Mom is living at home alone and knows she needs help getting ready for the day, cooking a hot meal and taking blood sugar readings. You’ve gotten past the first hurdle; Mom admits she can’t go it alone and is willing to accept help. The second hurdle is finding the right home care agency. The biggest concern? Mom needs to take her blood sugar three times a day. With work and your own family, you can’t be there to take her blood and read the results.

What if your home care agency had people on staff that could help you troubleshoot solutions to problems like testing blood sugar? What if your home care agency had a care management team staffed by Aging Life Care Specialist™ and Registered Nurses? Enter Springpoint at Home, the knowledge and experience of their care team mean they can offer solutions you don’t even know exist. In this instance, Mom’s care team can partner with doctors, counselors and nutritionists to explore other options for diabetic monitoring and management.

Aging Life Care Specialists come from a variety of disciplines and experiences, including gerontology, social work, nursing and psychiatry. These licensed professionals use a holistic care approach based on eight knowledge areas:

Health and Disability: Understanding the health care system allows an Aging Life Care Professional to navigate the system effectively. They can attend doctor appointments and facilitate communication between the doctor and family members. They can engage the right care service at the right time; from home health to hospice.

Financial: Knowledge of Federal and State entitlement programs and local programs ensure the best financial help is available. An Aging Life Care Professional can oversee bill paying, or work with a client’s accountant or Power of Attorney. They can also help with insurance claims and applications.

Housing: Your Aging Life Care Professional will help evaluate and select the best housing or residential services for your loved one.

Families: Aging Life Care Professionals help families adjust and cope with caregiving. They problem-solve for care concerns, address internal conflicts and help resolve a difference of opinion among family members.

Local Resources: As active members in the community, Aging Life Care Professionals are connected to local resources and know-how to access services.

Advocacy: Aging Life Care Professionals are advocates for clients AND their families. As your advocate, they promote your wishes with all providers and ensure that needs are being adequately addressed.

Legal: Referrals to legal experts like elder law attorneys, estate planners and Powers of Attorney are important to have as members of your care network.

Crisis Intervention: When a crisis occurs, an Aging Life Care Professional can help you and your loved one navigate through emergency visits, hospitalizations and rehabilitation stays, working to ensure that adequate care is being received. For families that live a long distance away, knowing that your Aging Life Care Professional is overseeing your loved ones’ care brings peace of mind.

Using these eight knowledge areas, your Springpoint at Home Aging Life Care Specialist will conduct a comprehensive assessment and create a tailored care plan. Masters at problem-solving, tied into the community and able to explain with clarity your options and the pros and cons of each, they will modify the plan as needed.

Attention is paid to your caregiver as well. Springpoint at Home Aging Life Care Specialists checks in with their staff to understand how care is doing and to make sure the caregiver is getting the rest and respite they need.

The entire Springpoint at Home managed care team, Aging Life Care Specialists and RN’s, meet formally once a month to share ideas, resources and support one another, and they are always in contact to share insights. This team understands that clients are people not case numbers. When you work intimately with someone you understand their idiosyncrasies, and that insight is helpful to the entire care team. When you work intimately with someone, you become part of their family, sharing in everything, from helping to celebrate family birthdays to taking a client to see their granddaughter perform in her high school play. When making a Springpoint at Home Aging Life Care Specialist part of your family, it means peace of mind for everyone.