A senior loved one has had a hospital stay, and now they want to go home. Or their insurance is running out and they need to return home to recuperate. What are their options at home for care? While at the hospital, talk to a social worker about in-home care, which can supplement help from a spouse and other family members. Daphne Davis of Pinnacle Senior Placements talks about considering the various services available to families that Medicaid can pay for.

Daphne says, "It happens all the time.Because mom or dad was at home already, and husband and wife were making this work, the natural place to go is back home. And that's not a bad thing to do, if you have the services available to help you. I encourage people to talk to a social worker if they're coming out of a rehab situation, or at the hospital, to talk to the social worker and ask them about in-home care. That is something that can supplement the family supporting mom or dad. And it can be a little bit expensive, and nationwide I'd say probably an average is about $40 to $45 an hour. There's usually a four-hour minimum. So there's some restraints on that.

"But it's a time that you can leave the rehab and have a cushion, of somebody to help mom or dad in the morning, let's say to start their day. Or it might be more to end their day, or it might be to make sure there's three meals prepared, or something like that, but it's a good way to transition back home, if in fact it can be successful at home. 

"The other thing is, I caution families to put too much stress on themselves. You've got your siblings. 'Mom and dad have taken care of us all of our lives. We can take care of them now.' And that is good for the short term, but not the long term. And I'll tell you why: your relationships will suffer. And your primary relationship, as son or daughter to your mom or dad, will change. And the stress level increases — that's transferred to your mom and dad. Now the healing process is going to slow down. They're stressed because they feel like they're bothering you, because you're in the sandwich generation, and you're running kids to soccer game and taking care of mom."

• Pinnacle Senior Placements website
  
• More podcasts with Daphne Davis
• Check out our affiliate podcast Alzheimer’s Speaks

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