The Role of the Independent Care Advisor

You are making an important decision! Have you answered the 6 key questions when considering your care needs?

An Independent Care Adviser is an understanding professional who will listen to an individual, help determine an individual's needs, assess an individual's care requirements, provide the best possible information and advice on suitable care options, help select the right care option and provide ongoing monitoring of care.

An Independent Care Adviser can provide all of these as one overall service or any one of these as a self-contained discrete service.

Choosing the most suitable care for a relative or friend is never simple. Enlisting the services of an Independent Care Adviser can be an invaluable aid to establishing and making the best choice of care.

Many older people will be living happily in their own home, when either gradually - or suddenly - they realise they cannot cope. Frightened of losing their independence and perhaps unwilling to be a burden to those closest to them, they may say nothing. However, in due course, the risk of accident and self-neglect will generally result in the need for some level of care. The people responsible for resolving these care issues are normally family, friends or even a Solicitor with Power of Attorney.

Families will usually have received some medical information about their relative, but may be unsure about the care options that exist and which option is the most appropriate. Unless the care services are to be provided and paid for by the Local Authority, families are left to their own devices to select and pay for care.

The role of an Independent Care Adviser is not to push individuals towards a particular outcome, but to provide all the necessary information and support that the older person and the family will need to make their own decisions. Independent Care Advisers have the information and knowledge to guide individuals and/or families through all the care options available.

Independent Care Advisers also know that people often want support as well as information. A vital part of the Independent Care Adviser's job is to help clients deal with the emotional feelings associated with making difficult decisions regarding care.

Some Care Advisers may not be independent. They may be tied to a health organization or they may receive commissions from the care agencies and care homes they recommend. To be sure of professional and unbiased advice, it is important to use the services of a Care Adviser who is truly independent and does not accept commissions from care providers.

Members of the Association of Independent Care Advisers (AICA) follow a Code of Practice, which sets out a minimum level of professional standards.

Choosing suitable care for a loved one can be a difficult time, but using the services of an Independent Care Adviser will help and will inevitably assist families in avoiding costly mistakes when choosing care.

If you require further assistance or would like to speak to an Independent Care Adviser please call 0800 137 669