Is There An Organization That Rates Home Care Agencies

jennybeeay

Hello. I am starting to consider my home care options. My husband was diagnosed with early stage Alzheimers last month. Like many people, I want to be able to keep him home for as long as possible but I also know that I will be needing help sometime in the future. I was at an Alzheimer's Support Group recently and another person recommended a company called Assisting Hands. This person was very positive about it but I looked and saw that it is a franchise. I'm not sure what to think about that and it made me wonder if there is a professional group or body that regulates and rates home care agencies. If anyone has knowledge of this, I would greatly appreciate hearing from you.

Thank you.

jgreen

Hi @jennybeeay

I found the agency that accredits Medicare approved home health care agencies here in the US https://homehealthcahps.org/

This is The Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems (CAHPS®) Home Health Care Survey, or the "Home Health Care CAHPS Survey. You might ask agencies if they are HHCCAHPS accredited. You may be able to access survey information on this website.

I don’t think this is a regulatory body, but if agencies want Medicare or Medicaid reimbursement, they most likely will want to undergo a survey and accreditation. I do know that hospitals look towards an organization called the Joint Commission for that ‘stamp of approval”.

I hope you can find a good match for your DH.

cdgbdr

The Home Health CAHPS will report for skilled home health agencies. The agencies that provide personal care services only will not be included. Some private duty agencies will voluntarily obtain accreditation which is a reflection of some commitment to quality standards and outside verification of compliance. The Joint Commission or Community Health Accreditation Partner are two such accreditation. There is no one national rater. Local agencies on Aging would be able to provide some information. Check that the agency is bonded and insured and has trained caregivers with appropriate supervision in place.

SDianeL

The VA recommended Assisting Hands for my husband and we had a very positive experience with the office in Tampa Florida. My husband called the caregiver “my lady” and after I had to place him in memory care she called me later and asked how I was doing. The manager called me to make sure I was happy with their service.

jopa51

https://projects.propublica.org/nursing-homes/

jfkoc

I firmly believe that you have to do the leg work yourself if you want to avail yourself to all options. Using a service will only share facilities they are contracted with.

First learn…read about Abe's Garden and then read I'm Still Here by John Zeisel

The next step you can do from your home. Call a facility and ask what their training program is. If they have "their own" cross them off the list.

Ask what they think of Naomi Feil, Teepa Snow. If they are unfamiliar scratch them off.

Ask about staff turnover and ratio.

Ask to have a contract mailed to you.

Check with your state dept for red flags.

Next would be a planned visit. Follow this up with an unplanned visit and do talk with other caregivers in the halls or parking lot. Talk to staff members too.

The above will narrow things down.

Always remember that you are looking for care…looks can be deceiving!

harshedbuzz

@jennybeeay

I like my local support group for this sort of information. BTW, yelp! ratings line up pretty well with word-of-mouth.

At the end of the day, the caregiver(s) matter more than anything. I had no qualms using an agency that was part of a franchise. A parent company can offer value support around things like contracts, insurance, and advertising which frees the franchisee to focus delivering service to clients.

Care.com is another option. Some of the best caregivers avoid the agencies as they can make more money solo.

HB

ARIL

Absolutely true that the caregiver matters more than anything!

I hired home care for my PWD in a rural area for a little over a year. I hired privately for a while and then worked with an agency. I got the private referral through my PWD’s doctor’s office; it worked OK for a while but then not so much. Plus, it was a lot of work to manage the taxes myself.

I found the agency through the local Area Agency on Aging. They gave me a list of about five agencies supposedly serving the area. I called all the places and found that only one agency served private-pay clients (as opposed to only Medicaid clients) in my PWD’s locale. So I went with that one—for about a year. It was fine. They handled employee taxes, benefits, etc., and they provided replacements if someone was ill or needed time off.

With the agency we had three regular caregivers in eleven months: the first two were wonderful. Each quit after developing her own health problems. The third was friendly but noticeably less skilled. All three told me we needed a facility placement for my PWD and spouse…which I knew already. It finally became possible.

tboard

https://alzconnected.org/discussion/74814/is-there-an-organization-that-rates-home-care-agencies

Beware of the many companies that make recommendations. They are being paid by the providers and do not know if the care is good at the places they recommend. I had to put both of my parents in facilities. I toured them, asked a lot of questions. Looked them up on the Medicare website because it shows how many falls residents have. Honestly it is kind of a crap shoot because a facility may be excellent but the care your loved one receives by individual employees. You will finding ratings and a checklist you can use on this site: https://www.medicare.gov/care-compare/resources/nursing-home/overall-star-rating

Russinator

Thank you for that link

jennybeeay

https://alzconnected.org/discussion/comment/260585#Comment_260585

Thank you so much. I will look further in to this in my searches. All the best.

jennybeeay

https://alzconnected.org/discussion/comment/260604#Comment_260604

Oh, that's such a great story. I'm really happy to have a positive endorsement of Assisting Hands. Thanks so much.

jennybeeay

https://alzconnected.org/discussion/comment/260604#Comment_260604

https://alzconnected.org/discussion/comment/260659#Comment_260659

This is excellent! Thank you for sharing these great tips. This list is a keeper.

jennybeeay

Those comments are very insightful. Thank you for commenting and giving me concrete ideas to go on.

jennybeeay

https://alzconnected.org/discussion/comment/260585#Comment_260585

This is really helpful. Thank you for taking the time to look into this. It will come in handy soon. Happy New Year😊

jennybeeay

https://alzconnected.org/discussion/comment/260664#Comment_260664

Thank you for responding. This sounds like really solid advice and it resonates with me. This will be helpful when the time arrives that I’m at a turning point.

jennybeeay

https://alzconnected.org/discussion/comment/260972#Comment_260972

Excellent input, thank you. I’m finding that sometimes it’s just trial and error and keeping your eyes open and questioning everything. Thanks again for taking time to respond.

daffodil627

Mecicare ,, dept of health ratings are never a reliable source to trust with our loved ones. They inspect records to make sure little blocks are filled in. Only trust the opinion of someone who has walked in your shoes. Never leave your husband in a "for profit" facility. They make their money by buying poor quality food, hiring uneducated not certified staff . The profit is made on the backs of ill, frail, elderly patients.

Inspections and ratings are a farce.

Victoriaredux

https://alzconnected.org/discussion/comment/262478#Comment_262478

Colleges are "non-profit" —the largest sit on Billions of reserves yet ask for donations . Healthcare is a massive part of the economy so to expect the amount of investment to get a building and staff it with no return on investment is just not where the economy is in the 2020's.

It is easy to scope out the food, just drop by at meals . Ask to see meal plans. Will they serve in rooms?

The government inspection reports should cover what that size facility should have in terms of certified staff and if those licenses were available for the inspector. Ask to see them yourself. They should be posted.

Ill, frail, & elderly patients are the population served by a care home. Some of us do have to make use of them before both PWD and the caregiver also becomes ill, frail, & elderly .

sandwichone123

The very best thing I got out of a local support group was this type of information. After a few meetings I felt much more empowered to know what was a good source of reliable care based on the experiences of other local people.

jennybeeay

Thank you for that endorsement. I've attended one local meeting but they don't meet regularly. I'll keep my eyes open for something more. I'm going to be doing a 5-week seminar hosted by Teepa Snow's company for dealing with dementia for families and caregivers. I hope it is helpful and sends us in a new & productive direction.