8 Steps to Protect Loved Ones Entering Treatment Facilities
Finding the best extended care facility (nursing home, physical rehab, substance abuse center, etc.) for a loved one is a very difficult and often traumatic undertaking. Whether it's a memory care facility for an aging parent or a rehab center to treat alcohol or drug abuse, the work you do prior from signing admittance papers is crucial. Here are simple steps you can take to protect yourself and your loved one:
STEP 1: Internet-based Research
Thoroughly research all options on the internet, not just the facility's web site. Investigate government sites that review facilities as well as YELP and other consumer rated websites. Do not blindly trust recommendations by groups such as A Home for Mom, which typically are paid by the facilities that they recommend. The AARP has a for-profit division (it has since the late 90s) that profits from paid endorsements, so consider its recommendations through that lens. It is always preferable to keep loved ones in facilities close to home, but the quality of the venue is crucial for patient success.
STEP 2: Facility Tours
One you've narrowed down your list, take a COMPLETE tour of the top 2-3 facilities, especially the "patient areas." If the facility says that you can't tour because of HIPAA compliance, they are not being honest. You have a right to see every inch of a facility before you have a loved one enter into a contract with the facility. I could fill the pages herein with patient abuse and neglect stories that could have been avoided by touring the facilities and interviewing staff.
STEP 3: Written Care Plan and Weekly Progress Report
Ask for a detailed care plan for your loved one before you check in to the facility. Ask for a written description of activities, food choices, medical treatment, etc. Also require a weekly written status report regarding your loved one's progress.
STEP 4: Remote Video Camera Installation
Remote cameras have become very affordable, thanks in part to services such as ring.com and others that allow users to police their homes from afar. Ask to set up a camera focused on your loved one's bed area. This is a legal request, and by not showing other patients remains HIPAA compliant. If the facility refuses you the opportunity to remotely supervise the care, find another facility.
STEP 5: Establish Open Lines of Regular Communication
It's imperative to be able to set a time for daily communication with your loved one. Behavioral health facilities in general frown upon such things, in part because many don't want to be caught giving subpar care to the patients. The patient should be able to send and receive emails, even if only offered at a set time on facility computers, and should be able to call out or receive calls. There is nothing more dangerous than isolation from the outside world to the patient.
STEP 6: Tour the Facility Regularly, Preferably Without Warning
Exhale Health (exhalehealth.com) recommends that families tour the facilities at least every month during extended stays, and weekly for 90 day treatment programs. If the family cannot perform the function, friends or professional advocates can do it for them. Showing up unannounced, much like the medical inspectors do, is the best way to see what's really happing at the facility. If the staff tries to make you reschedule, wait. It could be a sign that they don't want you to see the care being offered or the facility's condition.
STEP 7: Be Vigilant About Insurance Claims and Bills
The time to be fiscally vigilant is before your loved one becomes a patient. If you want to avoid being overcharged or denied legitimate claims, hire a professional to advocate on your behalf. The bills and insurance claims are simply too riddled with errors, too time consuming and too intentionally complex and misleading. Having worked in the healthcare advocacy space, I can tell you with certainty that you will save thousands by hiring a professional who knows how to beat the system for a few hundred dollars. Unless you are the 1%, the bills and improper claim denials of one major medical event can bankrupt the patient and his/her family.
and lastly ...
STEP 8: Trust Your Gut!
If you feel that a facility doesn't seem right for whatever reason, choose another facility! Don't let shame or guilt play into your decisions. This includes getting price gouged by a facility. Most expensive doesn't mean best, and finding a facility in one's healthcare network is essential.
Stay Smart, and Be Well!