Gwen stopped by my office today to chat for awhile. She and her husband are caring for her 95 year-old mother in their home. She sat there and flatly stated, “I am wearing out. If she falls again, I won’t be able to handle it.” Her mother has already sustained several fractures from falls. “She needs someone with her all the time, she cannot be trusted.” Gwen’s mother is frail and rapidly declining. She also suffers with progressive dementia but her daughter won’t admit to that yet. Gwen and her husband are caring for her on their own, and they have declined any in-home assistance. Their children will occasionally give their parents a night out. Gwen’s brother refuses to help in any way.
Gwen and her husband want to take a vacation to celebrate their upcoming 35th anniversary in May, but who will care for Mom? Respite care (respite) is a great solution for them. They would be able to leave town knowing Mom is in capable hands without worrying if everyone was doing their part, or if the care plan they would laboriously prepare is working out. In essence, they could leave town with less fear and guilt.
Gwen left my office with a sense of relief. Gwen was now on a mission to find the right place for her Mom to stay.
Hiatus …rest…alleviate…an interval of relief. All of these are common definitions for respite.
For millions of in-home family caregivers, respite is essential “relief” when they are exhausted and depleted from caregiving, when other demands and responsibilities interrupt caregiving patterns, or when they simply need the opportunity to renew their energy and restore a semblance of balance in their own lives. Respite provides that break while ensuring that the elderly or seriously ill loved one continues to receive the attention and care he or she needs.
Respite care includes both in-home and in-patient options (see below). In-patient respite care is often a self- pay agreement made with a skilled nursing facility of your choice. The daily cost varies by region. Long-term care insurance may also cover the costs of respite care.
Medicare will cover respite care if the individual is receiving hospice care. In that case, respite care is in-patient care given to a hospice patient so that the primary caregiver can get a much needed break from the rigors of caregiving. The stay is in a Medicare-approved facility; such as a hospice facility, hospital or nursing home, the duration is for up to 5 days each time. Respite can be used once during every hospice certification period (every 90 days). There is no limit to the number of times respite care can be used.
Family caregivers save federal, state and local governments millions of dollars by keeping ill, disabled, and elderly loved ones at home – alleviating the government’s challenge and expense of providing long-term institutional care. For far too long, there have been few federally funded respite programs. That is changing. In response to and in recognition of the distinct needs of caregivers, the Administration on Aging (AoA) of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is implementing a program that will soon begin to offer respite and other services to some caregivers who so desperately need a break. The enactment of the Older Americans Act Amendments of 2000 (Public Law 106-501) established an important program, the National Family Caregiver Support Program (NFCSP). Funded at $125 million in fiscal year 2001, approximately $113 million has been allocated to states to work in partnership with area agencies on aging and local and community service providers to put into place multi-faceted systems of support for family caregivers, including respite. That could include, for example, respite care provided in a home, an adult day-care center or over a weekend in a nursing home or an assisted living facility.
All respite care and respite care needs are not equal. Respite can vary from part of a day to several weeks. Respite encompasses a wide variety of services and may take any one of the following forms:
- Adult Day Care: These programs are designed to provide care and companionship for frail and disabled persons who need assistance or supervision during the day. The program offers relief to family members or caregivers and allows them the freedom to go to work, handle personal business or rest while knowing their relative is well cared for and safe.
- Informal and Volunteer Respite Care: This is as simple as it sounds. It is accepting help from other family members, friends, neighbors, or church volunteers who offer to stay with the elderly individual so caregivers can get a break. Some local church groups organize such programs; in other communities there may be Interfaith Caregiver Volunteers Programs that provide caregivers relief.
- In-Home Care. Generally speaking, in-home respite care may involve companion services to help the family caregiver supervise, entertain, or just visit with the senior when he or she is lonely and wants company; homemaker services to assist with housekeeping chores, preparing meals, or shopping; personal care services to help the aged or seriously ill individual bathe, get dressed, go to the bathroom, and/or exercise. These services are often available through your area area-on-aging or senior service programs.
Local area-on-aging or senior services can provide more information on respite care options and the kinds of financial assistance is available to help pay for it.
.
.
No comments:
Post a Comment