Hello and welcome to my first blog post!

I thought it would be a good start to explain why I started Your Long Term Care Coach and my hopes for the blog and courses as we continue along this path together.

I began my career, over 30 years ago, as a Licensed Nursing Home Administrator. Over the years I’ve held various positions, all in Long Term Care, including corporate level leadership positions.

When I began my career, in the mid 1980’s, staff had more time to truly get to know residents and their families. There were far fewer Federal, State and Local regulatory requirements, yet they were very specific in nature. There was no room for considering what a resident desired regarding their care, because regulations told us exactly what needed to be done. For example, if a resident preferred to sleep later in the morning, we couldn’t honor the request. The regulations required that all residents be up, bathed, dressed and served breakfast before 9:00 am in the morning.

Even though there have been significant changes to the regulations to promote the rights and choices of residents, changes have also come with the burden of more documentation requirements on the Skilled Nursing Facilities (SNF), commonly referred to as Nursing Homes. Though the changes were long overdue, and all positive with respect to enhancing the quality of care and safety of residents, the focus of the staff has had to shift more toward regulatory compliance. This change resulted in less time available to spend with residents and their families.

Also with this shift, there is less and less education of the public about skilled nursing facility care. It is a complex field within health care, and few want to know about it. No one ever sees themselves as needing a SNF, and usually people have a negative view based on horrible stories from a few bad providers.

With the population aging at an advanced pace https://www.prb.org/aging-unitedstates-fact-sheet/ we can’t continue to turn our heads and ignore what may become a reality for some of us. Did you know that SNFs often provide more short-term rehabilitation stays than long term care?

The purpose of Your Long Term Care Coach is to de-mystify the Long Term Care world, and put people in the driver’s seat should they ever find themselves in a situation when either they, or a Loved One, requires SNF or Assisted Living services.

I’ve started with my digital courses, SNF Right Now!™ because I saw the most need when someone had to place a Loved One in a SNF following hospitalization. There is common level of initial shock when family members are sent by a hospital to choose a SNF for their Loved One. There is limited time, 1-3 days, and many families are completely overwhelmed and lost. While there are private case management companies that can do the work for you, such a service can cost thousands of dollars. My courses are not only affordable, but you can choose the type of information you need. Only you know what’s best for your Loved One!

The next set of courses that I’m working on is about planning for long term care – how to identify what level of care a Loved One requires, and steps to take to help ensure that any needed transition will be as smooth as possible, before an emergency occurs.

Finally, because the health care field is changing so quickly, my intention for this blog is to share useful information with you, specifically about Long Term Care. I will discuss current trends in long term care and how they can affect you or a Loved One. I think it’s important that we establish a dialogue to share information, questions and thoughts. As the world becomes increasingly complex, at least there will be a tiny corner for you and your family to gain better control over and to keep things as simplified as possible.

I’ll be posting a blog every month, so please check back!