Managed Care...My "Plan A"

I've been looking into Long-Term Care, and recently had an interesting conversation with a friend who is an Occupational Therapist. These are the professionals who evaluate one's ability, among other things, to live independently.

She posed some interesting questions which I am now considering. To date, she asked me how many of the grandparents and parents in my family had required long-term care. By the way, Long-Term is defined as one month or more of 24-hour care. To this, I responded, "None, outside of my mom." Everyone's healthy, active, maintaining a strong social network, traveling, and even keeping part-time jobs of some kind. Neither my husband's parents nor my father show any signs of memory loss or slowing down.

Based on her professional and personal experiences, my friend challenged me on my perceived need to purchase Long-Term Care. She suggested that unless one of our parents were to have a major accident or develop a long-term, life-threatening illness (which doesn't run in either sides of our family), I may want to consider Managed Care as my first line of defense.

Managed Care is a great alternative, if needed. Managed Care facilities offer safe, comfortable living environments where people live independently, and have access to immediate assistance or medical help. Also known as Senior Living Communities, I understand they equate to living in a dormitory at college. Seniors can usually choose from a variety of living situations that include apartment-style, townhouse or a free-standing home. Occupational Therapists, like my friend, are on staff to regularly assess each person's needs and to ensure that everyone's needs are being addressed in a timely manner.

In the event that I live across the country, as is the case with my husband's parents, then a Managed Care facility would allow them to stay close to their social network and established physicians. I believe that this is one of the single-most important factors in a care-giving decision. What's more, Managed Care facilities often host a hospital on site that is within walking distance of the residences. This is another important component in making sure that spouses and friends have easy and frequent access to support one another.

Now, I have not yet explored the costs of my "Plan A," but I think this is a much more realistic and humane approach to ensuring a safe, dignified and loving solution for parents who are clearly independent and capable of caring for themselves.

I'll be sending out a sample of the assessment used by Occupational Therapists to determine an individual's ability to live independently. If you'd like a copy, visit the Home Page at http://www.homeboundresources.com/ and sign up for my weekly tips and information.

If you've had a personal experience in determining your best plan: Managed Care and/or Long-Term Care, please share your thoughts with us.