Use Caution When Considering An Elder Care Facility or Home Care Referral Service

As our population ages, so does the need for care services for the elderly.  There are numerous organizations, many for profit, that offer in-home care.  In addition, there also are long term care facilities that offer housing and other living arrangements for seniors ranging from assisted living to skilled nursing. Often the need to find such services and facilities comes up quite suddenly.  Not knowing much about their options, many consumers will turn to referral services to help in finding appropriate care and/or facilities. Before doing so, it is important to note that referral services are often available directly from hospitals if the need for care has arisen out of a hospitalization.  Each hospital has staff known as discharge planners who can assist in identifying possible services or facilities.  In California, there are also several regional nonprofit organizations providing such services.  In the greater Sacramento area, one such organization is the Del Oro Caregiver Resource Center. Beyond these groups are the private, for profit, referral services.  They advertise their services as being free to the consumer.  However, they are not charities and do not operate for free.  Instead, they are paid commissions by services and facilities with which they have contracted to provide placement services.  This is where the problem can arise.  When the payment for the referral source comes from the care provider, not the person needing care, it is easy to see where the loyalty of the referral service will likely be pledged. There have been investigative reports over the years that have revealed that some referral services based their recommendations to consumers solely upon the commission they earn without regard to the quality or lack thereof of the service or facility they recommend.  As a result, these reports have revealed that inappropriate referrals were made to substandard facilities or others with histories of serious care violations. The moral of this story is that you should not rely solely on the advice of a referral service.  If you do not know whether or not the referral service is for profit, ask.  Also ask if they will receive a commission from the facility or service that they have recommended.  If they say yes or give you an evasive answer, you should assume that they do.  This does not mean that the facility is necessarily a bad one but, at a minimum, you should personally evaluate the facility including a personal tour and background check on the facility.