A Geriatric Care Manager (GCM) is a social service professional who specializes in assisting older and disabled individuals and their families with long or short-term care arrangements.

Lisa J. Krauss, MA, LPC, NCC, CMCAfter conducting a thorough assessment, the GCM creates and coordinates a plan of care with the goal of improving the client’s quality of life, while allowing the individual to maintain independence as long as possible.

Professional Geriatric Care Managers have extensive knowledge of area resources including costs, quality and availability. They possess psychological expertise in counseling and the geriatric field. Based on the client’s level of functioning, health, emotional state and finances, a GCM can identify needs and problems and offer timely, practical and cost-effective solutions.

We integrate health care and psychological care with the appropriate combination of services such as: housing, home care services, programs for socialization, financial and legal planning. Care plans are modified as needed and services are monitored on an ongoing basis. The GCM is available around the clock to assist in crisis intervention. We also act as a liaison for families who are not living near their elderly loved one.

During a time of transition and challenge for the client and his or her family, a Geriatric Care Manager is an invaluable source of information, as well as an advocate for the client.  The GCM will maintain regular contact and open communication with clients and families, as well as an awareness of their ever-changing and evolving needs.

Services Provided by the Geriatric Care Manager:
  • Conducting care-planning assessments to identify needs, problems and eligibility for assistance.
  • Screening, arranging and monitoring in-home help and other services.
  • Reviewing financial, legal or medical issues.
  • Offering referrals to specialists to avoid future problems and to conserve assets.
  • Providing crisis intervention.
  • Acting as a liaison to families at a distance; including providing regular updates and alerting families to problems as they arise.
  • Providing client and family education and advocacy.
  • Counseling and support.
  • Assisting with moving clients to or from a retirement complex, assisted living facility, rehabilitation facility or nursing home.
 

Recommended Reading:

"I... learned there were dynamics in my family-our roles, our complex feelings about one another, our ways of operating-that we’d been acting out our entire lives without being conscious of them. Most of these I could never have changed, no matter what I did. Yet understanding them better could have helped me do more of what was possible and reduce my distress over what was not."

Quoted from They’re Your Parents Too! How Siblings Can Survive Their Parents’ Aging Without Driving Each Other Crazy by Francine Russo

They’re Your Parents Too! How Siblings Can Survive Their Parents’ Aging Without Driving Each Other Crazy by Francine Russo

As parents age and begin to need more help and care from their children, the  family of origin enters what the author calls the “twilight transition.”  Most adult children are unprepared for this new and challenging phase of life, and it can be especially difficult to find themselves suddenly working alongside adult siblings while they navigate the array of challenges and complications that inevitably arise. This bookis a guide to working productively with siblings (and other family members), while attempting to attend to the changing needs of aging parents. Informed by interviews with a variety of experts in the field, the author offers practical advice on minimizing conflict while handling family responsibilities such as: negotiations regarding care giving, inequities in contributions of money and time, and figuring out who will make medical, financial and other decisions. Having lived this experience firsthand, the author gives suggestions about coping with family rivalries, resentments and past hurts. She points out the importance of avoiding discord, while encouraging empathy for fellow family members, the ultimate goal being the transformation of an often dreaded and intimidating job into an enriching experience for everyone involved.

Never Say Die: The Myth and Marketing of the New Old Age by Susan Jacoby

"The reality evaded by propagandists for the new old age is that we are all capable of aging successfully –until we aren't."

Quoted from Never Say Die: The Myth and Marketing of the New Old Age by Susan Jacoby

The concept that a positive attitude and healthy lifestyle will keep us young forever needs to be questioned, according to journalist Susan Jacoby. In this new book, she tackles the myth that we can defy aging, and presents a well-researched picture of the realities that older Americans face. While some will find her outlook pessimistic, she nevertheless offers valuable insights into issues of aging that many readers will find enlightening and helpful.
 

Online Resources and Helpful Links:

Mayo Clinic Article: Aging Parents: 7 Warning Signs of Health Problems

Mayo Clinic Article: Caring for the Elderly: Dealing with Resistance

Watch a short clip about Geriatric Care Managers on CBS News:
http://www.cbsnews.com/stories/2011/04/06/earlyshow/main20051284.shtml

National Association of Professional Geriatric Care Managers (NAPGCM)
Describes role or GCM’s, what to ask and how to get started. Also contains helpful articles. www.caremanager.org

NAPGCM, New England Chapter - www.gcmnewengland.org

National Association of Social Workers (NASW)
The largest group of professional social workers in the world, NASW works to enhance the professional growth and development of its members, to create and maintain professional standards, and to advance sound social policies. Learn about standards and find local chapters.
www.socialworkers.org