Miranda Smith Homecare sets up in Bay of Plenty

Miranda Smith Homecare is now able to offer its care services in the Bay of Plenty region following the establishment of an area manager in Tauranga. The Bay of Plenty is a popular destination for people seeking a lifestyle change and as a place to retire. In many cases elderly have moved from other regions and left behind some of their support networks, and Miranda Smith Homecare lends its services towards picking up some of those support requirements. Bay of Plenty area manager Jacinta Gray says the agency has done a recruitment drive locally and signed up a cross section of quality carers who are ready and willing to provide clients with the care and support they need. In all the regions where Miranda Smith Homecare has a presence there is a growing need for palliative care as the population ages and increases the number of people choosing to receive palliative care in their own homes. The agency is specialising in this type of care and works collaboratively with multi-disciplinary healthcare teams to in order to carry out a level of service that allows elderly to remain at home when it would otherwise not be possible. Miranda Smith Homecare has built a reputation for quality of service and attention to detail, and aims to maintain this in the Bay of Plenty region for years to come.

Aged Care Pledge Needs Better Target, Says Care Agency

(From Scoop Media) Thursday, 21 August 2014, 9:55 am Press Release: Miranda Smith Homecare Aged Care Pledge Needs Better Target, Says Care Agency Labour’s pledge to set up an aged care working group to address industry concerns is good to see, but appears to skirt the obvious issue of a looming lack of beds and carers for our rapidly growing elderly population, says homecare agency Miranda Smith Homecare. The Labour Party yesterday announced that, if elected, it would set up an aged care working group within 100 days in office. Better pay for caregivers, “continuum of care” plans from home to palliative care, minimum rest home staffing levels, minimum qualification standards and consistent national elder abuse and neglect prevention services were some of its goals. Miranda Smith Homecare managing director Miranda Smith says with our rapidly ageing population, the aim of any working group should be simply to figure out how to respond to the growing need for care facilities and carers. The health system is already under pressure, the funded sector is reaching capacity and elderly are increasingly likely to find they have no-where to go when they can no longer look after themselves, she says. Ms Smith says a lot of work is already being done to address abuse and neglect, the carer qualification bar is always being lifted, and managing elderly from home through to palliative care won’t count for much if there are not enough beds or carers. “We are looking at three to six year issues, and regardless of who gets into government they will only get worse.” Ms Smith says Labour’s plan to boost support for elderly remaining in their own homes is promising, as is its plan to introduce an aged care commissioner, but hopes such a role would oversee the creation a long term plan, rather than short term tinkering. ENDS

ELDERLY CHOOSING POST-OP CARE AT HOME

In the past year or so Miranda Smith Homecare has noticed an increase in the number of elderly returning home soon after operations and recovering there with assistance from carers. This is sometimes happening due to the need for faster throughput in a stretched public healthcare system, but there also appears to be an emerging generation of educated and independent people making their own decisions and choosing to return home early. While it’s generally the case that health professionals such as physiotherapists play the lead role in these recoveries, our private carers are playing an important support role in ensuring hospital re-admittances are avoided, and success rates in the past several months have been outstanding. Managing director Miranda Smith says in the Wellington region in particular, there has been a notable increase in requests for carer assistance relating to home recovery, and in the past 12 months there has been a 100 percent success rate with clients in terms of avoiding post operation complications and hospital re-admittances. Ms Smith says keeping elderly out of hospital is one of the goals of both standard home care, and home care involving recoveries from operations. She says it’s satisfying to see such a high level of success, and help take some pressure off a stretched healthcare system where every night in a hospital bed can cost the state thousands of dollars. It is becoming more and more apparent that people approaching old age are sorting out home care arrangements themselves, rather than relying on the state or other family members, and similar patterns are being seen overseas. An article from South Shore Home Health in the United States, canvassing opinions from industry leaders, says modern medicine has extended life expectancy, and there has been a growing desire and ability in recent years for elderly to remain at home longer. “Patients receiving post-acute care in the home often spend fewer days in the hospital than they did just 10 or 20 years ago,” one commentator said. “This means that patients leave the hospital sooner and require more rehabilitative care in the home.” The article says, like in New Zealand, the culture in the United States has changed as well, resulting in an increased desire for home care services. “Patients have become much more knowledgeable and sophisticated when it comes to their care.”