Customer Reviews

Consumer Reports Complete Guide to Health Services for Seniors : What Your Family Needs to Know About Finding and Financing, Medicare, Assisted Living, Nursing Homes, Home Care, Adult Day Care

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Very little on this subject is written in the daily press despite the growing numbers of seniors in US.

Just as important as understanding your taxes each year another topic we'd love to ignore, facts are provided with an understanding of the complexities of the subject matter.

The issues are addressed in a manner to provide the inside scoop on how to deal with the issues and provides resources. Provides a starting point for drafting your parental plan of action if one is not in place. Found this overall to be a great introduction to these issues.

This volume is a compilation of the latest facts about caring for senior citizens. The facts clearly presented here enable caregivers and seniors to explore available services and compare the costs and benefits of each. Informed decisions can be made based on the background knowledge in this book and interviews of service providers in your area. A must-read for anyone who is responsible for elder care.

I recommend "Retirement Nightmare" ISBN: 1573927961 . To avoid a guardianship in the State of Florida, and other states, should be of paramount importance. Find out how to protect yourself and your loved ones with alternatives: health care surrogate, durable power of attorney, mediation and more. Consider that if you leave your parents to fend for themselves, and ignore the deterioration associated with aging, a guardian can gain a guardianship over them and their assets, without informing you. That guardianship will nullify the most meticulous of plans. To really cover your aging parents, make sure they create a "Pre-need" guardianship and name someone they trust, this is the only way predators in the retirement homes will not be able to force guardianship on them. Also create an irrevocable trust.

This book spells out the ABC's of the journey you will encounter when seeking healthcare for the elderly.

When I first got thi book I put it it away because I was overwhelmed by the amount of information presented. When faced with the realities of our aging parents, and limited options for their care, one can find themselves already overwhelmed by one emotional crisis after another. Trying to navigate our complex healthcare system is an endeavor that really requires a law degree, business degree in health insurance and other college courses dealing with filling out medicaid/medicare forms.

However, when I was then confronted with real problems and questions from family, this book provided answers which could be found no where else.

Although a bit outdated, this book provides an excellent reference and source book for those faced with healthcare decisions for an elderly family member or relative.

Basically a great book. Unravels the confusion that you face when trying to plan care for your parents. But I found a few of the phone contact numbers to be wrong. For instance: on page 157: The Transit Hotline Number. This turns out NOT to be a number for consumers but for agencies.

Making your way through the social service maze is hard enough and unfortunately putting wrong numbers in the book doesn't help. Makes you wonder if they didn't check them before publishing.

Everything you will need to figure out how to take care of a senior is here. The many contact numbers are very useful.