What LifeSpan Does: Experts on Aging
Support family/loved ones who are dealing with chronic illness
o Start with in-home evaluation/record review & construct Plan of Care (“life plan”) to address issues/problems that are noted or likely to occur.
o Medication review (most elderly people are overmedicated. This leads to lower quality of life/falls/hospitalizations (there is a 10% chance of an adverse drug event in the elderly population for each medication that they are prescribing/taking on a regular basis!)
o Advise caregiver as to ways to take care of self, and be available to them to coach/support them as the Plan of Care unfolds
Advocate for acutely ill/injured clients in hospital, rehab or nursing home settings
o Starts with initial evaluation at bedside
o Includes care coordination
o Handling care transitions (70% of the events that lead to patient injury are the result of poor transitions/handoffs between care sites/providers)
o Advocate for patient to insurance carrier, including insurance appeals for denial of care
Partner with Elder and Estate Planning Attorneys to predict future care needs, risk management, access to entitlements (e.g., Medicaid, Veterans Benefits)
Consult as expert witnesses to malpractice and personal injury attorneys regarding breaches in the standard of care rendered, determinations of negligence for nursing care, future costs of care that will support a Life Care Plan.
· Care Coordination
o Refer/Recommend facilities and providers, and assist in negotiating the cost of post-acute care (subacute rehab), nursing home/skilled care facilities, home health agencies
o Recommend ancillary providers: specialty physicians, medical equipment providers, contractors for home modification, daily money managers, certified senior real estate providers, senior move-management specialists, etc.
o Communicate between health providers and families
o Obtain/review and share medical records as appropriate to the Plan of Care needs
· Assessment of dementia to sort out issues related to the need for guardianship
o Assist in finding physicians to determine dementia and the documentation to support such a finding
o Work with guardians and temporary court appointed guardians regarding care coordination and carrying out the Plan of Care
Assist clients to “Age In Place” by setting up technology enabled in-home monitoring of blood pressure, body weight, etc., and medication adherence
· Research and make recommendations for alternative care providers, where requested and appropriate, e.g., cranial-sacral therapy, chiropractic, Energy Medicine, EFT/Emotional Freedom Technique
