Articles by  Alice Reiter Feld

BEING A CAREGIVER: WHAT IS A GERIATRIC CARE MANGER

 We often meet families who are providing some level of caregiving for an aging family member.  This can be in a home or in a facility.  Some are doing this from afar; others are close to the loved one. As part of the Life Care Planning we do for our families, we provide a tremendous amount of advocacy and education to make this process easier for the caregiver. Sometimes, however, the aging family member needs an additional professional who can oversee and assist the elder directly on a regular basis. That’s when we call in a Geriatric Care Manager.

A Geriatric Care Manager (GCM) is an independent professional, usually a nurse or social worker who specializes is assisting the elderly and their families to attain the highest quality of life. Sometimes we explain that a GCM is a “substitute child”, retained by the family or senior to do the tasks that a child would do but for the fact that they live out of town or have family and work commitments that require additional support.

A GCM will usually first conduct an assessment of the seniors to see what capacity they have and what assistance they need. Then they will assist the family and senior with any of a number of tasks such as coordinating a home health aide, assist in moving a senior to a facility such as a nursing home, assisted living facility or independent living facility, accessing long term care insurance and health insurance, attending physician visits, reviewing medical issues, be available in case of crisis and even paying bills or arrange for the bills to be paid.

A GCM can be an invaluable tool for the family who needs assistance in overseeing the care of a senior. As part of the comprehensive Life Care Planning we do for our clients, it is not unusual for us to refer our families to an independent GCM who can give the family peace of mind in knowing that their loved one not only has the support of the Elder Law team but an independent medical professional as well.

Most professional GCMs belong to the National Association of Geriatric Care Managers, the Florida Geriatric Care Managers Association and many other advocacy groups