Family Private Care Proudly Sponsored the Angel Run in Stuart, FL

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Family Private Care proudly sponsored the Angel Run in Stuart, FL on Saturday, March 10, 2012. This run was for Molly’s House, which is a hospitality house inStuart,FL, for family members of patients in the local hospitals. Molly’s House did a great job on this event… everyone enjoyed the DJ playing music to keep attendees motivated, food for energy, lots of raffle prizes; and numerous vendors had booths with lots of giveaways! The race was held atFlaglerPark, with a beautiful run through downtown Stuart andRiverside Drive. Two of the FPC management team ran the race. You will find more information at www.mollyhouse.org. The Angel Run is described as: “The Molly’s House Angel Run is a 5K/10K Run/2K Walk that raises funds to provide adult and children patients and their families with a home-away-from-home during a medical crisis on the Treasure Coast of Florida.  As Molly’s House’s biggest fund-raiser of the year, proceeds support the House’s operational costs like water and electric bills, house maintenance and the Adopt a Family program that subsidizes room costs for guests who are unable to make the $20 per night, per room donation…Running never felt so good!”

Debbie and Heidi

Denise and Debbie

Angel Run Sponsor - Family Private Care

Forget Me Not

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“What did you say your name was again?”  

“Where did I put my car keys? They were here just a minute ago!”

Do these questions sound familiar to you? Memory specialists list this particular affliction as the main health concern among baby boomers. It’s not unusual to experience forgetfulness, it happens to everyone.

Memory comes in three flavors:

  • procedural – how to (clap, ride a bike, play a piano)
  • semantic – covers facts (what is a car, giraffe, elevator)
  • episodic – deals with experience (Where are my keys? Where did I park the car?)

Episodic memory affects us as we mature and age.

The brain’s neurons send each other chemical and electrical signals, which make memories, and these signals weaken with time. Believe it or not the brain begins to shrink at approximately age 30. Very seldom is a difference noticed until advanced years, however. The front area of the brain begins to shrink first and this is where the episodic memory resides. It’s not a big loss, it’s the brain slowing down a bit – so that name eluding your memory hasn’t disappeared, and it’s simply taking longer to come to mind.

It has been proven that proper diet and regular exercise boost memory – and naps even help. Further study shows that games aid the brain’s memory power. Play memory games, or scientifically designed brain games created to sharpen your memory. There are many of these available on-line. Go to www.google.com and search “brain memory.” Connect the dots and forget me not by connecting a new acquaintance’s name with people you know by his or her name. Make it fun!

There are many things you can do to improve your memory and help your brain to function well, so if you are concerned about memory loss consider consulting your doctor.

By: Janene Fiala

IRSC Distinguished Lecturer Series – The Middle East Conundrum, Sponsored by Family Private Care

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On March 8, Mr. Haviland Smith presented a lecture on “The Middle East Conundrum” at Indian River State College campuses in Vero Beach and Stuart.  Haviland Smith is a retired CIA station chief who worked in Prague, Berlin, Langley, Beirut, and Tehran.  In addition, he served as chief of the counter-terrorism staff and as executive assistant to the Deputy Director of the Central Intelligence Agency Frank Carlucci.  Mr. Smith helped the audience focus on the real problems of terrain, culture, geopolitics and resources that need to be confronted and the obstacles for success in Afghanistan and surrounding countries.  This speaker series is part of the 2011-12 Indian River State College Distinguished Lecturer Series on Current Issues.

By: Ellen Peitz

Ellen Peitz, Dolores Smith, Haviland Smith, Ann Decker, Denise Dublin and Nick Blount

 

Powerful Tools for Caregivers

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Paulette Craft, LCSW, Palm Beach County Community Director for Family Private Care, conducts the grant funded educational series Powerful Tools for Caregivers. This class, at Century Village in West Palm Beach, meets each Tuesday until March 20, 2012. This six-week course is designed to help family caregivers reduce stress, improve self-confidence, communicate feelings better, balance their lives, increase their ability to make tough decisions and to locate helpful resources. Sharing experiences, time and lively discussion makes the lessons a valuable investment for participants. Paulette’s experience as a caregiver, her bubbly personality and caring attitude give the class an extra bonus.

By: Janene Fiala

Your Choice of Home Health Care

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It is not as difficult as you may think to arrange senior homecare. Let’s look at the quality and care that can be provided by a private care referral service.

You may realize that your aging parents need care but there are numerous factors preventing you from being their caregiver. If your career, family, health or geographical location makes it out of the question for you right now, there are options.

Families often have home health aides or certified nursing assistants provide non-medical care, which includes personal care, companionship, housekeeping and other light house chores. Nurses are available for skilled nursing care. And you and your family can rest in the fact that your loved ones are receiving the best of care.

You may hesitate to trust a stranger to enter your parent’s home, so researching and finding a qualifying private care referral service is of the utmost importance. Let’s look at the reasons for checking out the company who will be supplying health care services for your elder:

Does the private care referral service screen and check their caregivers’ background?

Be sure the company takes precautions to ensure that the caregivers they refer to care for your loved ones have a background clear of criminal convictions by asking if they require a level two background check of their registered caregivers. The level two background check is fingerprint based and processed by the FBI.

How large is the private care referral service? If your caregiver cannot work his/her shift will there be enough caregivers registered with the company to replace him/her?

Contracting with a larger company (like ourselves) gives you the assurance that you will always have a qualified caregiver ready to cover every shift. Smaller agencies often find that they need more caregivers to cover their cases. Private care referral services work hard to match clients and caregivers with similar personalities and skills required for the case. With the best care possible in mind for your loved one consider a larger company for a better chance of making that “magic match” for a good experience for you and your family.

How does the private care referral service recruit caregivers?

Find out if they build a long-term relationship with their caregivers. You may want to ask them what the average amount of time caregivers stay with the referral service. If they have caregivers who have been with the company for more than three or four years, this is good! Be sure to ask how many caregivers are readily available and how long they have been registered. Feel free to ask how long your potential caregiver has been registered with them.

Are their rates competitive?

Do you know how much you are paying for your private home care? Average rates are approximately $15- $25/hr depending on the care you choose. Just a note to let you know that 24/hr live-in care will be a better rate for the same quality of service. Take the time to check out the reputation and reliability of the private care referral service. And … remember we are always available 24/7 to answer your questions – so give us a call! (1.800.962.0884)

What safeguards are in place?

Wonderful! You decided on a private care referral service. Take the time to follow up and make sure they are providing the loving care they promised. Make sure they are really available 24/7 – call them late or super early. Are you getting a recording or a live voice? Are they willing to help you?  

Hopefully this information is helpful to you when you choose a private care referral service. Look for a reputable company that really cares and provides first-rate home care to ensure your peace of mind for your elder.

Consider Family Private Care, a nurse registry designed to assist you with your loved one’s healthcare needs, and specializing in securing your family’s peace of mind, and your loved one’s independence and quality of life. Our team is on call 24/7. We are here for you. Give us a call – anytime! 1.800.962.0884

Orientation at Family Private Care

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Orientation at Family Private Care energizes the atmosphere! It includes many faces… and many facets… Employees share facts with attendees about what it takes to be the caregiver clients want most. Contracts are carefully explained. The finance area shares how the reimbursement process works, and handbooks are distributed. As the last step in the registration process for caregivers, FPC endeavors to ensure that registrants receive a first-rate interactive information session.

Janene is welcoming everyone to Orientation             

IRSC Lecture Series – The Future of Personalized Medicine, Sponsored by Family Private Care

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On February 9th, George Sack, M.D., Ph.D., Associate Professor of Medicine and Biochemistry, Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine and Medical Director, Johns Hopkins, USA presented a lecture on “The Future of Personalized Medicine” as part of the 2011-2012 Distinguished Lecture Series.  Dr. Sack spoke about how the care of our health is becoming increasingly related to the basic sciences of human biology.  Simple clinical categories (e.g. “hypertension,” “diabetes”) are being dissected into subgroups that respond differently to different treatments.  Improved (but still far from perfect) understanding of our own physiology and its variation(s) is beginning to offer more effective treatment, improved survival, earlier diagnosis, and prognostic tests.  Unfortunately, these developments also share notoriety with increasing complexity, higher expense and confusion.

By: Ellen Peitz

Dr. Cheryl Jordan, Dr. George Sack and Ellen Peitz

Security-n-Safety for Seniors

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I am going to write from my heart today on an issue that is very near and dear to me and that is the security of our senior population.  As we all know the economy has taken a severe hit in the last couple of years and this has taken a real toll on all of us.  One of the side effects is individuals who have lost jobs and are looking for a way to replace lost income.  Seniors have become easy prey.  Family Private Care has been involved in home care since 1997. We have seen more and more individuals opting out of using a reputable company for hiring a home care worker in order to save money. They instead go directly to the worker and hire them privately.

This is a very dangerous thing to do for several reasons.  One of the most important is the background of the individual.  We have frequently gone through the registration of an individual who appears as angelic as the angel Gabriel – only to run their criminal background check to find they have a history of criminal activity.  We have begun the process on many individuals who we know were hired privately prior to registering with Family Private Care, and who were not able to meet state-mandated standards; so were unable to register with Family Private Care.

For the most part privately hired caregivers are uncertified, unlicensed, and untrained individuals.  Let me share with you the required process caregivers must go through who register with Family Private Care.

All caregivers who walk through Family Private Care doors first of all take a test.  The test determines their understanding of home care, the knowledge of their skill level, and grasp of the English language.  They must pass this test with a 70% or higher in order to proceed with registration.

They then meet one-on-one with a trained staff member who discusses their home care experience, gets to know their personality, and whether or not they will be a good fit for Family Private Care and vice versa.  If all are in agreement, the caregiver then begins the actual registration process.  Here are the items Family Private Care requires for caregivers to register:

  1. Clean Criminal Background Screening for Level 2 (national)
  2. Photo identification
  3. Social Security card
  4. Auto insurance card
  5. CPR card
  6. Medical statement saying the caregiver is “free of communicable diseases”
  7. Professional Liability Insurance Policy
  8. HIV/Aids certificate of education
  9. Verification of license (for CNAs and Nurses)
  10. Certificates verified

In addition to this registration process the caregiver attends an orientation class at Family Private Care to review client-focused issues.  By the end of the orientation Family Private Care knows whether or not we want to represent this caregiver.  Only after the orientation is completed and the registration file is final is the caregiver referred to a client from Family Private Care.  At this point it depends on the clients’ feedback on whether or not caregivers continue to receive referrals from Family Private Care.

You only have to pick up the latest newspaper, or listen to the stories on the 5 O’clock News to hear the horror stories of unlicensed, non-screened caregivers to know bad things can happen.  Please, make sure you are putting enough precautions in place to give your loved one and you the peace of mind you deserve.  Let me urge you to use licensed private care companies who have sterling reputations in your area to meet your home care needs and keep you safe, secure and well cared for in the comfort of your own home.

Deborah Irvine, President, Family Private Care

Time Wise

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We cannot make more time, so it is a good thing to use it wisely. How do you spend your time? Are you a spendthrift? Do you waste it or try to stop it? Time does not stand still and it doesn’t really speed up or slow down. Every day gives you 24 hours. No more. No less.

As the years slip by and time seemingly becomes more valuable with every passing hour we find we treasure those “Kodak Moments” more. Capturing these “timeless” times on camera and video allows us to share, reflect and treasure them. What a great way to “capture” time!

We watch our clocks and watches, and depending on the situation, we wish the time would hurry or stop. Like the time I got to chaperone an energetic group of teens for a weekend trip. Just as an experienced friend told me … it came and went so quickly, that only the memory remains.

In this day of watching our dollars spending time wisely is money in the bank. We hear of more shoppers now mapping out their shopping strategies quite like an Army sergeant by stopping at the stores in vicinity sequence, and fueling their auto along the way.

Time flies. Reflecting back on childhood is a short time-journey. Anticipating future events often distorts the time element. But being “in the moment” and treasuring these moments is the ultimate in being time wise.

Being time wise takes time. Take the time to learn from time wise pros…and enjoy the journey!

FPC Blog Editor: Janene Fiala