Service Delivery

Schedule Changes

We Need to Change Schedule

From time to time, unexpected changes may need to be made to your service schedule. If possible, we will notify you the day before your scheduled service to give you an approximate time to expect your Direct Care Worker. If an assigned Direct Care Worker is delayed and anticipates he/she will be one hour or more later than his/her initially scheduled arrival time, he/she will contact you to confirm your acceptance. If the Direct Care Worker will be longer than one hour or is not able to provide service at all on your scheduled day, your assigned CareSphere case manager will follow-up and arrange for another Direct Care Worker or an alternate service timeframe, depending on your wishes. In the event of an emergency or urgent situation, wherein your regular Direct Care Worker is required elsewhere, we will try to assign a replacement worker, providing a suitable one is available.

You Need to Change Schedule

If you need to make any form of change to your schedule, please give us as much advance notice as possible. Call our office instead of contacting your Direct Care Worker. Only cancel at the last minute if it is absolutely necessary and call our office as soon as you become aware that you need to cancel. If you fail to notify our office and the Direct Care Worker reports for duty, we have no choice but to charge you or your payer source for it as he/she must be paid.

You Want Extended Hours

If you want your Direct Care Worker to stay beyond your scheduled service time, please phone our office for approval. We will try to accommodate your wishes providing he/she does not have other obligations and/or it is authorized by your payer source.

Transfers & Referrals

Sometimes, clients need to be transferred to another Service Provider for a number of reasons including:

• There is a change in their medical or treatment plan.
• This agency can no longer provide the required care.
• Continuation of services with this agency is no longer appropriate.

Should it be in your best interest to be transferred, we will notify you or your representative immediately and give you an opportunity to participate in planning the transfer. If indicated, we will help locate a suitable Service Provider. Before a transfer or referral is made, we will obtain your or your representative’s consent to make the referral and to release information about your case to your new Service Provider(s). We will also coordinate the transfer for you.

Termination of Services

YOU Terminate Our Services

You or your representative may choose to discontinue your services with us at any time. We ask that you give us as much notice as possible.
While notice of termination may be given orally, we would appreciate receiving it in writing, as well. It would also be helpful if you include your reason(s) for discontinuing our services.

WE Terminate Your Services

We will terminate your services, with prior notice, if:

• your condition deteriorates to a level that requires care beyond what we can safely and competently provide
• your family assumes responsibility for your care
• you lose the supportive care you were receiving at home
• your care goals have been met and you no longer require our services
• we are reducing the scope and/or level of services that we provide
• you relocate to an area beyond our geographical service area;
• your home conditions become unsafe for you and/or Direct Care Workers
• your Physician has stopped your services or does not renew the order
• there is a safety risk to the Direct Care Worker
• you pass away

Under certain conditions, we may terminate your services without prior notice if:

• you or your representative request your services be terminated
• your medical needs require urgent and immediate assistance
• a disaster occurs, and your health and safety become at risk;
• your Physician has ordered a termination of services
• your and/or your Direct Care Worker’s safety becomes a concern
• Your payer source has stopped paying for your services

Disruptions in Your Service Delivery

Contingency Planning

Occasionally, your service may be disrupted for various reasons. (e.g., adverse weather, loss of power and acts of nature). Wherever possible, we will try to give you advance notice, but there could be situations when we cannot. To prepare for potential service disruptions, we will work with you to develop a Contingency (Backup) Plan:

• You can determine your service priorities in the event that Direct Care Workers are only available on a limited basis or they are not available at all.
• We will identify which activities are considered essential and what tasks can be re-scheduled. Some factors we need to consider include:
  • your physical dependence
  • your access to food, water and medication; and,
  • your ability to communicate.
• Should the disruption be caused by an emergency, all non-personal care services (i.e. homemaking activities) would not be available.
• You should keep copies of your emergency contact information, medical condition(s) and history sheets with you at all times.
• Give a copy of these sheets to a family member as well as to a trusted local contact person.
• You may wish to look into a personal medical alarm service. This type of service can get you help at the push of a button, 24-hours a day, 365 days a year.

Adverse Weather Conditions

When inclement weather conditions are predicted in advance of your scheduled service:

• We will make every effort to deliver services to you provided you and/or your Direct Care Worker’s health and safety is not put at risk.
• Where necessary, and if possible, we will deliver service to you the day before your scheduled service to ensure you have all necessary food staples and medications on hand.
• If you are a high risk individual, we will do everything we can to ensure your needs are met.
• We will remind you how to contact our on-call staff, emergency medical services and/or law enforcement.
• Be sure to keep your list of Emergency Telephone Numbers handy, should you require ambulance and/or law enforcement assistance.

Should unsafe, driving conditions be predicted or develop during your scheduled service hours:

• If your Direct Care Worker will be delayed, you will be notified of his/her expected time of arrival.
• If your Direct Care Worker is not able to safely reach your home, we will attempt to find an appropriate replacement.
• If a suitable substitute is not available or if driving conditions are too dangerous to reach your home, we will reschedule your services for another time.