CAREGIVING: Our aide schedule is always in flux. Not in a bad way, though. We have some service hours coming to us that were promised months ago.
Back in January Angela from Greater Springfield Seniors (GSSSI) came for a periodic review. She asked if I could use more hours to get out and take a break. They were going to be “companion” hours. The medical staffing agencies get paid for different levels of service. Someone giving personal care or a Home Health Aide (HHA) bills at a higher rate that a Homemaker or a Companion. The HHA changes Kathy. Gives her a bed bath. Dresses and undresses her. The homemaker usually does light housekeeping, laundry and cleans up for the patient. Technically they aren’t there to clean up after the spouse, The spouse’s laundry or the spouse’s basset. The companion is just a sitter. They can talk, look and listen, but are not paid to change Kathy. They are just a set of eyes in case something happens while I am gone.
At that time the agency did increase the hours of Betsy and Pat. And they sent us a new aide that was supposed to be a companion, Cathy (with a “C”) but on that day I needed a health aide who could help me. So, when I sent her home I never followed up on the replacement. So, I guess I confused the agency.
When Angela came back for the next visit last week, I printed out the Google calendar I had made up. She looked at it. I said I was very happy with the aides – Pat and Betsy – and everything was going really well. She was looking at her file history. Some of the information was out of date. We were no longer working with one of the agencies. She kept adding up the hours on the calendar. She shook her head.
She said “It looks like Kathy is short about ten hours a week.
Is there another calendar?
At the time I had forgotten about Cathy with a “C.” Angela said, they are your hours. You would like to get out wouldn’t you? I said yes. She said she would find out what the story was from the agency. I told her that they are short of staff so I’m not sure what will happen. She called from the office the next day to tell me that it was actually about five and a half hours that I was short; not ten. That made a lot more sense.
I feel fortunate that I am getting the support that I am getting. There are probably millions of family caregivers with little or no support. When Angela was coming I didn’t have any requests for anything more than I was getting.
There is a part of me that doesn’t want to miss anything. Kathy is more alert now than she was. She communicates in her way; even though she can no longer speak.
But, now that winter is over I could be working on the house and the yard and maybe catch up on my own doctor’s appointments. So, I’ll make the most of it.