How Can a Care Manager Improve Quality of Life for Seniors? An Interview with Janet Brush, Part One

Today, SevenPonds speaks with Janet Brush, who is the founder and managing director of Senior Alternatives — a company that is focused on providing comprehensive senior care to residents in the Bay Area. Janet has extensive experience in the field of senior care, including a masters in Gerontology and Social Work. She is also a licensed Fiduciary in the state of California.

Kimberly: How did you know that you wanted to work in the senior care field?

Credit: Janet Brush

Janet: I had been volunteering with seniors in working with the home-delivery meal plans and this came from a love of when I was doing my volunteer work. I left my job as a commercial real estate sales person and I went back to school and got a Masters of Gerontology and a Masters of Social Work and I went from there.

Kimberly: What are the greatest challenges that you face as a care manager?

Janet: Money and the cost of services are so expensive. This is for care management and caregiving and there is really no support from the government through medical. That’s the biggest challenge for us–that our clients don’t have unlimited resources in the United States.

There are other challenges that are more geriatric-based as well. One of the clinical challenges is that seniors are resistant. They don’t want to change. They don’t want to see that they have deteriorated and that they might need help. So our job is to build relationships and figure out the barrier for why they are resistant and that is one of the bigger challenges.

Kimberly: Are there specific techniques that you use to overcome these challenges to get seniors the care that they need?

Janet: Yes! A lot of it is relationship building and getting them to trust us and understand that we are there for their well-being and not just to sell a product. We understand where they are at.

We are very goal focused as well. If a senior has certain goals, we help them understand through discussion that if they are to reach these goals, then there are certain steps that they need to take to take care of themselves.

Credit: Senior Alternatives

Kimberly: Are there certain goals that are more common than others among seniors?

Janet: Of course. They want to stay in their homes. It is very rare that you find a senior that doesn’t want to stay in their homes. They also want to remain in a position where they are able to make their own decisions. Most seniors typically want to stay healthy and injury free as well.

Kimberly: How do you know if you or a loved one qualifies for senior care?

Janet: They are typically not able to shop, organize or prepare meals. If they are falling or experiencing confusion or dementia. One of the biggest signs is if they are feeling anxious or stressed.

Kimberly: Do you have any advice for people who are considering to hire a care manager

Janet: Its very important to consider people that have a masters in either social work or gerontology. You want a care manager to have a very specific background in geriatrics. Care management is very psychologically based as well and you want someone that comes from a psychological background of study.

It depends on the case. Some cases are so simple that we put an assistant care manager on it and those people don’t need to have a degree. They can do functions that don’t require a higher level of critical assessment that you would need a masters to complete.

Kimberly: Do you specifically have to be living at home to qualify for home care? Can you receive separate care management if you are living in a nursing home?

Janet: Yes, exactly! We provide caregiving everywhere and you can receive caregiving in alternate environments.

Kimberly: Do you make an effort to work in tandem with other caregivers in alternate environments as well?

Janet: Exactly. We, work in tandem with them to find out what the needs, what is the perception of the facility and what our own observations of the client are. This is just part of the information that we use to customize care plans for our clients.

Kimberly: Is there a difference between care managers and home nurses?

Janet: Nurses are coming in and doing medical evaluations. Care managers look at psychosocial issues, such as how a person is doing in their home, what the risk factors are for a particular person, what issues a person is having from a psychological and physical standpoint, what kind of care plan is needed to address the issues and what resources are needed to address the issues. We do not give them medical attention as a nurse would. Nurses are distinct, in that they typically go into the home when they are checking on a specific medical issue for someone who has left the hospital.

Please join us for part two of our interview with Janet next week.