan for Healthy Living, I'm not sure what these kind of companies are referred called. This co. gets money from me, Medicaid and possibly Medicare as well. Besides the aide this co. sub contracts with a car rides co. and a medical equipment co. The rides are less than reliable and the products I get are cheap plastic gloves and 4 bed pads, all per month. I think they're sending yet another non English speaking aide at 2 pm on Monday. I'm now thinking to get rid of the case manager who was assigned to me I have to change from Centers Plan to another co. My current problem is since I don't know what "Centers Plan for Healthy Living" is classified as I don't know how to search for similar companies. One more thing "Centers" does, they sub contract with a medical insurance co. called Healthplex. Healthplex gives me access to many more Dentists, Eye specialists and other specialists than plain Medicaid alone did. 

  So you see, it gets sooo confusing.

[Neighbor]

Just looked at the employees review of Centers Plan For healthy Living New York  at https://duckduckgo.com/?q=centers+plan+for+healthy+living&t=h_&ia=web   It is pretty discouraging at best. Maybe that is not unusual, but it was none the less revealing.

Healthplex appears to be a provider of a network of Dentists and also a dental insurance plan. https://www.healthplex.com/prospective/individuals

From your posts I understand you may not have a great relationship with family, but perhaps they can help you find better service at this time of year, or perhaps there are reference services available in New York State that will help you. Also might consider calling SSA ( Social Security Administration)  in your area and share of your problem and need. plus the numbers at https://www.health.ny.gov/health_care/medicaid/program/contact.htm

Sorry that I cannot be of more specific encouragement  nor help.  I am praying that you and family will be able to improve your living arrangements an dservices  especially at this time of year when  most all the plans renew and are subject to your changing  of them for 2020.

 I am doing similar research for myself and for my wife right at this time of year. I suspect many of us on the board might be doing this chore planning for ourselves. Some hard choices to be made.May God provide you good help in making yours is my prayer this day.

[JTC]

19 hours ago, Neighbor said:

From your posts I understand you may not have a great relationship with family

Hi Neighbor, Just to be clear, I have no family. There is 1 cousin in Florida who married a New Age guru and she is now insane. I grew up with her and this woman has lost her mind. She can't help me. I have 2 other cousins, I didn't grow up with, who want nothing to do with me. Conclusion, no family.

   In 1/2 an hour an aide is supposed to arrive. I expect this to be a non English speaking person. I don't even need to go food shopping today so I'll send the aide away. I need an English speaking aide and I need the same person every time.

   Thanks for the links, I will check them out but not today.

[Ruth Also]

I think all expanded programs that use funding to provide help like you've described have Medicaid behind them. So I suggest you contact whatever NY calls Medicaid - at the state level.  I hope by contacting them you can navigate to someone who can take your concerns and help you find any options for using that funding in a more acceptable way.  Short of that - and forgive me if I'm mentioning things that have already been covered - it might be that someone at the Department of Social Services or Human Services (whatever NY calls them) can help you by providing a choice of agencies, or it may be that you can locate a listing of all participating providers of your services with an online search, perhaps a search on the state Medicaid website.  Those work in my state, but each state is different.  In my state, the care is required to be client centered, at least as much as staffing is available.  I hope you can find the help that you need.  -Ruth

[JTC]

19 hours ago, DustyRoad said:

I pray you receive the same, JTC.

I appreciate that.

 

19 hours ago, Ruth Also said:

I hope you can find the help that you need. 

Maybe some good news. Yesterday an aide arrived who's first language is Spanish but her English was okay, not good but good enough. She was also comfortable to be around, that's important. I told her that I had been teaching a previous aide to play chess and she'd like to learn also. I told her to come back. I think she will, but I see one future problem. She said she had to walk 50 min to the first bus, she needs 2 to get here. Yesterday was nice weather, neither too hot nor cold and it was dry. What will happen if it's pouring rain, there's snow, or it's freezing cold. She is aware I need the same aide most days. Maybe she said 15 min and I didn't understand her because her English isn't that good. Whatever happens, I think I finally have a decent aide until winter sets in.