Our Services

Today, it's not just the frail elderly who need long-term care. Unfortunately, even younger people with chronic illnesses or disabilities require long-term care. In fact, 40% of people who are receiving long-term care are adults between the ages of 18 and 64. While the good news is that modern medical technology has allowed mankind to live longer, the bad news is that we are at a greater risk for needing long-term care as we age and because we are exposed longer to chronic illness or to accidents. The major disadvantage to living longer for many people can be that the quality of their lives can suffer for it if they're in poor health.

S. Gerber & Associates uses a holistic approach in protecting two vital cornerstones for anyone at any age who require long term care assistance; independence and quality of life. Our consultants look at each individual's needs with this concept in mind. We therefore make recommendations and implement services that involve a person's entire physical, mental, emotional and spiritual aspects, instead of just the symptoms of whatever medical condition they may have. Based on an individual's long-term care needs, the following services are available:

In-home assessment, interview & evaluation: S. Gerber & Associates conducts a thorough assessment by interviewing the family member needing long-term care, other family members, and caregivers. The assessment includes review of the individual's abilities to perform activities of daily living (ADLs), cognitive abilities and skills, memory, psychological and social wellbeing, as well as their quality of life. This assessment is the foundation for developing a care plan.
Care plan development: Whenever possible, the individual receiving the care, and family members along with our consultant, review available resources and options, select those that provide the most appropriate care based on the assessment, the person's needs, and financial resources, and design a care plan accordingly. The care plan is updated whenever there is a significant change in an individual's health or mental condition affecting the quality of care or quality of life. Our consultants also attend and participate in care plan development meetings that are initiated by other health care providers.
Care management & monitoring: Depending on how much care and supervision the family chooses to provide themselves, our care managers are prepared to coordinate and supervise on either a routine basis or on an as needed basis, all aspects of care being provided. This may include such things as visits to insure that the care being delivered to your parent or family member satisfies and complies with the care plan, communicating with third party caregivers and staff and coordinating any necessary care changes or resolving any problems that either you or our care manager observes, and acting as your liaison or representative to address concerns and resolve issues or problems with the management of the third party health care provider or other long-term care professionals.
Communication with family members and long distance caregiver support: The care managers at S. Gerber & Associates are accountable to you and are therefore responsible for communicating either verbally and/or in writing directly to you about the status of your family member's care and of any changes needing to be made to the care plan as a result of changes to your family member's needs. For those adult children who've moved away from Houston while their parents remain, we understand the additional worries and concerns you may have and therefore communicate with you as frequently as desired. You may contact our care managers during normal business hours whatever concerns or issues that you may have regarding the care of your family member. Of course, matters requiring immediate notification are discussed with you at the earliest possible time.
Staffing: Competent, dependable, well trained staff is the key to your family receiving consistently good quality care, and therefore work closely with agencies to screen and select staff that consistently deliver and meet these high standards. We are especially considerate of personalities and life style preferences. Finally, we monitor the outside caregiver on an ongoing basis to ensure that the best quality of care and life is being delivered to your family member.
Facility selection and placement: We understand how difficult and oftentimes traumatic change, especially a major life change, is for most people. To minimize your stress and maximize peace of mind, we find the most appropriate living arrangement that satisfies the needs of your family member. After almost 15 years in the metropolitan Houston market, we have an extensive and thorough knowledge of the physical facilities and communities and the management and ownership that operate them.
Scheduling and management of personal activities and appointments: We make arrangements for such outings as doctors' appointments, cultural or social activities, and personal or grocery shopping and participate with the family member whenever possible.
Confidentiality: At the time we initiate service(s) with you and/or your family member, we will have you or your family member sign an authorization to obtain and convey medical information and a privacy notification form in compliance with all current Health Information Privacy and Protection laws.
Documentation: We maintain pertinent information and records to appropriately and effectively manage the care of your family member and to efficiently communicate with care professionals. This may include such records as medication changes, changes in a medical diagnosis, prognosis, or observed changes in behavior or health of your family member.
Medication management, organization, supervision and administration: This includes verification of medication compliance, review of medications with prescribing physicians, and re-ordering of medication. Oftentimes problems arising from poor health amongst the elderly are due to non-compliance with medications.
Employee benefit: According to recent studies, 25% of workers over the age of 30 have care giving responsibility for an aging parent or older relative and 40% expect to be caregivers in the near future. Similar studies of different sized companies from small to large (in terms of number of employees); indicate the significant loss of employee productivity that directly contributes to lost revenue and profit. S. Gerber & Associates can improve productivity through development of a customized employer sponsored program to provide long-term care management and planning and funded with employer contributions, employee contributions, or a mixture of both.
Other services include: Bill payment, money management, benefits and insurance claim filing, verification, and selection, coordination & monitoring of services furnished by other service providers (such as certified financial planners, CPAs, estate and elder lawyers, home repairmen, movers, and lawn maintenance). See our financial section for more information.