Centric Healthcare Offers the Best PCA Services

The words long-term care facility and nursing home strike immediate fear and dread in the elderly and in their family members as well. The first question that comes to mind and should come to mind is why can’t I just stay in my own home? The good news is that, in most cases, you can stay in your own home thanks to personal care assistant (PCA) services.

What are personal care assistant services? PCA services are social care programs that assist with the non-medical needs of persons who aren’t getting around as well as they once did and allow them to live in their own home instead of being placed in an institution. To get a better understanding of PCA services, let’s take a look at what Centric Healthcare’s personal care assistant services entail.

Activities of Daily Living

There are a lot of basic activities which we often take for granted until they become difficult to perform. A personal care aide helps with tasks like:

• Dressing. Whether it is putting on clothing for the day, preparing to go to some family or community event, or undressing for the night, PCA home care assistants are there to help.

• Eating. Another daily function vital to maintaining health is, eating is an additional function of a home health aide.

• Positioning. Whether to relieve discomfort or make it easier to reach items you need safely, being positioned by an assistant is another important function of in-home care.

• Bathing. Though bathing is a non-medical procedure, it is a daily task that is essential for maintaining good health and an in-home caregiver can help you with hygienic needs.

• Mobility. Being able to move around in your home safely might also require the assistance of an in-home caregiver.

Toileting. Another highly important, non-medical need that is essential for maintaining health has to do with the elimination of waste and those who need assistance with mobility, transfer or positioning can also find the help they need from a PCA home care assistant.

Health-Related Procedure and Tasks

There are often health-related tasks that must be performed in addition to daily living activities in order to maintain proper health. A personal care aide will need to be prepared to perform health or medical-related procedures and tasks through the following:

• Trained and supervised by a qualified professional RN.

• An in-home caregiver must also be able to assist with ventilator support tasks if required.

• The personal care aid must demonstrate competency in being able to complete the tasks for which they are trained.

Observes and Helps Redirect Behaviors

Personal care aides might also have to observe and redirect behaviors that threaten the health and well-being of the person they are caring for as well. Those tasks could include:

• Offering support and assistance with episodic conditions or behaviors.

• Helping to redirect behaviors that threaten the health and safety of the person being cared for in their environment.

What You Need to Know About the PCA Program

The PCA Program was added to the State of Minnesota’s Medical Assistance program in 1978 so that individuals could remain in their own homes instead of being placed in institutions. Below are several frequently asked questions and answers to better inform you about the PCA program.

What PCA Program Options Are Available?

• Traditional PCA Option: With this option, PCA services are provided through an agency that hires, trains, schedules and pays staff members to perform the functions of an in-home caregiver.

• PCA Choice Option: Individuals are allowed to hire and independently train the PCAs who provide their care. This option allows consumers a greater level of responsibility in managing their care while the PCA Agency handles management-related functions.

• Shared Care Option: PCA workers can help two or three individuals who live in the same setting with the Shared Care Option.

• Flexible Use Option: The flexibility to use the approved PCA hours within a service authorization period can be controlled by the consumer who schedules what tasks or functions they desire to have assistance with when making use of this option.

Am I Eligible for PCA Services?

There are four requirements that must be met in order to be eligible to receive PCA services. You must:

1. Be a resident living in Minnesota

2. Be eligible to receive Medical Assistance or MinnesotaCare.

3. Have the capacity to make decisions about your own care or have someone who is able to do so on your behalf.

4. Undergo a PCA Assessment administered by a Public Health Nurse (PHN) from the county in which you live and the need for services must be determined through this assessment.

Can My Caregiver Be My Choice?

In Minnesota, PCA Choice Option listed above allows you to choose your own caregivers. Your family or friends can provide the services you require under the guidelines of this program and have the necessary training, support and supervision to do so. If you wish to make use of this option, Centric Healthcare is ready and eager to help you make that happen.

How Do I Sign Up and Get Started?

Getting signed up is not as difficult as you might think. Here are the steps involved:

1. Contact Centric Healthcare so we can assist in determining whether you are eligible for the program.

2. After walking you through an assessment of our own, we will provide you with the necessary contact information in order to request a PCA assessment.

3. The assessment nurse (PHN) will determine how many hours of service you will be eligible to receive.

4. We will train and hire the caregiver or caregivers you choose from among family and friends or from our own staff.

5. The PCA you choose will begin providing the services you need.