Navigating senior care can be an overwhelming process as our loved ones age. Medical care, legal concerns, emotional support, and day-to-day living needs often require specialised knowledge.
Geriatric care management is essential—an all-encompassing, holistic approach to the well-being of older adults. But what is geriatric care management, exactly? How does it operate, and when is it required? This blog will answer these questions by exploring how geriatric care management is a critical partner to seniors and their families.
What Is Geriatric Care Management?
A geriatric care manager is a professional who specialises in the problems related to ageing and allows seniors and their families to navigate the system, coordinate care, and manage services as needs change. It aims to evaluate, plan, coordinate, and monitor care for older adults toward enhancing their quality of life.
This is usually done by a geriatric care manager, who ensures seniors receive care appropriately according to their physical, emotional, and social needs. These managers advocate for seniors and are like professionals the families hire to help guide them so they make the right choices.
What Do Geriatric Care Managers Do?
Geriatric care managers, otherwise known as ageing life care professionals, are educated and experienced professionals in nursing, social work, gerontology, or counselling. Their main function is to identify and help meet the unique needs of seniors. Here’s a summary of what geriatric care managers do:
1. Comprehensive Assessments
They perform comprehensive assessments of an older adult’s physical health, cognitive function, mental health, and living situation to identify potential risks and unmet needs.
2. Care Planning
They create individualised care plans based on what they find and help formulate the best overall strategy to maintain or improve the senior’s quality of life. This could be coordinating medical care, modifying the home, or counselling on social activities.
3. Resource Navigation
They help families find reputable resources, like health care providers, lawyers, and community initiatives.
4. Monitoring and Advocacy
They routinely check on the senior’s care to make sure that everything remains on track, advocating for their needs when needed.
5. Family Support
These professionals serve as liaisons among family members while providing education, emotional support, and practical solutions to caregiving issues.
When Do You Need Geriatric Care Management?
Understanding when to ask for geriatric care management can be key to sustaining a senior’s well-being. Here are some common situations that families could benefit from in hiring a geriatric care manager:
- Chronic Health Conditions: Many older people come with multiple health conditions that demand long-term care and constant visits to a bunch of doctors. This is where a geriatric care manager comes in handy to coordinate it all so that the old person gets integrated care instead of the fragmented care that is all too common.
- Strained Family Relationships: All the tensions and responsibilities of caregiving can lead to conditions in which the professional could mediate and provide unbiased solutions.
- Long-Distance Caregiving: If you live far away from your loved one, a geriatric care manager can be your local eyes and ears.
- Crisis Situations: Hospitalisations, acute declines in health, or the need to assist someone with assisted living placement are times when an elder care attorney is worth their weight in gold.
- Care for More Complex Needs: The elderly with cognitive impairments, such as Alzheimer’s or dementia, generally require specialised care, which means providing services that families cannot provide on their own.
How a Geriatric Care Manager Can Help
Geriatric care managers work to fill a huge gap in service for the elderly and their families. Some of the key ways they can intervene include:
1. Streamlining Medical Care
Appointment coordination, phone calls to doctors, and additional oversight on the ever-evolving medical needs of an elderly loved one.
2. Improving Living Arrangements
Whether enabling an older adult to age in place or transferring to assisted living, geriatric care managers can evaluate everything needed to keep the ageing adult living safely and comfortably.
3. Providing Emotional Support
Ageing can be an emotionally rough road, but geriatric care managers are trained in mental health issues and emotional support of seniors and their families.
4. Managing Finances and Legal Issues
They also facilitate long-term care insurance and refer families to elder law attorneys to make sure financial and legal matters are taken care of.
5. Promoting Independence
They enable seniors to maintain as much independence as possible by providing solutions based on their abilities and preferences.
What Are the Benefits of Geriatric Care Management?
Geriatric care management provides many benefits to the elderly and their families. Here are the main benefits:
1. Enhanced Quality of Life
Custom-made care plans, as well as regular monitoring, cause enhancements in life for elderly individuals.
2. Reduced Family Stress
For the families, it’s reassurance that someone professional is looking for their loved one’s needs.
3. Cost Savings
Geriatric care management reduces costs over the long term by preventing hospitalisations and coordinating care.
4. Expert Guidance
Families are given highly professional guidance on complex issues such as Medicaid planning, end-of-life care, and long-term placement.
5. Stronger Support Systems
Support systems are becoming more robust. From community service programs to support groups and recreational activities that foster social engagement, geriatric care managers try to connect the elderly to all.
The Impact of Geriatric Care Management on Senior Well-Being
The role of geriatric care management not only provides the logistics that are supportive of an older person’s life, but it also creates an impact on the emotional and physical health of the senior. By meeting the holistic needs of seniors, this service leaves them able to live their lives actively, engaged, and healthily. Here are some contributions to their well-being:
- Physical Health: In an integrated approach, medical complications are avoided, and treatments are offered on time.
- Mental Health: Offers to intervene with mental health resources and emotional support so that isolation and depression are fended off.
- Safety: Forward-thinking evaluations for home and building safety help reduce accidents and translate into safe environments to live in.
- Social Connections: Avenues for socialisation to battle loneliness and increase overall happiness.
The peace of mind offered to families also plays a supporting role in a senior’s feeling of stability and support, making a great caregiving relationship.
Why Choose Olive Elder Care for Geriatric Counselling?
At Olive Elder Care, we know the ageing journey is unique to each individual and family, and we are here to help. Our select geriatric care managers provide well-oiled guidance for carers customised to your loved one’s unique situation. Whether you are looking for guidance on living arrangements, medical care, or emotional support, we will help guide you through every step of the way.”
Olive Eldercare offers geriatric counselling and care management support—when your loved one needs the best care possible.
Frequently Asked Questions
What qualifications should I look for in a geriatric care manager?
In most cases, a qualified geriatric care manager should be credentialed in nursing, social work, gerontology, or counselling techniques. Look for certification through an organisation such as the Ageing Life Care Association (ALCA).
How much does geriatric care management cost?
Fees vary according to services rendered; however, most managers charge a flat hourly rate. It may appear to be an extra expense, but the savings due to better coordination of care greatly outweigh the initial investment in most cases.
Can geriatric care management help with dementia care?
Geriatric care managers help seniors with cognitive impairments like Alzheimer’s or dementia. They design specific care plans and refer families to pertinent resources.
How do I know if my loved one needs geriatric care management?
Signs of declining health, an inability to manage everyday tasks, increasing family stress? You may want to consult a geriatric care manager.
