Medicare services: You have a choice
By Tricia Schaum, Season of Care
Everyone has the right to choose how he or she wants to be cared for, yet when the time comes, most of us are unprepared because we don’t know what our options are.
My family began our journey into home care more than 40 years ago when our mother was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis. Like most families, we didn’t know about home care—not even what questions to ask. So Seasons of Care, a Medicare-certified home care company, was launched 15 years ago for highly personal reasons: As my mother’s health declined over the years, I couldn’t find anyone to care for her properly so I started my own company.
Every week people call Seasons of Care because their lives are turned upside down due to a drastic change in their health or their parents’ health. Mom and Dad can be enjoying their golden years until a stroke, heart attack, fall or serious illness changes their lives overnight—and now they’re in the hospital.
They can be in the hospital a few days followed by several weeks of rehabilitation. Then it’s time to return home to continue the recovery process. Sometimes a person is discharged directly from the hospital to home with little notice. The family has to make important home health care decisions with no time to plan. This transition is a critical time to be prepared to care for a loved one.
When a person is being discharged from a hospital or rehab facility, they often need home health care to assist with recuperation and rehabilitation. Ask the discharge planner what your loved one requires to fully recuperate. If home care services are recommended, you have the right to choose any Medicare-certified company to provide nursing and therapy in your home. Skilled care is coordinated by a Registered Nurse under the direction of the patient’s primary care physician.
But there are other times when assistance is needed. As health and strength decline, aging adults often need help with the activities of daily life. Seasons of Care also helps clients with bathing, dressing, grooming, meal preparation, light housekeeping, laundry, medication reminders and errands.
While Seasons of Care is small enough to cater to and get to know its clients, it is large enough to offer skilled rehabilitation as well as private pay services.
Home care is not only about care. It’s about the peace of mind for you and your family that comes when you choose the very best care.
Tricia Schaum is the founder of Seasons of Care, a Medicare-certified home care company. For more information or to schedule a free in-home assessment with Tricia, call 440-274-4000. The website is SeasonsOfCare.com. You may also find them on Facebook.