Betty and Carl Met in the 5th Grade
Reconnecting after several years, they married in 1957--sixty years ago this coming July. Betty was a Spanish teacher and homemaker and Carl was a successful engineer and worked as a civilian on U.S. Navy submarines. So when the articulate and intelligent Carl came to see us about the love of his life, it was one of the most challenging times he had faced. Up until this point, Carl had been caring for Betty in their home. Now, managing his wife’s health care on his own was becoming much more difficult.
Placing his wife into long-term care in a nursing home was difficult for both Carl and Betty. On top of that decision, how to pay for this transition was also a concern that he knew nothing about. As an existing estate planning client of the firm, Carl reached out to Board Certified elder law attorney Rep DeLoach for guidance. At the time, Carl did not know that Rep had created a specialized practice area and team of professionals to address these types of concerns.
This is Where Our Elder Care Navigation Team Stepped in to Help Carl and Betty
Elder care navigation is the legal practice of combining not just financial and legal advocacy, but also helping with a client’s health care advocacy. Making the right decisions can be very difficult when a loved one is having health issues and may not be able to remain at home. At an emotionally difficult time, the family receives confusing information from many different sources. Doctors, hospitals, discharge planners, health insurance, money concerns, placement issues and more can overwhelm anyone. Most families are usually alone in navigating these difficult waters.
Our goal as a elder care navigation law firm is to assist the family in promoting the good health, safety and well-being of our client, whether he or she is at home or already in long-term care. Our approach focuses not only on Medicaid and VA benefits, but in assisting the family provide proper care for our client. Elder care navigation is a holistic solution for families struggling with the demands of a loved one's care and financial issues.
Part of our team includes our Elder Care Coordinator, Gloria Centonze. Gloria helps bring our legal and financial plan together with the best health care possible. Gloria has worked in the health care industry for over thirty years, the last fifteen as a social worker. She knows good care when she sees it! She now regularly visits Betty and Carl, helping make sure that she has proper care, and that he has the support he needs. Another critical part of our team is Public Benefits Specialist Tammy Tolsma. She helps navigate the financial component including Medicaid and VA applications to help answer the question “how am I going to pay for this?”
When asked what advice he has Carl said,
According to Carl, Gloria provided him with some valuable advice “One, don’t feel like people are judging you and; two, put your guilt in a proper perspective.” For someone whose life and work had been based on logic, the elder care navigation team has provided knowledge, guidance and support in what seemed an illogical situation. Being able to help clients the way we have Carl and Betty is some of the most rewarding work we do at DeLoach, Hofstra & Cavonis, P.A. It steps beyond law to include compassion, empathy, and advocacy to allow loved ones to care for each other with confidence and dignity. When you need help, call us. Our Elder Care Navigation team stands ready to assist our family of clients.“I keep telling people, if you find yourself in this situation get yourself an elder law attorney like Rep because it’s a tough world out there and you can do a lot of wrong things. You need someone to steer your ship. I don’t care how smart you are; you don’t have the training or the background to know how to navigate the social, financial and governmental structure that exists which is very complicated.”