As COVID 19 brought senior care and nursing homes into the spotlight, one silver lining is that our elected officials are beginning to understand the value of home care....
The 2017 Taste of Rancho Santa Fe benefits 10 Local Charities, said Lauren Reynolds, Founder of At Home Nursing Care and Co-Chair of the 2017 Taste of Rancho Santa Fe. At Home Nursing Care offers accredited quality home care in San Diego and Los Angeles. The Taste of Rancho Santa Fe event, taking place on Sunday, October 1, 2017 at the Inn of Rancho Santa Fe – hopes to raise more than $100,000 to benefit ten local non-profits. “Through our application and screening process, we picked non-profits which align with the Rotary core value of service over self – with an emphasis on under-served communities,” said Laura MacKinnon, President of the Rancho Santa Fe Rotary Foundation which is the charity arm of the local Rotary club. With 22 wineries/breweries and 10 restaurants committed already to participate in this year’s Taste of Rancho Santa Fe, the 5th annual, the event promises to be an elegant and festive event. Tickets are on sale now at www.tasteofrsf.org at $100 – and all of the net proceeds are distributed to the causes that participate. Organized and run by the Rancho Santa Fe Rotary Club, the event relies mostly on volunteers to keep overhead low, leaving more money for the 10 benefitting charities. Among those picked as a beneficiary of the Taste of Rancho Santa Fe this year is Cancer Angels of San Diego – which provides funds and resources for families struggling with cancer, such as Sergio and Silvia. The couple has three young children, and Sergio was diagnosed with brain cancer. Cancer Angels provided the family with financial assistance. “I have no words. It brings tears to my eyes because I am so grateful that they have helped us so much when we felt like we had no hope for our financial situation and still having to go through all this,” Silvia wrote of their assistance. Another beneficiary is the Eric Paredes Save a Life Foundation, which provides free heart screenings to youth ages 12 to 26 to detect heart conditions that can lead to Sudden Cardiac Arrest. Jacob Li, a student/athlete at Torrey Pines High School, is one of those students who attended a free Eric Paredes Screen Your Teen event at the request of his mother; only to find out he had an irregular heartbeat which required surgical correction. “A quick, painless ECG test of my heart saved my life,” shared Jacob. [caption id="attachment_2635" align="aligncenter" width="150"] Jacob Li - TB Basketball[/caption] After undergoing surgery, he’s back on the court and is feeling healthy. His mother, a Diana Li, is now a board member of the Eric Paredes Save a Life Foundation. “As a parent of a teen found at-risk, I am beyond thankful for this free, lifesaving resource. Don’t wait, register your kids today. It could just save their life,” she said. Learn more at epsavealife.org. Money raised at the 2017 Taste of Rancho Santa Fe will help both...
Making an educated choice about hiring in home care requires knowing the rules, the risks and how to mitigate them. This applies to families and professionals, such as fiduciaries - advisers hired by clients or appointed by the courts to oversee a person's financial, health and living affairs. Fiduciaries have an added potential liability in that they may be considered "co-employers" if they exercise any supervision or direct any of the care being provided in the home. This was the theme of a presentation given by At Home Nursing Care founder Lauren Reynolds and attorney Elizabeth Murphy at the 22nd Annual PFAC (Professional Fiduciary Assocation of California) Conference in San Francisco. It's a conference dedicated to giving fiduciaries the tools to protect seniors and the vulnerable. [caption id="attachment_2568" align="alignleft" width="224"] Attorney Elizbeth Murphy with AHNC Founder Lauren Reynolds[/caption] The Need: The number of people using nursing facilities, alternative residential care places or in home care services is expected to jump from 15 million in 2000 to 27 million in 2050. Among people who reach age 65, more than two-thirds will need long term care in their life time, and an American turning 65 years old today will incur $138,000 in future long term care costs such as in home care. The most common diagnosis for residents of Nursing homes is Alzheimer's/Dementia. The diagnosis most commonly seen for in home care is diabetes. The Rules: Since January 1, 2016, home care providers have required a license under the Home Care Services Consumer Protection Act. There are two licenses that apply - a non-medical home care license issued by the California Department of Social Services (CDSS), or a home health agency license issued by the California Department of Public Health. Our agency, At Home Nursing Care, has both licenses. Under the CDSS license, home care aides must be registered, which includes a background check that goes backwards indefinitely, in sharp contrast to the more established practice in California of going back 7 years for a criminal clearance. The requirements also include a TB test and initial and annual training. The unintended consequence of this requirement has been a shortage of qualified caregivers to provide in home care. Many aides cannot pass the background test due to mistakes they made 20 to 30 years ago, such as a DUI or shoplifting as a teenager. So far 7,700 in home care aides have requested "exemptions" from the CDSS rules. Home Care Providers have been requesting that the CDSS change their rules because so many aides have now gone underground, working privately under the table with little protections for seniors. Many previous home care companies are now calling themselves "employment agencies" or "referral services" to get out of having a license at all. Also - the CDSS license does not require that home care providers conduct any supervision of the aides that they place with clients. In contrast, under the CDPH...
We are very grateful to our wonderful quality in home care clients who reacted quickly and reasonably last week when 11 different fires broke out across San Diego County. In all, emergency responders sent out 125,000 evacuation notices as more than 10,000 acres burned. Many of our At Home Nursing Care clients had to be quickly moved for their safety. "I’m grateful to Director of Operations Chelsea Kennedy and Caregiver Manager Denise Helmstetler who turned our office into a command post," said Lauren Reynolds, founder of At Home Nursing Care, a leading provider of quality in home care across San Diego County and West Los Angeles County. "They worked long days and gave our clients and employees all the help and support needed to stay out of harms way," Reynolds said. [caption id="attachment_1434" align="alignleft" width="150"] Chelsea and DeniseBest In Home Care Managers[/caption] Kennedy and Helmstetler put a map on the wall and then marked where all of our employees and clients live. Then they monitored emergency announcements and news reporting to see which clients should be moved during the fire evacuations in San Diego. Supervising Nurse Denise Callas activated our emergency disaster plan for our most medically fragile clients. When the smoke cleared, we had 4 clients and 4 employees evacuated. Thankfully, everyone is fine, except for one employee whose apartment building was damaged. Her belongings are smoky. Unfortunately, we expect this fire threat to continue through the beginning of November. It’s a good time to give some extra thought to emergency plans, such as places where dependent elderly relatives should be taken during evacuations. The shelters are often not an option, as our dementia clients would not fare well in such a confusing atmosphere. Perhaps think of nearby relatives or friends or hotels as an option. The situation can change quickly, so have a couple options in mind. We also gave out recognition to employees who went above and beyond to provide quality and emergency in home care, including working extra hours under pressure. Two of the employees recognized were Olga and Jennifer, long time employees who are part of our Care Ambassador program. [caption id="attachment_1433" align="alignright" width="150"] Olga and JenniferQuality In Home Care Providers[/caption] Thank you to everyone who helped and thank you to the many first responders and firefighters who kept these 11 fires from causing even more damage. At Home Nursing Care provides quality in home care to those facing a loss of independence due to age or health related factors. We are dementia care specialists and we are licensed by the California Department of Public Health to offer nursing in the home. We help you live a better life at home. ...
Homecare San Diego leading provider, At Home Nursing Care, announces a new service to its homecare San Diego clients, free Lifeline Medical Alert Services for clients with 30 hours of service or more each week. It's part of their "we care even when we're not there" program. "Many of our clients can only afford 30 hours of home care a week of care, but we want them to have the peace of mind that they can still get immediate help in case of a fall when their home care professional is not in the home with them," said Lauren Reynolds, Administrator/Founder of At Home Nursing Care and homecare San Diego administrator. Home care LifeLine San Diego clients are offered the basic push button devices which alerts a call center in the United States in the event of an emergency. [caption id="attachment_808" align="alignleft" width="150"] Alert Pendant[/caption] Dispatchers in that call center can alert 911, if needed. Some clients may elect to pay a slightly higher rate to get the automatic fall detector. According to the manufacturer, the automatic alert pendant sends a signal to the dispatch center whenever someone wearing it has fallen, even if that person does not have the ability to press the button. "We are currently taking care of clients who were seriously injured by a fall and so they feel anxiety about being in their home alone. If they can't afford 24/7 home care in San Diego, at least they can feel like they have a partner looking out for them." In addition to paying the basic monthly fee for clients, At Home Nursing Care can often negotiate with the Manufacturer to waive the installation charge. However, this is on a case by case basis as long as certain promotions last. "One of our homecare San Diego clients calls the Lifeline pendant her 'night nurse', she really is thankful to have it. She presses it once a month just to make sure someone answers, and they always do," explained Reynolds. [caption id="attachment_809" align="alignright" width="150"] Medication dispenser[/caption] Another homecare San Diego service available is an automatic medication dispenser. At Home Nursing Care has a medication management service where a registered nurse can fill the dispenser, which automatically dispenses medications in little dose cups at pre-set times. Call for more information about that program or any other homecare San Diego needs you may have. At Home Nursing Care provides non-medical home care in San Diego along with skilled services such as medication management, diabetes care and nurse case management. Homecare can be provided hourly, daily, around the clock or as a "live-in" basis. Caregivers can help with bathing, dressing, incontinence care, meal preparation, light housework and incidental transportation. All of At Home Nursing Care's homecare professionals are screened, bonded, insured, trained and supervised to provide quality in home care the community can trust. Call At Home Nursing Care at 760-634-8000 for a n0-cost in home assessment by a registered nurse and see how we can enhance the quality of life for yourself or someone you love....
At Home Nursing Care, Inc. is proud to announce it is licensed by the California Department of Public Health to provide in home skilled nursing. "We are so proud of this accomplishment and we are confident it will mean we can provide a more comprehensive level of care to our valued clients", remarked Lauren Reynolds, Administrator and Founder of At Home Nursing Care. Reynolds is a former 10News Anchor and Reporter who opened her own in home care company after her mother MaryKay was diagnosed with terminal cancer at age 56 and needed care in order to stay at home. Reynolds' mother passed away at age 58. [caption id="attachment_796" align="alignleft" width="150"] Reynolds and her mother at 58th birthday, months before her death[/caption] "I know the struggle to care for a parent or loved one in declining health, and I want to do the best for people going through what I already experienced," Reynolds explained. Now with the license as a home health agency, At Home Nursing Care offers everything from caregivers and personal care attendants to dementia specialists and nurses in the home. Services are provided hourly, daily, or around the clock. In many cases, the company can provide the client with a live-in caregiver, for constant safety monitoring and companionship, and visits from a skilled nurse. At Home Nursing Care specializes in medication management, helping seniors to sort through the dozens of medications many take every day. According to the Centers for Disease Control, 29% of American adults take 5 or more medications every day. "Medication errors account for 40% of all hospital re-admissions, and taking the wrong doses or the wrong medications can put seniors and those recovering from accidents or injuries at risk of very serious consequences," said Reynolds. With the medication management service, a nurse will visit the patient in the home, review all the medications being taken and will sort them into pill boxes. The nurse may also confer with the pharmacist and the patient's physician to rule out potential drug interactions and discuss whether some of the medications can be consolidated or reduced. The nurse will visit every other week or as needed to keep the medications in order. At Home Nursing Care is among only a handful of home care companies which can offer this higher standard of care. "There are as many as 300 home-care agencies in San Diego County of all shapes and sizes that offer caregivers in the home. But those companies are not legally allowed to provide medication management and they cannot offer nurses in the home. Only licensed home health agencies, like At Home Nursing Care, can legally do that," Reynolds said. At Home Nursing Care must follow strict protocols and is monitored by the California Department of Public Health. "Our nurses and caregivers are employees who are bonded, licensed and insured. We take care of all payroll taxes, worker's compensation insurance and general liability insurance. We conduct background checks, offer superior training and we supervise our employees in the home. All our clients and patients have to worry...
Today At Home Care Solution celebrated the growth of its in home care services by celebrating its employees and clients. The festive holiday open house showcased the company's new expanded offices. [caption id="attachment_682" align="alignleft" width="270"] At Home Care Solution Caregivers and Office Staff[/caption] The company, which provides non-medical in home care and care management throughout San Diego County, just moved into new offices on Saxony Road in Encinitas. After two years of providing in home care to seniors, the company had outgrown its original space. [caption id="attachment_699" align="alignright" width="300"] The In Home Care Manager and Quality Control Manager[/caption] “We’ve been so fortunate to have loyal clients and satisfied referral sources, we simply grew faster than we anticipated, which prompted our move. Our new office features an expanded training center where we plan to hold numerous caregiver and professional training programs in 2013 and beyond,” explained founder Lauren Reynolds. [caption id="attachment_689" align="alignright" width="300"] The in home care office staff[/caption] After a 15 year career as a reporter and anchor for 10News in San Diego, Reynolds opened the home care company in2010 after her own experience needing in home care for her terminally ill mother. “She asked us to make sure she could spend the rest of her life in her home in Los Angeles, and my family did that with the help of in home care. The experience inspired me to want to provide the same valuable service here in San Diego,” she said. Reynolds now employs 70 caregivers and office staff which includes a Certified Home Care Manager and a Registered Nurse with a degree in Public Health. [caption id="attachment_691" align="aligncenter" width="300"] The Certified In Home Care Manager with wonderful caregivers[/caption] They provide senior in home care hourly, daily and they specialize in placing live in caregivers with elderly or disabled clients who want to remain in their homes. All of the caregivers are screened, trained, bonded and supervised. [caption id="attachment_693" align="alignleft" width="300"] Managers at Aviara Healthcare Center and Balboa Ambulance[/caption] The company is BBB accredited and Certified by the California Health Services at Home and American Board of Home Care. Clients who attended the party included Lucille, who sat between Christine and Rosa, her two caregivers. “They are my best friends,” she said. Also at the party was Loren, who will turn 101 in January. [caption id="attachment_684" align="alignright" width="196"] Loren and Aida[/caption] He told the crowd that the key to his long life was that he "didn't drink, smoke, curse or go with the girls who did, well, at least that's what I tell people." He attended the event with his caregiver, Aida. [caption id="attachment_694" align="aligncenter" width="300"] The youngest attendee with her mother[/caption] The company has a five star rating with Carerate.com, a service which evaluates the quality of care provided by companies like At Home Care Solution. To learn more about At Home Nursing Care and their quality home care services, visit their website at www.thecaresolution.com or call 760-634-8000 for a no-cost, in home assessment for senior home care in Los Angeles and San Diego. [caption id="attachment_703" align="alignleft" width="300"] Enjoying lunch![/caption]...
Today At Home Care Solution, along with the City of Encinitas, the Encinitas Senior Center and 75 family members and friends wished Loren a happy 100th Birthday. [caption id="attachment_118" align="alignright" width="300" caption="Loren celebrates 100 years"][/caption] The 100 year old retired veteran and his 97 year old wife celebrated with a luncheon and party at the Encinitas Senior Center, where they have been volunteers and members for over 30 years. Overwhelmed by all the attention, Loren responded to how he managed to live to 100, "I didn't drink, smoke, tell dirty jokes or go with the girls who did." In response, his wife of 71 years told the crowd, "That's not true, or you would not have married me." [caption id="attachment_120" align="aligncenter" width="162" caption="The happy couple - Loren and his wife, Edna"][/caption] Mayor Jerome Stocks presented a proclamation from the City of Encinitas to Loren in honor of his reaching the century milestone. [caption id="attachment_119" align="alignleft" width="240" caption="Loren is King for the Day with Encinitas Mayor Jerome Stocks"][/caption] The Mayor commented that Loren and his wife had lived in Encinitas for 60 years. They bought an ocean front lot in Cardiff back in the early 1940's, paying a whopping $700 dollars for the now multimillion dollar property. (They sold it and moved into central Encinitas years later.) Loren commented that he wished he'd bought a few of those lots, if he only knew. But he says, $700 was a lot back then! At Home Care Solution was happy to provide cake for the celebration, baked by Chef Maria Santana. [caption id="attachment_123" align="alignright" width="150" caption="The Birthday Cake"][/caption] Our employee, Aida, says she's so happy to know the couple. Happy Birthday Loren! [caption id="attachment_121" align="alignleft" width="210" caption="Loren and Aida, At Home Care Solution Employee"][/caption] ...
A recent USA Today article states that there is an increase in seniors living over the age of 90. According to author Haya El Nasser “The number of people living to age 90 and beyond has tripled in the past three decades to almost 2 million and is likely to quadruple by 2050”. Seniors who live longer generally have some sort of disability or need help at some level of living. Sandy Markwood, CEO of the National Association of Area Agencies on Aging, indicates that the focus needs to be on being able to help these seniors live at home as long as possible as nursing home cost could rise to average $72,000 a year. Long Term Care at any level, in the home, assisted living or nursing home can add a tremendous cost to seniors and their families. Government Programs Only Pay For About 16% Of Long Term Care Government programs such as Medicare, Medicaid and the Veterans Administration will cover the cost of long-term care under certain conditions. Medicare will cover rehabilitation from a hospital stay or limited care at home if there is a skilled (medical) need. The Veterans Administration will cover the cost of nursing home care indefinitely if the veteran is at least 70% service-connected disabled. The VA will also cover other forms of home-based or community-based care if there is a medical need. Medicaid will cover both medical and non-medical related long-term care but in order to qualify for Medicaid a person has to have less than $2,000 in assets and income that is insufficient to pay the cost of care. Funding Long Term Care with your Life Insurance Policy Drawing cash from life insurance or changing a life insurance policy should only be done after reviewing with an expert advisor. Loss of the policy and death benefit could prove to be a detriment. If, however you have accumulated cash in a life insurance policy and no longer need the coverage you may consider using the cash for long term care or purchasing a LTC rider to your current policy. New insurance products are being developed to cover both life insurance and long term care insurance. ElderLawAnswers reports: “A new law makes the purchase of products that combine annuities or insurance policies with long-term care insurance more attractive. These "hybrid" products are gaining in popularity due to a law that went into effect January 1, 2010, making distributions from life insurance and annuities tax-free when used to pay for long-term care. The same law also allows owners of annuities or life insurance policies to exchange their old policies for insurance for long-term care or hybrid policies without being taxed.” Combination sales which include life insurance, annuities and traditional long-term care coverage are becoming popular with insurance companies and may prove a method of financing long term care. Investigate closely, however to find what exactly will be covered. Some policies do not cover home care costs or complete costs of nursing homes. Long Term Care Insurance Funding for All Long Term Care Needs The first long-term care...
On December 15th, The Department of Labor announced a new proposed rule that could dramatically change how seniors and those with disabilities access home care. The proposal would eliminate a long standing federal labor code exception that allows home care agencies and private families to avoid paying overtime and minimum wage to live-in caregivers. (In California and many other states, minimum wage is already mandated by state law and paid, but the overtime exemption still exists. Most reputable agencies in California already pay higher than minimum wage for hourly home care workers.) The overtime exemption dates back to 1974 and it was intended for domestic employees who “provide companionship services for individuals who (because of age or infirmity) are unable to care for themselves…” The idea was to allow a family or individual to hire a “caregiver” and set a wage for live-in, allowing the family to avoid excessive regulations regarding mandatory breaks, paperwork, etc. Over the last three decades, the exemption has also been used by third party employers, such as home care agencies, to put caregivers in the home for so called “live-in” shifts. The caregiver is typically paid for 16 hours of work per day and is given 8 hours of rest. The caregivers take meal breaks in the home and have access to restrooms, a phone, tv, and rest as needed. However, regular labor codes, such as providing a 15 minute break every five hours of work, are not applicable. The Labor Department cited a large growth in the home care industry and a growing number of workers employed as caregivers as a reason to re-examine the live-in overtime exemption. Under the rules proposed December 15th, home care agencies and registries would no longer be able to use the exemption for live-in workers. It’s not yet clear if that would mean live-in caregivers would have to be paid minimum wage the first 8 hours, time and a half the second four hours, then double time the next four hours. If that is true, the cost to seniors and their families would go up by roughly 50 percent per day. The result could be that families would turn to the underground economy for care and would perhaps hire unscrupulous individuals who are not vetted, trained, or supervised. Under the proposed new rules, Individuals and families could still use the exemption if they hired privately, however, that use would be narrowed. For example, they could not hire a “professional” caregiver, or someone who provides care as a vocation. They’d be able to use the exemption only if they hired a family member, friend, or someone who doesn’t ordinarily earn income from caregiving. The proposed rule clarifies that only incidental housework could be performed by the live-in caregiver. Tasks such as cleaning dishes or doing a load of laundry would be okay. Vacuuming would not be okay. Other incidental tasks to be allowed would include bathing, dressing, grooming, toileting, driving to appointments, feeding, etc. It’s also not clear what affect this would have on nannies or babysitters,...
