ATTENTIVE-PRIMECARE Home-Health Care - or the lack of - from a provider that was a 'NO-SHOW'

 A factual story from the editor of  'Obama in the White House' blog

With health care being a very hot topic in Washington today, some of the stories that you may hear regarding current home health care can be very alarming. Below is a personal home health care experience that is directly affecting my mother, who desperately needs good, reliable home health care.

Recently, I dismissed a home health care agency called ATTENTIVE-PRIMECARE, because the therapists did not show up on a regular basis. This is unfortunate, because as I just mentioned,my mother at age 79, is in desperate need of good, reliable health care at home. Their responsibility was to provide physical therapy, occupational therapy and nursing care at home. I can honestly say that the nursing staff that ATTENTIVE-PRIMECARE uses is A-1, and I am sorry to see them not return. So why then did I dismiss this home health care agency.
To put the issue in a nutshell, their therapists did not arrive to take care of my mother as they should on a regular basis. This was the major reason I hired them in the first place. The issue began with an occupational therapist named Leslie, who appeared to be one of the best occupational therapists my mother has ever had. She was extremely knowledgeable, caring, sincere at her job and a perfect match for my mom. Unfortunately, one day she told me that that do to some other circumstance, that she would not be able to take care of mom anymore. To me at the time, that was understandable, as she told me that she would make sure that another therapist was assigned to my moms case. Leslie's last visit was February 20th, 2009, and I called the ATTENTIVE-PRIMECARE office several times asking them to re-assign another person to take Leslie's place. on May 18th, 2009, it was again documented in a flow chart kept at our home, that I had requested that someone come out and re-evaluate my mother for Occupational therapy.Finally after the re-evaluation, another therapist was assigned.
I thought my problems were over, because now mom had a steady nurse to visit her each week, an occupational therapist, and a physical therapist. So what do you think happened next. At the end of of May, the Physical therapist stopped showing up. I was patient for 2 months, and did not get a response from ATTENTIVE-PRIMECARE during that time, even when I had asked the nurse and the occupational therapist to tell the agency to please send another Physical therapist. No-one ever showed, so finally on July 15th, I told  ATTENTIVE-PRIMECARE that I no longer needed their services, because as far as I was concerned, they were not providing a service that I could live with. I thought they would dispute my claim, and at least call me back, but they never did. Basically, they just did not care.
They were recommended by the Baylor Hospital system in Garland, Texas, as my mother has been a frequent patient of the hospital.
 What is upsetting about all this, these heath care agencies get paid directly from my mothers Medicare benefits, and they most likely have been collecting their money whether they show up or not. For example, they were relieved of their services this week, as only the Occupational therapist showed up on Wednesday the 15th, just within an hour or so after my mother returned from receiving dental surgery. Of course she was in no mood and no condition to accept any kind of therapy, as she was in pain, and still very sluggish from the anestesia she received prior to the surgery. Obviously nothing was done, but I was to sign paperwork that the occupational therapist has me sign each time that they visit. Medicare had to pay for a visit where no services were rendered. But, I had failed to call the therapist prior to her scheduled arrival time that day to inform her that her services were not needed. I didn't have to worry about the Physical therapist, because I still didn't have one assigned. I then immediately called the company that day on July 15, 2009, and informed them that I no longer needed their services. I also called the Nurse and Occupational therapist that I was not dealing with ATTENTIVE-PRIMECARE any longer. I have the documentation to prove my claim as the logs will prove as to what I am saying is true.
Now this is unfortunate. I will again search and find another agency to take care of mom. She will have to be re-evaluated before the therapists will show up. There seems to always be a continued delay with the home health care system. I hope President Obama weeds out the companies such as ATTENTIVE-PRIMECARE from providing such unjust services to seniors, who live day to day in some cases, and is the case of my mom. It is very difficult for me to understand why home care services are so difficult to receive.

If any readers have any stories to tell about their home health care agencies, I would be glad to post that story here, as long as there was factual information supplied.  Also, if anyone could recommend any good reliable home health care agencies in the Dallas Texas area that I may be able to use, please send me a comment to this article.