What To Expect From An Advisor with Daphne Davis

*The following is the output of transcribing from an audio recording. Although the transcription is largely accurate, in some cases it is incomplete or inaccurate due to inaudible passages or transcription errors.

The following podcast is provided by pinnacles senior placements LLC and answers for elders radio. Welcome back to answers for elders radio everyone. I am here with Wonderful Daphne Davis from Pinnacle senior placements. Daphanie, welcome to the program well, thank you definitely. I am so glad we’re going to talk about what it is that you do, because you’re amazing. Well, you do so many things for families and I will tell you, in the last probably four days I’ve been speaking directly to family members in an every single case that I’ve talked to it’s like your name has come up because you are such an important, pivotal part of helping families here in the area and I’m glad we’re taking the time today to talk about a little bit about what you do and really what should families expect from someone like you that when you come in and help, I think it’s important to connect with someone who’s a professional and what that means to me in my world is somebody who can do the right thing for the right reason every time and take themselves out of the equation and really look at the family and the elders and be an active listener, be able to to figure out what’s behind those words, to help guide them, be able to discern really what what’s important in our given situation. Every situation is different and some of the areas that we talk about, and you know there’s there’s big elephants in the room and then the ones that we don’t even acknowledge in every family. That’s right, but some of the the obvious ones are, first of all, how do we pay for this care that we’re thinking about? You know, having mom or dad leave their home or they’re not going to be with me anymore. They’ve been with me for a year and a half and care has progressed to a place that I’m I can’t do it, or our quality of our relationship is changing. How do I begin to pay for this? Huh? So we can talk about those issues. I think a professional should have a wide range of information. Also, location is very important, and what’s your flexibility and finding the right building or home that your lovedom will spend a hundred sixty eight hours a week in right versus you having to drive twenty minutes or do you need to drive two minutes? And as having that conversation. What is the reality of your day? What are the things that give your family member joy? What are the things that upset them? Yeah, let’s set them up for success. Sure it is the details of life that create a positive quality life. Right, right, paying attention to you know, mom just cannot stand and the noise of a yapping dog. Well, don’t have yapping dogs. You know if that’s a for sure or if that’s a wishless? You know, mom’s okay with dogs, but it’d be nicer if there weren’t there. Right, paying attention to those little details. I think in terms of a professional they should know what the wax are that regulate placement companies, and that’s interesting. Told them tell me about the laws that I know, that you know. You hear of placement companies and I’m really I’m sure that there’s some sort of regulations. There are. The state of Washington does have wax that are specific to placement companies. I will boldly say that not everyone is paying attention to those yet because they’re not, you know, enforce ars. Yeah, they’re not enforced right now, but I believe a professional should be able to say I have been in that home and per the whack. I believe it’s a lot. Six months or I’ve been in that facility. I know what the personality is, I know what their structure is in terms of finances. Do they convert to Medicaid, don’t they? The professional should know if there’s any enforcements against the prior facility or community and that enforcement that’s come down from the state needs to be disclosed well in and also, I’m sure you’re aware of the recent state service that happened on properties. So like, for example, I remember when my mom was in the hospital and and all of a sudden they said, well, we’re going to send her a rehab that’s the idea. They just told me where she was going. I didn’t think I even had a choice. You do have a choice and they and they can give you a list and say, you know, here’s some in the local area and that social worker at the hospital certainly has those resources for you to look at and that that’s a good example of you taking that on yourself as a family member who doesn’t even know what what I’m supposed to know. No, you kind of feel like you’re just kind of, you know, a deer in the headlights kind of being pulled along, pulled along for the ride, and you know they’re having you signed documents that you don’t know really what you’re signing. That’s right, that’s right, and certainly have somebody like you to to help guide you along the way. That’s right, huge and that is what we do. We Guide. We are not attorneys, we are not financial planners, you know, we are people who have enough information to know what you should be aware of. Hm. And you know what is a post form? I’ve never heard of a post form. Well, that’s a conversation. We would have aiden attendance. I’ve never heard of aiden attendance. Well, are you a veteran? Did you serve during more time? That professional should be able to guide you in the direction. We’ve functioned as an information post. That’s lovely and that’s wonderful. And obviously you can look at a care plan of you know, when mom or dad gets released, let’s say for Rehab, and the old familiar term of you know, mom’s going to be there for one more week or she goes on private pay and I need to find a place for for dad to live. Right. That’s where I step in and hopefully in the Rehab Facility that they have introduced you to a placement navigator or an advisor who can help you, because it’s overwhelming and that should start when mom gets to the Rehab Facility, not when you’re into it for two weeks or three weeks. A lot of protocols of change now from where you may have thought. That, again, is a professional placement person will help you and knowing what are the changes right. Work alongside social workers, we work alongside nurses at the hospital and we help kind of ask the questions that you may not have known what to ask. Right. We are talking to Daphne Davis from Pinnacle senior placements and Daphinitely tell us a little bit about what areas that you served. I serve everywhere, from from Marysville down to Olympia. I will say I just went to ORC as island last weekend how I could meet my favorite clients. It is one of my favorite and so I took the very early in the morning to go meet a new client up there. It was delightful. So is each situation is a little different, but where I am the strongest in a is king and Pierce County, along with Thurston County. Yeah, that’s a big area. It is. Well, seventeen years is a long time too. That’s a big, pretty pretty air it. So so how did we? You know, what’s the first steps like? When should a family think about reaching out to you? So let’s let’s give a traditional kind of scenario. That mom got to the hospital, she’s now being discharge. Can’t go home quite yet. She’s had three midnights in a hospital. So she’s qualified for her medicare coverage in a skilled nursing facility. And as soon as you get there, I would be asking about how do I navigate when mom’s not right anymore. Right we assume she’s going to go home, but maybe not, and so people can get a hold of me that you know at that time, even in the hospital, is a good time. I may be able to give you some guidance in terms of what are the possibilities for Rehab communities and what their strengths and gifts are in each one. But to contact me and just let me walk alongside you. I don’t make any decisions. You make the decisions. I just really make that internet or the yellow page is a lot smaller. Yes, your situation well, and and you know, here’s the reality of it. We don’t even know. The average person doesn’t even know what question is to ask. If you go visit a retirement community, you walk in and every place from an outsider looks the same. Everybody tells you their own you know speel that says this is why our place is better than anybody else’s, and then your phone starts blowing up because every everybody’s trying to get your parent to move into their facility. And Net it’s it’s not that simple. I mean it’s more it’s more complex. The process is more complex for an average person. And and having somebody like you that will sit down and say what’s your greatest values, what’s most important to you? If you’re a knitter or a do art there’s communities out there that are very supportive of arts and crafts, that’s right, and things like that, and you know who they are. I do. I know who they are. I just had a family yesterday that I met with and I had start working with them in the summertime and they went off in a direction that they thought was going to be best and and now they’re working with me again and they’re saying, Daphnite, be honest and direct don’t sugarcoat anything. Yes, is hard. We thought we made a good decision and so part of my job is to just tell you unbiased, factual information, based on the information you’re giving me. Absolutely absolutely. So, Um, you know, once, once mom or dad gets placed, obviously in a community, then what happens with you will certainly with me with pinnacle senior placements and working with Daphne or any of our employees. You will have follow up after that. This is this is going to sound really crash, but we do not wear house people. We uphold people’s dignity and quality of life and a safe environment, and so we follow up with you, the family, and with the Care Facility and making sure that everything that was needed or ordered for your loved one to be successful has gotten in a place, whether that be physical therapy, occupational therapy, speech therapy, medications are on board the there’s an extra heater that got put into the the building, I mean whatever it is, into the room. We make sure to follow up or if there’s any surprises, they said, Daphnie, you told me that this was going to happen and it’s not yet. I said, well, let’s get on this, let’s figure it out and I can be the person. Yeah, that’s a little bit of the squeaky wheel for you, the family. Do you ever find too, that mom or dad get into a facility are, you know, community and they just don’t like it or they don’t get assimilated into it right? And so when? When? And that’s where we follow up. You know, certainly two or three days after someone moves in and we follow up up to ninety days, depending upon the situation. But that can happen and that’s where I can come in and say what is a normal expectation? Many Times family say to me, but I don’t know if I’m complaining or if this is a real desire that I should be expecting. That’s where I can help you and help with the communication, because people are successful when you have open dialog. Absolutely, and that can be scary sometimes, you know, because this is my mom and now are they going to have preconceived ideas about my mom because I’m saying these things? But here’s other side of it. I bet mom is going to say things to you that she’s not necessarily going to say to daughter or son. Good Point Susan a lot of times because they want to say peace and write. No matter what’s going on with them, they are still your mom or your dad, and they’re talking to the twist stranger, talking to somebody that they don’t have seventy eighty years of history with. Can sometimes be a little safer and I can find out information that that families can’t right and the bottom line is here that we haven’t even brought up. Your services are free. They are completely free to my family, as I’m paid by communities and I work with every single community of the state of Washington. My belief is to do the right thing for the right reason every single time, and so I’m paid like a realtor. That’s wonderful. So definitely. How do we reach you? You can reach me on the phone at eight hundred and fifty five, seven, three four, one five hundred. Again, that’s eight hundred and fifty five, seven, three four on thud fifteen hundred. Great. And your website? My website is Pinnacle Senior Placementscom. Definitely it’s a pleasure having on the program thanks again. Thank you. The preceding podcast was provided by pinnacles senior placements LLC and answers for elders radio to contact pinnacles senior placements, go to Pinnacle Senior Placementscom