Radio Show Podcasts

When a care facility threatens to discharge or evict a senior loved one because of a failure to pay, Elder law attorney Jim Koewler joins Suzanne to talk about what to do. Jim explains how to challenge a threat to discharge. You have 30 days, but don't wait to appeal. The facility can go ahead and discharge them if you don't get your paperwork in on time.

We sign all sorts of paperwork when a senior loved one is admitted to a nursing home, assisted living, or memory care community. But often we don't know what we're signing. When a senior living community threatens to discharge or evict a loved one, certain rules apply to those communities that take Medicare or Medicaid, regardless of whether your loved one is using those programs. Elder law attorney Jim Koewler joins Suzanne to talk about those rules.

Most nursing home and assisting living agreements have a spot for someone to sign as "resident representative." Elder law attorney Jim Koewler joins Suzanne to warn about certain aspects of that. One option is to sign your name with a comma, followed by POA, meaning that you're signing on behalf of your loved one, legally protecting yourself to consequences that can affect you personally.

This segment focuses on aspects of the admissions paperwork that are subject to federal rules when a senior love one comes into a skilled nursing facility.

This hour addresses all the paperwork — legal contracts — involved in a loved one's transition to senior living. Sometimes you're electronically signing your name and initialing a few signature blocks on an iPad, but you aren't shown the 50 related pages that are on the document you just signed. Here are some red flags to watch for in the paperwork. They apply to nursing home, assisted living, and memory care admissions.

Amy Schenk, community engagement lead at the Neuropsychiatric Research Center of Southwest Florida, joins Suzanne courtesy of Athira Pharma to talk about handling caregiver...

Certified Dementia Practitioner Amy Schenk joins Suzanne from Cape Coral, Florida, courtesy of Athira Pharma to talk about the difference between normal memory issues as a result of aging and abnormal issues, and indicators to watch for. What happens to our brains as we age normally, as well as what happens when it's not so normal. If you are seeing things that are different in the person you're concerned about, things that make you think "That's not like them," listen to your intuition.

Amy Schenk, community engagement lead at the Neuropsychiatric Research Center of Southwest Florida, joins Suzanne courtesy of Athira Pharma to talk about cutting-edge clinical trials. She educates, represents, supports and encourages people to take care of their brains. They talk about the stress of caregiving and risks for Alzheimer's disease. Preventative measures that are good for your heart are also good for your brain. Adequate sleep, a good diet, and hydration are important. Set healthy boundaries for yourself as a caregiver.

Certified Dementia Practitioner Amy Schenk joins Suzanne from Cape Coral, Florida, courtesy of Athira Pharma to talk about the impacts of the pandemic on families and people with Alzheimer’s disease. Amy also educates in both Assisted Living and Long Term Care environments.

This hour focuses on the major ways that senior homeowners can be taken advantage of through the process of selling their home. This final segment may surprise some listeners — one of the biggest sources of folks to take advantage of seniors are their own family members. The family should be there, advocating and having a loved one's best interests in mind, but that's not always the case. Some of the worst offenses come from their own family.