What should I look for in a home care agency?
Here are a few questions that you should be sure to ask all agencies:
- Are you licensed?
- Are your aides certified by the State?
- Do you perform criminal and DMV checks against your aides?
- Do you provide RN (Nursing) supervision?
- Does your agency take care of complete employee payroll responsibilities?
The answer to all of these with Freedom Home Care is yes!
How does my family and I determine the level of care needed?
What is your intake and assessment process and how much does it cost?
Freedom Home Care conducts a free in-home assessment with each client to determine their home care needs. One of our registered nurses and our client care manager meet with the client and family to determine care needs. We also take into consideration information received from their case managers, social workers, discharge planners or physicians.
The in-home assessment typically takes about an hour. After that we are able to set up care in a reasonably short amount of time. The assessment process not only helps us determine the care needs of the client, it also helps us to match them with the right caregivers. Caregivers are chosen based on their skill level and personality that will fit best with the client.
Do you involve us in developing a plan of care?
Freedom Home Care will determine the plan on care with the client and their family while taking into consideration the information received from their case managers, social workers, discharge planners or physicians. Often times, family members are also contributing in caring for our client, so we work with them to schedule care based on their biggest needs. For example, covering the daytime hours when family members are at work.
Do you consult us and physicians?
Regarding client’s physicians, we review discharge instructions and if we deem it necessary, we will have further consultation with physicians. All of our staff are trained on confidentiality and HIPPAA and it is an area that we review with them on an annual basis. If the client is okay with us contacting the family members, then we do so. We like to keep open communications with families of our clients. There are some clients though that do not want their family members contacted and we have to respect that as well.
What does the aide do in the event of an emergency?
The aide is qualified to make a judgement about when to call the family, a doctor or 911. Freedom Home Care is available to assist the aide 24 hours a day, 7 days a week.
Are your services reimbursable through private insurance?
Yes, Freedom Home Care will accept long-term care insurance reimbursement after benefit verification from most insurance companies.
What is your billing procedure?
As is industry standard, Freedom Home Care bills on a weekly basis with payment due upon receipt each week. We also require a one week deposit with all new service agreements. For your convenience, we offer automatic payment drafts from a checking or savings account.