Attorneys Representing Clients with Healthcare Needs
You realize that your practice touches all aspects of an individual's life but when it comes to health care and related needs you're a little uncertain how to navigate the system. And you've seen it all, dysfunctional families, financial abuse, neglect and exploitation.
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The Care Navigator Can Help By:
Supporting clients in planning for or in making immediate and long term care decisions
Estimating future costs of care including potential living situations
Providing advocacy in cases where an individual feels vulnerable about making decisions due to fear of retribution from family members, living communities or practitioners
Supporting children who are uncertain about how to help when parents need care
Supporting clients with significant health care needs going through the separation process knowing you want to make sure they are financially able to receive the care they need
Providing education specific to the needs of each individual situation
Sometimes Not Interested Is Best
By Pamela D. Wilson, CSA, MS, BS/BA, CG, The Care Navigator
Your client's memory loss is progressing and you've known him for years. It's time to begin talking about legal matters relating to aging. Dan, your client, is estranged from his family and doesn't really have anyone close who might be a good advocate. However he mentions that he has talked to Tom, the person who has been cutting his hair for years, and Tom might be interested in being his medical power of attorney.
You skillfully attempt to talk to Dan about the fact that Tom is his barber and may not be the most appropriate person to make medical decisions, however Dan balks because he and Tom "know" each other. You visit Tom and find out that their degree of "knowing" each other is limited to chair time over the past 20 years. Tom really doesn't want to be responsible for making medical decisions for Dan but didn't want to say no because he is aware Dan has no one else who can do this for him.
What other options do you have? The obvious, appointing someone from your office to be Dan's medical power of attorney but you realize they don't have the expertise or a real desire to act. The troubling fact is that Dan has been your client for years and you are concerned about just appointing anyone, after all you wouldn't want a stranger appointed for you who had the ability to "turn off your switch".
By Pamela D. Wilson, CSA, MS, BS/BA, CG, The Care Navigator
In our busy world, caregiving can become a complicated task especially when multiple family members are involved. Who will take responsibility for what tasks? Often the majority of the work is delegated to the family member who has the most available time. Caregivers placed in this position feel that this is not always fair and that their brothers, sisters, or other family members take advantage of them. This resentment creeps into family relationships and sometimes results in the need for legal intervention.
The individual with the majority of the caregiving burden burns out and their health may fail. Statistics report that caregiver stress is at an all time high resulting in physical and emotional declines. Exhausted caregivers are taken to task by family members for not doing more. Or the caregivers themselves feel guilty that they are not doing enough to care for the family member. Many times this is a no win situation unless other family members will commit to providing support through time or money. Sometimes abuse occurs within the family and one individual takes liberties with mom or dad's bank account. Other times physical or emotional abuse occurs. The abuse, usually unintentional, results in a situation that escalates.
High Caregiver Stress Increases the Difficulty Level in Working with Clients
By Pamela D. Wilson, CSA, MS, BS/BA, CG, The Care Navigator
Many attorneys become involved with families when health care issues arise, especially memory loss. I see many cases where a caregiving situation running smoothly for years suddenly turns into a nightmare. Perhaps the individual requiring care becomes combative or incontinence becomes an overwhelming task to manage. A previously comfortable situation becomes turbulent and turns into a situation where the caregiver is at a breaking point. However no thought was previously given to legal needs. Thus there is no vehicle for the family member to make health or financial decisions on the part of the person needing care especially if the consideration is to place the individual in a care community. And, as their attorney, you are brought in to work magic.
Sometimes it's a more basic situation where the person requiring care denies they have any memory loss issues in spite of bills not paid and car accidents. Many times the caregiver just gives up because they lack the ability to negotiate a conversation that results in change. I have experienced this many times and have a relatively high degree of success in moving the situation to a compromise for help that includes agreeing to legal intervention by a family member.
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