Thank you again to all for your continued support on keeping everyone safe and doing your part not to spread the virus!!!
Be a part of the Maximum Care website!!
Contact Yenica if you have anything you would like to see in the website. Topics, suggestions, comments, all open, as long as is within our policies, procedures and to enhance education.
Participant thought that maybe we should start our week with a joke! Take a min to enjoy the joke and if just for 30 sec laugh and forget about the stress of the day.
What do you call a sad strawberry?
A blueberry!!!
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Company policy is that we will provide a safe environment for all the DCW.
At times this is difficult since we cannot control all participant homes and may not know of any unsafe issues prior to start of care. Maximum Care Inc. has the nurses on staff to do the initial opening. Nurses are excellent on reporting to the agency any concerns that they might see as a problem for a DCW. They do their best to assess and come up with a care plan that fits the need of the participant and keeps the aide safe.
After the initial opening we depend on the DCWs daily assessments with their participants to make Maximum Care Inc. aware of any concerns, unhealthy, and/or unsafe client’s environment.
Communicate any changes about your client’s condition, his or her environment and/or anything that appears to be an unsafe client environment.
BED BUGS is an example!!!
Bed Bugs are small, reddish-brown parasitic insects that bite the exposed skin of sleeping humans and animals to feed on their blood. Although bed bugs aren't known to spread disease, they can cause other public health and economic issues.
Bed bugs are about the size of an apple seed. Bed Bugs hide in the cracks and crevices of beds, box springs, headboards, bed frames and any other objects around a bed. The risk of encountering bedbugs increases if you spend time in places with high turnovers of nighttime guests — such as hotels, hospitals or homeless shelters.
Symptoms/ Seek medical assistance.
It can be difficult to distinguish bed bug bites from other insect bites or rashes. In general, the sites of bedbug bites usually are:
Red, often with a darker red spot in the middle
Itchy
Arranged in a rough line or in a cluster
Located on the face, neck, arms and hands
Some people have no reaction to bedbug bites, while others experience an allergic reaction that can include severe itching, blisters or hives.
Causes
Bedbug infestations may be linked to:
Increased international travel
Changes in pest control practices
Insecticide resistance
Where do they hide?
Bed Bug infestations usually occur around or near where people sleep. They hide in the cracks and crevices of:
Mattresses
Box springs
Bed frame
Headboards
Objects or clutter near beds
They can also be found:
Under peeling paint and loose wallpaper
Under carpeting near baseboards
In upholstered furniture seams
Under light switch plates, electrical outlets, picture frames on the wall
How do they spread?
Bedbugs can move from one site to another by traveling on items such as clothing, luggage, furniture, boxes and bedding.
Bed Bugs can crawl about as fast as a ladybug, and can easily travel between floors and rooms in hotels or apartment complexes.
Sign of uncleanliness?
Bedbugs don't care if their environment is clean or dirty. All they need is a warm host and plenty of hiding places.
Risk factors
Bedbugs are more common in crowded lodgings that experience high turnover in occupancy, such as:
Apartment complexes, nursing homes
Dorm rooms
Homeless shelters
Hotels
Cruise ships
Trains and buses
Refugee camps
Preventing infestations
Secondhand items. Inspect used bedding items and upholstered furniture carefully before bringing them into your home.
Hotel precautions. Check mattress seams for bedbug excrement and place your luggage on tables or dressers instead of on the floor. Unpack and keep their suitcase items, clothes, etc., in the hotel bathroom. However, they can even be on a tile floor as well. Always check to ensure no bed bugs before placing something down. Some people hang their clothes on the shower rod.
Birds and bats. Eliminate any neighboring bird and bat habitats that may serve as a refuge for bedbugs.
Diagnosis/ Seek medical assistance.
If you suspect that you're being bitten by bedbugs, immediately inspect your home for the insects. Thoroughly examine crevices in walls, mattresses and furniture. You may need to perform your inspection at night when bedbugs are active.
Look for these signs:
Dark specks. Typically found along mattress seams, these specks are bedbug excrement.
Empty exoskeletons. Bed Bugs molt five times before becoming adults. These empty skins are pale yellow.
Rusty or reddish stains. You may find small smears of blood on your bed sheets where you accidentally crushed a bedbug.
Treatment/ Seek medical assistance.
The itchy red spots associated with bed bug bites usually disappear on their own within a week or two. You might speed your recovery by using:
A skin cream containing hydrocortisone (Cortaid)
An oral antihistamine, such as diphenhydramine (Benadryl)
If you develop a skin infection from scratching bed bug bites, your doctor may prescribe an antibiotic.
Treating your home/ Seek Professional Exterminator advice.
Once your symptoms are treated, you must tackle the underlying infestation. This heating. Your best bet may be to hire a professional exterminator, who may use a combination of pesticides and non chemical treatments, such as steam.
Non Chemical treatments may include/ Seek Professional Exterminator advice.
Vacuuming. A thorough vacuuming of cracks and crevices can physically remove bed bugs from an area. Empty the vacuum after each use.
Laundering. Washing and drying items in a dryer on the highest setting will kill bedbugs in clothing or linens.
Freezing. Bedbugs are also vulnerable to temperatures below 32 F (0 C), but you'd need to leave the items outdoors or in the freezer for several days.
Some professional exterminators use portable devices to raise the temperature of a room to a lethal temperature. All stages of bedbugs can be killed at 122 F (50 C). In some cases, you may have to throw out heavily infested items such as mattresses or couches. Bagging and sealing up pillows, clothes, etc., for at least 2 weeks can help kill bed bugs too.
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Announcements to assist our participants and family:
Memory Café:
Is just that!!!!
Café where the participants can sit with friends, by themselves and share some memories and anything current on their mind.
You can Google Memory Café and you will get a good idea. This is a free community service that the organization Morningstar Memory Café by Senior Solutions are providing and not meant to be sales pitch.
Diagnosis is left at the door – a time for fun, a time to laugh – even if it means laughing at yourself. Mild to Moderate Dementia and their care partner.
They will have up to 25 persons – all COVID precautions taken; masks, one couple at a table, 6 ft from next table, hand sanitizers etc.
If you would like to volunteer feel free to call!
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Activities:
Help us come up with creative things to do with our elderly! What do you do for your clients?
We would like the caregivers to take 20 min of their shift if possible, to do creative things with their clients. We are the first and maybe the last person our clients see in the day or even week. Loneliness is a big part of their lives. Let’s take some time to show them that we are not just personal care or home care but show them that they are not alone.
Creative Based Incentive Contest:
1. Come up with a creative and fun activity to do with your client
2. Call, text or email Yenica with the activity (610-264-2353, 484-781-4603, or yenica@lvvn.com
3. The office staff will vote
4. Winner will receive a gift card
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Travel Recommendations:
The Pa Dept of Health has recommended that if anyone travels to certain states that they quarantine for 14 days. Due to the daily changes from CDC and Pa Dept. Of Health, call into Maximum Care for instructions in regards to your travel plans and the impact that it may have.
Maximum Care Inc is following the recommendations at this time. If any changes come up, we will be posting it in the website Maximumcare.online. It is your responsibility to make staffing aware if there is any client’s that will need to be covered while you are out either in quarantine or vacation.
Follow the following steps to request anytime of:
Give us as much notice as possible.
Either request “The time off request form” or your letter for time off should include the following: Name of Cl, day of service and time. State where you will be going and for how long.
Email or mail the requested time off. Take note that we must put everything in the new system, even if time passes, we need everything in writing.
We have applied for the Hazard Pay!
We did not get the grant for the Hazard Pay. Maximum Care Inc. will continue to keep all DCWs informed of any changes.
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Reminder:
At this time due to the use of the EVV system we understand that documentation is difficult. Call the agency with any concerns you may have that you would like it to be documented. Especially if a client is refusing personal care or assistance of any kind. Call the agency if you need guidance with a client or have any question on the care that you are providing or feel that needs to be provided.
Maximum Care has also developed a form that is recommended to DCW to fill out when taking any kind of payment for items from clients. Call and request the form to be mailed to you or come into the office to get the form.
GPS
Maximum Care Inc is under state regulations to follow strict guidelines to pay DCW and to bill for all visits.
Maximum Care’s Inc responsibilities are to make sure that everyone is using EVV properly, pay all DCW properly, and to bill for the proper authorized hours allotted to the participant.
We also supervise all clock in & clock out within the range and schedule time.
The system alerts Maximum Care if you clock in or out when you are not within GPS range. Example: you cannot clock in from the LV Mall when you are supposed to be in the client’s home. It will alert us and show us an address and map of your location when you clock in or out. If you are out of range this may cause delay of payment. If for any reason you need to clock in or out of range due to participant, you must call the agency and make us aware. For example: If participants have therapy, Dr appointments, dropping them of or picking up from a program, etc. Call Maximum Care for special instructions to ensure contractual permission.
It is your responsibility to inform the office, it is not Maximum Care Inc responsibility to call and confirm the “Why’s”. Maximum Care can reject the visit until further investigation is done which will delay your payment.
Keystone supplying Covid-19 Care Kit!
Participants must be Keystone members. If they have either tested (+) for Covid-19, suspicion of Covid-19, or systematic but self-quarantine, participant or DCW can call Maximum Care.
The Covid-19 Care Kit will have the following:
Oral digital thermometer
Finger oximeter
Four 3/ply face mask
Hand sanitizer
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STAFFING REMINDER:
Open Work: If you go under more on the home page then click on open work tab, it will keep you posted on hours that are available at this time and the areas. Call Staffing to enquire about the open work available.
Refer a caregiver to Maximum Care Inc.:
You will receive $50 after 100 hrs worked. (At least within 2 months).
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PAYROLL REMINDER:
EVV system must be used to make sure that there is no interruptions, delays, or problem with direct deposit. In the future your pay will not be able to be processed if you are not using the system.
If your schedule changes for any reason we it is your responsibility to call it in. This way we
can fix any discrepancy to your schedule.
If you are having any problems with the system call and report it to Yenica “Jen” Muniz.
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Safety Training:
Fire Safety Training
9/9 & 9/16/2020 There will be fire training. 1st 46 to call in will be able to go to the training. Call Keri @ 610-264-2353 to register and get details of the training.
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Compliance Reminder:
Make sure that your employment file is within compliance to continue employment with Maximum Care. Compliance is no longer waived with all the contracts. Example of things that must be up to date, all car information, CNA license, annual TB, annual physical.
If any concerns or questions re: your file please contact Yenica “Jen” at 610-264-2353 or yenica@lvvn.com.
The Monitoring form must be done every shift.
If any questions please call Yenica “Jen” Muniz at 610-264-2353. The monitoring form is under the more tab and then the Covid-19 prevention & infectious control tab.
You can submit it to the office by either emailing yenica@lvvn.com or mailing them to the office.
The following dates are the conference calls:
09/16 @ 2pm A thru L, 09/18/2020 @ 2pm M thru Z
10/14 @ 2pm A thru L, 10/16/2020 @ 2pm M thru Z
11/11 @ 2pm A thru L, 11/13/2020 @ 2pm M thru Z
The phone number for the monthly teleconferences is 701-802-5077 with the access code of 6456087#. It will be considered long distance, please keep in mind when using landlines.
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