Greensboro Senior AdvisorHow can we check on care in Greensboro from far away?
Use the public records first: every adult care home's DHSR star rating, inspection documents and penalties are online, and so are CMS ratings for nursing homes, so you can vet a home before a single visit.
Our facility pages gather those records in one place. Then arrange a local set of eyes: a friend, a church member, a geriatric care manager or a senior advisor who can visit and report back.
What papers should a long-distance caregiver have?
A durable power of attorney, a health care power of attorney, HIPAA releases for doctors and hospitals, and copies of insurance cards, medication lists and the residency agreement.
Ask each doctor's office and the care home to note you as a contact. Keep a shared online folder with siblings so whoever answers the next phone call has the information.
How do we make visits count?
Schedule visits around care plan meetings and doctor appointments, arrive unannounced at least sometimes, eat a meal in the dining room, and check the room, the medications and your parent's weight and mood.
Bring a list of questions for the administrator or charge nurse and leave with written answers. A visit at an unusual hour, such as early evening, often shows more than a weekday tour.
Should we move a parent closer to us?
Sometimes: being near family helps, but moving uproots a parent from friends, church and doctors, and benefit programs such as Special Assistance and Medicaid are state-specific, so a move across state lines means reapplying.
If your parent has strong local ties in the Triad and dementia is advancing, a move can be disorienting. If you are the only family and visits are rare, a move closer may be the better trade. Weigh it with your parent where possible.
Who can be our local partner in the Triad?
A geriatric care manager for paid oversight, the Piedmont Triad Regional Council Area Agency on Aging (336-904-0300) for information and the regional ombudsman, the county department of social services for benefits, and a senior advisor for placement.
Ask friends and your parent's church to visit regularly; regular familiar faces notice changes that staff might miss. If you suspect neglect, report it to the county's Adult Protective Services the same day.
What should a long-distance caregiver do in an emergency?
Keep a one-page emergency sheet with your parent's doctors, medications, diagnoses, insurance, the care home's numbers and a local contact who can reach the hospital within an hour, and make sure the home and the local contact both have it.
Ask the care home in advance which hospital it sends residents to and how it notifies family. If you cannot travel quickly, the hospital case manager and the local contact become your hands; a signed HIPAA release lets them talk with you freely from the first call.
Drawn from G.S. Chapter 131D, 10A NCAC 13F and 13G, DHSR and NCDHHS publications, NC Medicaid, CareScout, CMS, the VA and the Piedmont Triad aging agency cited in the text; our editorial standards explain how we check them.
