MAKING DECISIONS EASIER

At this time of the year, when families of elderly loved ones tend to take out of town holidays, organising respite care can be important for welfare and peace of mind.
Miranda Smith Homecare is focusing on reducing any anxiety involved in deciding whether to enlist a carer during summer holidays by providing the first hour of home care free, along with the usual free first-up assessment.
It can often be the elderly individuals, rather than their family members, who are wary about enlisting short term care during times when they may be more isolated than usual.
That can either be because they consider it unnecessary, or are anxious about the carer or services.
It is a situation that is understandable and not unusual, and for those first timers, Miranda Smith Homecare will do all it can to ensure the carer and service is a good fit.
Another initiative to give extra piece of mind is a commitment to make daily check-up phone calls to clients free of charge if those carers are enlisted, for example, only on alternate days.
It is important to Miranda Smith Homecare that clients are comfortable with the carer and services provided.
ENDS

ARRANGING CARE FOR THE FESTIVE SEASON

It’s time to start thinking about making sure elderly loved ones are well looked after during the festive season.

The Christmas and New Year break can be a time of anxiety for those trusted with looking after those loved ones, and there are genuine reasons for that.

Demands of looking after visiting friends or relatives can leave little time to tend to the needs of others, and some elderly can find themselves isolated in their homes when outings or routines are disrupted because of the holiday period.

Feelings of selfishness for leaving loved ones at home are common.

Miranda Smith Homecare is well prepared at this time of the year and aims to help take the stress away by offering competitive Christmas packages and free homecare assessments.

Making arrangements to ensure your loved one gets excellent care while you’re away doesn’t need to be difficult, and home-based care is an easy solution.

Miranda Smith Homecare is able to provide tailored, flexible care which can be from as little as two hours a week to 24 hours a day. In addition, our 24 hour on-call service ensures you can check on your loved one whenever you feel the need.

Our rates are affordable and competitive and remain the same on weekends.

Should you wish to know more about our services or arrange for an obligation free home visit please call 0800 600 026

WHY CHOOSE HOME CARE?

Starting from as little as $50 for a weekly visit, a Miranda Smith Homecare carer can go to a client's home on any chosen day to assist with difficult tasks, keep an eye on health and provide peace of mind.

Often it’s the difference between being able to retain independence and remain in the comfort of one’s home, or having little option but to move into a retirement home.

Hours of home care can be increased as required, or even stopped if health and mobility allows.

Hours can be increased up to a point where full-time live-in care can be arranged for about $225 a day.

It’s an option that can be about companionship, along with general day to day assistance, and allows for the retention of independence for as long as one’s health permits.

Miranda Smith Homecare urges elderly people and families to investigate all options and make comparisons between both the cost and personal aspects of living in retirement homes and remaining at home.

Everyone approaching their senior years needs to work out what they can and can’t afford, and how long they will be able to stay home and look after themselves.

The population is rapidly ageing, and if it gets to the stage where rest home beds are difficult to secure, what are the alternatives?

Also, we all need to be realistic about the government’s willingness or ability to financially assist elderly into retirement as that demographic expands.

Evidence suggests elderly like to stay in their own homes for as long as possible, and it is also becoming clear that those reaching the official retirement age are fitter, healthier and more independent than ever before.

The ageing population is also growing fast and is set to place a huge burden on the taxpayer in terms of health and residential care costs.

Many western countries are facing the same problems, and are now pushing for governments to utilise home care as a cost-effective mainstream care option, Miranda Smith Homecare urges New Zealanders to think the same way.

ENDS

SUCCESS COMES WITH CARING

FROM DOMINION POST, OCTOBER 10, 2011

Twelve years ago Miranda Smith arrived home from a three-year OE and spent a summer "procrastinating" about what to do next.

At the end of a summer spent on the beaches of Taupo and Hawke's Bay the 24-year-old had a short, sharp conversation with her father that prompted her to start a business that today employs 14 staff, oversees about 250 contracted carers and is growing from strength to strength.

Miranda, now 37, runs Miranda Smith Homecare from Hawke's Bay, where she lives with her husband Campbell Thornton and three sons Max, 5, Gus, 4, and five-month-old Jimi.

The business has offices in Wellington, Christchurch and Auckland, where Miranda started the business in 1999, and with provincial satellite offices can offer care nationwide.

It all started in that summer of 1998.

"I basically got told by my father to get off my bum and do something. I said 'OK, I'll start a home care agency'. I think I just blurted it out because that's what I'd been doing in London.

"I'd definitely been thinking about it but I was 24. I wasn't really too concerned."

After the talk with her father she met Wellington businessman Neville Young.

"Over a glass of wine on his deck he told me to just get into it. I think I just needed someone to just point me in the right direction. At that age you think 'how on earth am I going to do this?'. He's been quite a mentor for me,' "

She moved to Auckland, rented a house in Remuera, and started providing her service.

Miranda Smith Homecare now cares for more than 150 clients, about a third of whom need 24-hour care. She expects the client base to double or triple in the next two to three years.

"Demand is becoming higher and higher with less Government funding and more people needing care and realising home care is an option," she said.

"We find people weigh up what it would cost them to go into a rest home or a retirement village compared to maybe having 10 hours' care a week. If you only need a couple of hours' care a day then home care is way more affordable," she said.

"With private care everything revolves around your reputation. If you've got a good carer you're going to keep them. One of the advantages of being a private agency is we can pay staff and charge clients what we see as fair," she said.

Two years ago she and Campbell decided to move back to Hawke's Bay.

"Being here I'm much more focused on where I want the business to be and how I want it to get there. In Auckland I tended to get caught up with the day to day stuff.".

She runs the first of the company's satellite centres from Havelock North, meaning clients and needs assessors and others can visit her in person.

Eventually the company will have about 30 such centres.

"Regionally there is a real lack of these type of services compared to the big cities," she said.

She has no plans to move from Hawke's Bay. "The role I have can be done from anywhere."

BIG RESPONSE TO FREE HOME SUPPORT INITIATIVE

A Miranda Smith Homecare initiative giving a set amount of free home support to Auckland seniors has fast been embraced and demonstrates the need for the services provided.

The initiative involves offering 20 hours of home-based support each month as a way of giving something back to the community, and it’s something we hope to be able to continue it into 2012.

It targets people in greater Auckland who would usually not be in a position to finance it themselves, and who will see an improvement to their quality of life as a result.

Clients are referred by a range of outfits or individuals, assessed by our Auckland team on a first-in first-served basis, with consideration of where we can make the most difference and our ability to provide the appropriate services.

The eight initial recipients – both individuals and couples – have been experiencing a range of difficulties with day to day living including current injuries or illness, recovery from recent injuries or illness, borderline dementia, mental health problems and arthritis.

The MS Homecare team has noted demand for the free services is high and there have been many more referrals than we have been able to accommodate.

High demand for home assistance comes at a time when district health boards have been cutting home support services due to funding pressures.

ENDS

BABY BOOMERS A SOLUTION TO AGEING DILEMMA?

MEDIA RELEASE

For immediate release

Wednesday, September 14, 2011

Enticing baby boomers to remain in the workforce could help solve some of the aged care problems being created by that generation, says a private national homecare agency.

The government says it wants to encourage New Zealanders to look at the potential benefits of ageing baby boomers, rather than focus on the burdens expected in terms of the growing level of hospital and rest home care needed.

New Zealand’s most established private home care agency, Miranda Smith Homecare, says in Auckland and Christchurch, 20 percent of its carers are over 65, whereas that demographic was barely represented at all when the business began in the late 1990s.

Managing director Miranda Smith says in that short space of time it has become apparent that those reaching retirement age are fitter and healthier than ever before.

She says many want to remain in the workforce, their flexibility and life skills make them valuable assets, and at the same time it is becoming clear that the government will soon need to increasingly utilise the home care sector as a cost-effective alternative to rest homes.

Auckland’s Ann Coc-Kroft, 70, has been a carer with Miranda Smith Homecare for three years and says she has found it hugely fulfilling.

The former businesswoman says she didn’t feel ready to fully retire, wanted to do something useful, and is working 15 to 20 hours a week.

She loves the work and the people she is involved with and is in good health. “The fact that I’m working makes me feel younger.”

Mrs Coc-Kroft says she has no intention of retiring any time soon.

The Social Development Ministry report, The Business of Ageing, says demand for workers in the aged care industry is set to grow, and there are already concerns within the industry about how that demand will be met.

Ms Smith says there has been a noticeable decline in recent years in the pool of people available to work in the care industry and is finding more and more time needs to be spent on recruitment to ensure the staff are there when clients need them.

She says it’s pleasing to see the government is keen on changing attitudes towards those over 65, and that future decisions relating to the aged care industry need to take into account the health and cost benefits that can be made by using in-home care, and the workforce gaps that can potentially be filled by those aged over 65.

www.mshomecare.co.nz

GOVERNOR SHOWS INITIATIVE OVER AGED CARE COST ISSUE

An American governor has been praised for an initiative to reduce rising Medicaid costs by ensuring more elderly people have the support to be able to stay at home for longer.

The “Passport” programme in Ohio provides state assistance for targeted elderly in terms of health and personal care needs, enabling them to stay in their own homes and delay going into more costly nursing homes.

A bid by Governor John Kasich to expand the programme recently got budget approval and is expected to help slow Medicaid's projected 8 percent spending growth in Ohio to 4 percent, well below the national average.

Per person, the programme is said to be costing the state about a third of what it would if they were in nursing homes.

Aged care industry leaders in the United States say it is a win-win initiative and are urging policy makers to extend it nationwide.

http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/national-home-healthcare-group-applauds-ohio-governor-john-kasich-for-encouraging-cost-effective-home-healthcare-services-to-improve-care-reduce-healthcare-costs-126008418.html

The following is an interesting article published in the Tribune Magazine on the dire state of Britain's largest care home provider and the aged care situation in general - much of which has similarities to New Zealand's ageing demographic:

This is the ugly face of ‘caring’ capitalism

Kailash Chand says the recent care homes scandal is a symptom of an entire care system in crisis

by Kailash Chand

Friday, June 10th, 2011

Harrowing stories of lives lost in care homes filled the newspapers last week. It was the financial travails of the country’s largest care-home provider, Southern Cross, which propelled the issue of how we treat our elderly onto the front pages. The irony is that while the elderly and their carers were suffering, the directors of Southern Cross cashed in millions of shares. Four, including chief executive Philip Scott, made a total of £35 million by selling their shares. This is a financial exploitation process designed to make mega bucks that does not care if it exploits elderly people in care. If life is miserable in the main tranche of care homes, it is because the private sector – the likes of Southern Cross, the ugly face of capitalism – is unsuited to this work.

It has been revealed that behind the doors of Britain’s residential homes, dominated by private companies for profit, there is a postcode lottery ranging from excellent, unbeatable care to shocking cases of neglect.

But the problems span far wider than that when it comes to social care for the elderly.

Care homes are just a symptom of what is wrong. The entire care system is collapsing. Decades of under-investment need to be addressed, but instead councils are faced with severe spending restraints that are causing them to withdraw services rather than build on them. Means tests are becoming tighter. In the face of burgeoning demand, many are ramping up charges to those they say can afford to pay.

Elderly, frail and disabled people, as well as their carers, are struggling to access even the most basic of services in England. Many are forced to sell their family homes in order to pay for residential care.

It is worth considering the demographic change that is taking place in this country. The fastest growing age group in Britain is the over 80s: three million will become 6.5 million by 2045. In the same period, the numbers aged over 65 will jump by 70 per cent from 10 million to 17 million.

So what does that mean? Half of all those with chronic illnesses are aged over 60. Britain’s retired population take up seven out of 10 beds in hospitals and one out of two consultations in GP surgeries.

The combined cost of National Health Service and social care for older people will swell to £4 billion by 2016. This is about caring for people through as many as four decades from when they retire.

And it is about dealing with millions of individual cases. Some people will remain fit, live independently and perhaps move to retirement villages filled with social interaction. Others may soon become frail, needing round-the-clock care for many years.

Hugely varying needs will require a wide span of provision – from top-level NHS care to purpose-built secure bungalows, with wide doors and disabled toilets, in-the-home help with dressing, eating and showering and – if possible – carers who can offer a little social interaction for those who have become house bound and lonely.

A recent Age UK report highlights that of the two million older people who have care-related needs, 800,000 receive no formal support at all. That figure is likely to pass one million in the next few years.

However, in the past six years, public spending on care for the elderly has increased by just 0.1 per cent a year in real terms. Over that same period, the number of people aged above 85 has jumped by 23 per cent.

We need to solve the funding problems once and for all.

In opposition, the Tories proposed a voluntary insurance scheme, but that would create a two-tier system. And the most vulnerable would feel most unable to sign up.

The progressive argument is the care for elderly has to be met from central taxation – no more than a 1p rise in income tax would suffice.

Without a bold and radical tax solution, the public sector will not be able to look after our senior citizens. This is not about NHS funding. It is about social care in residential homes and in people’s own homes. Sometimes it is things that we may take for granted – being able to dress, have a shower, pick up your post and buy some food. And let’s not forget the value of providing someone with whom people can have a cup of tea and a chat.

The principle of independence also covers access to adequate living conditions, opportunity to work, participation in determining when and at what pace to withdraw from work, access to education and training programmes, a safe environment and the opportunity to reside at home for as long as possible.
Respect and dignity should be restored to the elderly who have made valuable contributions to British society for many decades. For too long, this country has failed in this area.

One area that requires a major review and overhaul is the care of the over 90s – a group that includes many very frail individuals. Most of this cohort will be on between 14 and 20 drugs. And they will need access to a large number of specialists – perhaps cardiologists, gastroenterologists, neurologists, dermatologists and gerontologists.

We need to consider cultural differences in ageing, too, with some groups having varying diets and susceptibility to particular illnesses.

Then there is the issue of education about what might happen in old age – that should start at school and then be restated again and again through life, in colleges, universities, workplaces, doctors’ surgeries and so on. People need to be informed about just how crucial adequate funding is, perhaps by stressing that one day they will want and appreciate quality care that gifts them dignity in old age.

The principle of self-fulfilment embraces dignity and security; non-discrimination; the right to pursue opportunities for the full development of a person’s potential; and access to the educational, cultural, spiritual and recreational resources of society.

Although politicians from all parties acknowledge the huge problem there is as yet insufficient commitment to comprehensive reforms. History has it that society and policy makers alike have shunned the elderly as a wasted resource. That has been a serious error of judgement, belief, misconception and
maltreatment.

Andrew Dilnot, the economist tasked with proposing a funding solution to this crisis, will make his recommendations in July. That is not the starting gun for the solution of social care – but a sign that we are nearing the end of the race. There is no more time for delay: politicians of all colours must then act.

Kailash Chand is chair of Tameside and Glossop NHS Trust

British report addresses aged care issues

THURSDAY, JUNE 9, 2011

A report recently released out of Britain concludes that significant taxpayer savings and personal welfare gains can be made by assisting elderly people to live at home longer.

The dementia care report, http://www.hah.co.uk/sites/default/files/upload/files/HAH_Report_web.pdf commissioned by Britain’s largest homecare provider, Healthcare at Home, used a reference group of people including independent health sector experts to assess ways to deal with the ageing population and the rapidly growing costs the health system will face as a result.

It is well documented that the New Zealand health system faces a similar issue.

Statistics here show the number of dementia patients will grow from 41,000 now to 77,000 by 2026 and then 146,000 by 2050.

The British report explored three methods of aged care, including living in care homes, living at home and relying almost solely on state-funded care assistance, and living at home using additional support and services from the private and voluntary sectors.

The reference group agreed the latter option of care provided the best environment for patients and their carers.

The report outlines the need to reduce avoidable hospital admissions for patients with dementia and says identifying unmet needs and bridging service gaps through more coordinated home-based services can achieve that and help keep patients happy and healthy.

Such care can range from simple social contact and assistance around the home to more specialised administration of medicines, and it can equate to taxpayer money saved and greater independence for those not wanting to enter rest homes.

The report identified many of the same problems that we have here in New Zealand.

Another report http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/30/24/47836116.pdf on aged care, released last month by the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD), said the cost of caring for the elderly in many industrialised nations could treble by 2050.

The OECD estimates that 10 percent of people in OECD countries will be over 80 by 2050, compared to 4 percent in 2010.

It said the average spend on long term care by 25 OECD countries, as a percentage of GDP in 2008, was 1.5 percent (NZ is about on the average). However, that could in New Zealand’s case more than double by 2050, placing a huge burden on services.

We at Miranda Smith Homecare accept the government is not totally ignoring the issue – having allocated more money for dementia care in last month’s budget and launching its “Better Sooner, More Convenient Health Care in the Community strategy last week.

But it needs a new approach to supporting dementia patients and their carers - especially family members and community organisations.

Money for more rest home beds is only a short term solution to a large long-term problem.

As the number of patients increases there will be problems with the work force, emergency support, late diagnosis and insufficient expertise in the system.

"Baby boomers" are reluctant to give up their independence and will increasingly choose to remain in their own homes.

That is why we need to work together (government, private sector, community organisations and medical specialists) to try and develop a plan on how the clear path of a dementia patient will look.

Budget allocation for dementia care a good start

The extra $44 million budgeted to look after people living with dementia is welcome, but providing for extra beds is only a short-term solution, says Hawke’s Bay based care agency Miranda Smith Homecare.

Health Minister Tony Ryall says the money, to be delivered over four years, is expected to lead to the provision of almost 200 extra dementia beds over the next two years.

Included is $4 million for additional respite care for full-time carers of people with dementia – including in-home respite - and District Health Boards are set to slightly increase their budgets for all aged residential care services.

Miranda Smith Homecare managing director Miranda Smith says New Zealand’s rapidly ageing population will put huge financial strain on the health sector over the next couple of decades.

“It’s pleasing to the issue is not being ignored, and that money is being specifically directed at dementia care,” she says.

However, while the creation of extra dementia beds is welcome, Ms Smith says continuing to go down that path is not a long-term solution.

She says health boards need to focus on keeping the elderly safe and cared for in their homes, rather than admitting them to hospital, and such care generally ensures good diets and promotes physical activity, along with early red-flagging of any serious problems.

“Having care at home and having support for those carers should be made a priority,” Ms Smith says.

Hawke’s Bay’s population of over 65’s is expected to rise from 22,900 to 36,000 over the next 15 years.

file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/diana.cooper/Local%20Settings/Temporary%20Internet%20Files/Documents%20and%20Settings/Miranda/Local%20Settings/Temporary%20Internet%20Files/AppData/Local/Microsoft/Windows/Temporary%20Internet%20Files/Content.Outlook/GAD20VFH/www.mshomecare.co.nz

For more information please call

Miranda Smith 0274891893

Are your elderly relatives eating well?

New research into the best ways of preventing malnutrition in the elderly has found that it is company at the dinner table that a person needs to thrive - not just the quick delivery of a  meal.  More at risk are those  living alone and it’s imperative that we address these issues, as the problem will certainly get worse with our ever increasing elderly population and many more choosing to live independently.

Meal preparation has always been in demand through MSHOMECARE.  We have carers who are able to prepare meals  with the  freshness and choice providing the ideal answer for someone who isn’t able to cook well or perhaps has no motivation to prepare meals.

We are very aware of the importance of company at mealtimes and providing that all important companionship to enjoy the meal. Carers are often sitting down to enjoy a cup of tea or meal with clients, knowing that the socialization is so important to an excellent quality of life. A great carer will often have fantastic communication skills –  being able to sit down and have a relaxed chat with someone is vital to keeping that person interested in life and living.

We are also helping clients living in rest homes and in hospital level care who are not able or willing to eat the meals provided.  With a carer on hand to assist them people are drinking and eating and their energy levels and health improves accordingly.  Carers are able to heat delicious soup, make toast, fresh scrambled eggs, cheese, crackers and pate etc, which often makes all the difference to a person’s day.

Vulnerable in Christchurch

At Miranda Smith Homecare our thoughts are never far from the Christchurch community. In the months since the first earthquake in September we have acknowledged that these terrifying shakes have produced, without a doubt, one of the most unsettling times in the lives of so many, young and old, in the Canterbury community.

It has also been tough on those further afield, where families are caring for displaced loved ones, forced from their homes.

It is so important to ensure we have someone to talk with, about our feelings of grief and uncertainty and it’s even more vital not to feel alone. Companionship and reassurance are a big part of caring for our communities and at this time it is more important than ever that we support one another.

In Christchurch we’re providing support to those feeling vulnerable but who have been brave enough to stay in their own homes, and in other parts of the country we’re helping with respite care for families who are caring for elderly relatives.

Our carers are out there in the community providing support and friendship wherever its needed and as we move into the cooler months, the warmth of a friendly, caring face will be important than ever.