Caretenders

I didn't have the greatest experience with this agency. A relative was at a Rehab facility, and I reached out to Caretenders to set up the home nursing and health services. I reached out to them 6 days in advance of the relative's discharge. I told them I didn't want to wait until the last minute to get services in place, and I was trying to ensure a coordinated and safe transition. I then spoke to them daily for the next four days, checking to make sure a plan was being made, sending them info about the relative, giving them info about the rehab, and asking if they could arrange a visit for the first day home--a Sunday. Everything seemed to be going fine and then at the last minute, i.e., between 2:30-3:00 PM on the Friday before, they called me and said they couldn't accept the relative as a client. They explained that he/she had a psychiatric history they weren't aware of, and this was a liability they couldn't accept. The reason I fault them is this: 1) they waited until the last minute to bail out (which put me in extremely difficult position to try and find services by Sunday) 2) the nursing home doctor didn't think psychiatric nursing was necessary or order it, 3) they were notified earlier in the week that person had psychiatric issues--which they could have investigated then if concerned, 4) they told me at the last minute that they never received paperwork from the nursing home--which they never mentioned previously, and 5) they refused to help out temporarily for a week while I looked for another agency. I chose this agency because they were rated pretty well on Medicare.gov, but I'm afraid one of the reasons they have good ratings is because they pick and choose their clients, i.e., they don't take the most complex or medically challenging ones. While I understand that perhaps they believed they couldn't provide appropriate services, leaving us with no services is hardly a better situation, AND this should have been addressed days ago, particularly when I said my goal was to coordinate a smooth, safe, and not-last-minute transition.

Nurse suddenly stopped coming ! Plus no Pt set schedules.