To learn more about the geriatric assessment at Advocare, visit HERE. As Professional Care Managers, we provide geriatric assessments throughout South Florida.
Navigating the maze of eldercare options can be challenging. A geriatric assessment can help you figure out the level of care your loved one needs.
“The phrase geriatric assessment is a bit confusing,” says Norbert “Bert” Rahl, director of mental health services at the Benjamin Rose Institute on Aging.
Sometimes an assessment looks at just one issue that’s causing problems for a loved one. For instance:
- If you are concerned about your mother’s physical status, the medications she is taking or how she is (or isn’t) managing a chronic condition, a physical assessment may be in order.
- If your father has mobility issues and you’re worried about how well he is (or isn’t ) getting around on his own, he may need a functional assessment.
- If you are worried about the psychological and emotional well-being of your loved one, a mental health assessment could be helpful.
- If your aging relative is displaying issues with memory, decision making and financial management skills, a cognitive assessment should be scheduled.
Or, to get the whole-person “picture” of what’s going on, Rahl suggests a comprehensive assessment, which looks at all those things and how they are interacting and overlapping in your older loved one’s life.
A comprehensive assessment could be coordinated by your loved one’s primary care physician. However, since these assessments require the skills and expertise of a team of specialists, they are best coordinated by a geriatrician: a physician who has trained and specialized in the care and treatment of older adults.
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