Darlene Mann, a LivHOME Care Manager in Southern California, discusses the issue of advance directives. She addresses a number of topics including the difference between a living will and a durable power of attorney, what caregivers and care managers can do to assure that advance directives are in place and accurately reflect the senior’s wishes, and tips on raising the issue of advance directives with seniors.

Creating advance directives involves having an open discussion so that everyone understands what the senior wants, while allowing him or her to maintain control — even during a medical emergency.

You can listen to the episode at www.livhome.com/podcast

LivHOME Care Managers often help seniors and their families by digging beneath the surface.

Mande DeRome, MSW, demonstrated this when working with a woman who was apparently suffering from dementia. The woman was living in a messy home, had become separated from her family and appeared to be deaf.

However, as Mande found out, her medical condition was not as it first appeared. A buildup of earwax had caused a serious misdiagnosis.

To hear the full interview with Mande, click here.

A diagnosis of Alzheimer’s Disease can be devastating to those afflicted as well as their families. Through education, support and empathy, solutions are available.

Care Manager Randi Israel, MSW, LCSW, CMC, helped one Chicago-area family deal with this situation by working not just with the senior — but considering the disease in the context of the entire family.

When the woman was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s Disease, the reality hit her husband of 50 years hard.  Randi worked with the woman, her husband, and their son — who was living in Europe — to address the her condition with compassion and respect.

To hear the full interview with Randi, click here.

On page 7 of NAFC’s publication (click here), there is a great article by Sharon Rosenfield, a LivHOME Care Manager in Los Angeles, that talks about how LivHOME’s Care Managers help to maintain the dignity for seniors with incontinence.

Click here for Sharon’s bio and enjoy!

The Internet is clearly the future of communications, and weve been working hard on our LivHOME site to make sure we remain on the cutting edge.

Over the past 6 months or so, we have been adding content and making technical improvements. Here are our newest items:

The Senior Care Podcast by LivHOME. This is our audio show consider it Internet radio which you can either listen to on our site or download. There are 9 episodes available now with lots more to come. Click here to listen.

LivHOME Blog. Our blog is the home for all thats new and interesting at LivHOME. Its where youll find the newest content we produce all in one place. Please feel free to subscribe via email or RSS. Click here for the blog.

Acquisitions Page. Many company owners reach a point where they want to merge with a larger provider, and LivHOME has done quite a number of these acquisitions over the past several years. On our new acquisitions page, youll find all the information you need to see if LivHOME is the right partner for you. Click here for the page.

In addition, there are a number of other sections of the site that are quite interesting and informative. You can view our summary LivHOME video presentation, learn about our services, take our assessment quiz, and see who our Care Managers are.

Of course, if your have any thoughts or suggestions for the site, please feel free to leave a comment.