Home Care for Nuclear Weapons & Uranium Workers

Why home health care?

The decision on whether or not to select home health care is a deeply personal one, involving discussions with family and loved ones. Because being at home with pets and loved ones is comfortable and safe, home health care is often preferred by individuals over being cared for in a specialized facility. PCM believes in-home care is the best form of care, as it provides the best level of comfort to both clients and their families.

The benefits of PCM’s home health care to clients are many. Home health care keeps individuals relaxed, because it is delivered in the comfort of their own home and they can maintain their freedom and independence. Home health care makes it easier for friends and family to come visit, without having to wait for visiting hours. Home health care is specifically tailored to meet the needs of the client. Home health care produces better health outcomes, as it reduces the risk of re-hospitalization or contagious infection.

Home health care gives families confidence and peace of mind, knowing their loved ones are comfortable at home and receiving professional, compassionate and personalized care. In many cases, it’s the most satisfying form of care.

What kinds of care does PCM provide?

Professional Case Management provides a broad range of services, ranging from highly skilled nursing care to aide and attendant care. The care provided depends on client’s specific medical needs. Some clients require only periodic visits to monitor vitals; others need round-the-clock nursing care. Some clients require assistance with personal activities like hygiene or dressing; others need assistance with household activities like meal preparation or light housekeeping. The range of services PCM provides varies from case to case and is prescribed by the client’s own physician. In some instances, PCM may also provide physical therapy services.

How does PCM ensure client satisfaction and respect?

Professional Case Management pays great attention to employing and selecting the right professionals who will care for clients at home.  PCM staff members take great pride in providing the highest level of nursing expertise, clinical excellence and patient advocacy.  It is both an honor and pleasure for PCM to serve clients in their time of medical need.

PCM requires its Nurses and Caregivers to treat their clients with respect, observing a very high standard of professional conduct.

The responsibility to adhere to these professional boundaries rests with Nurses and Caregivers.  If clients ever have any questions or concerns about PCM staff crossing these professional boundaries, clients are encouraged to contact their local PCM Regional Director immediately.

How does PCM assure high quality care?

Professional Case Management is committed to providing a high standard of care for each client. PCM has therefore instituted a number of programs and oversight committees to ensure that the company’s policies and practices maintain the level of quality and professionalism clients expect. These efforts include administering regular surveys to monitor client satisfaction and identify areas for improvement. In addition, PCM has a dedicated quality assurance team that routinely monitors the delivery of our health care services.

For more information on PCM’s quality assurance, click here.

There are four steps to getting PCM’s special home care. PCM accompanies prospective clients every step of the way:

Step 1.   Expression of interest. First a prospective client has a brief conversation with a PCM staff member to express his or her interest in home health care. This staff member then submits a referral to PCM’s clinical team to request a follow-up visit.

Step 2.   Prospective visit. The local PCM office contacts the prospective client to schedule a follow-up visit. This visit allows a PCM nurse to request an assessment and evaluation order from the treating physician in order to perform a clinical examination on the prospective client.

Step 3.   Comprehensive assessment visit. As soon as PCM receives the assessment and evaluation order from the physician, a member of the local PCM team contacts the prospective client to schedule a comprehensive assessment visit. The information gathered during this assessment will be shared with the treating physician to determine the needed services.

Step 4.   Complete paperwork & obtain authorization. PCM submits paperwork to the U.S. Department of Labor to authorize a prospective client’s home care. Once we receive their authorization, your nurse Case Manager will coordinate with you and your family to begin the services requested by your physician and approved by the U.S. Department of Labor.

All of PCM’s clients are assigned a dedicated support team to ensure that their home health care needs are being met in a professional manner.

Case Managers: All clients are assigned a case manager, who serves as their primary point of contact. All of PCM’s case managers are registered nurses to ensure that they have a thorough understanding of clients’ care needs. The case manager’s primary role is to coordinate and foster the client and caregiver relationships. They conduct client care assessments, provide caregivers with client-specific orientations, supervise caregivers in the home to ensure the quality of care, coordinate with physicians and other providers involved in the client’s care, and respond to inquiries from the client or family. They also stay in regular communication with caregivers to ensure that any medical issues are addressed in a timely manner by a skilled professional or the physician. In summary, PCM case managers are responsible for guiding each client’s overall plan of care.

Staffing Coordinators: Each client with caregiver shifts has a designated PCM staffing coordinator, who contacts the client to schedule appropriate caregivers. These caregivers are assigned to meet each client’s specific needs based on their individualized home plan of care. PCM has a staffing department which operates 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to provide assistance whenever a client or caregiver needs it.

Regional Directors: PCM’s Regional Directors are experienced Registered Nurses (RN) responsible for overseeing the local clinical teams and administrative functions. They provide direct leadership to clients’ case managers and caregivers, including crucial responsibilities such as clinical documentation supervision. Regional directors provide a higher level of support to issues that require additional attention.

What levels of care does PCM provide?

While PCM is proud to be the largest, most experienced in-home care provider for nuclear weapons and uranium workers, the care is customized to each individual and supervised by the local client support team.
Depending on the level of care prescribed by the client’s treating physician, multiple providers may be assigned to the care team. PCM employs different types of care providers to service clients’ varying needs.

1. Nursing Professionals: PCM employs registered nurses (RNs) and licensed practical nurses (LPNs) to provide medical care to clients in the comfort of their own homes. These professionals provide a wide range of nursing services, including medication administration, pain management, wound care, and oxygen titration, among others. Should a client’s health condition change, these nursing professionals collaborate with the client’s physician to ensure issues are addressed quickly. This helps keep the client in the home and out of the hospital.
2. Aide Nurses and Caregivers: PCM employs home health aides to provide assistance with selected medical processes for clients with stable, predictable health conditions. For example, aides will monitor clients’ health vitals. Furthermore, home health aides assist clients with a range of personal activities, like dressing, bathing, and hygiene. Aides also provide assistance with daily living activities like cooking, light housekeeping, and laundry.
3. Attendant Nurses and Caregivers: PCM employs attendant Nurses and Caregivers trained to provide strictly non-medical personal care and related homemaker services. Unlike aides, attendants do not provide any medical services. Rather, they perform similar personal and daily living duties, such as cooking, light housekeeping, and hygiene. They also provide companionship through conversation, emotional reassurance, and activities that stimulate the mind, like reading and writing. In some cases, PCM also provides physical therapy services to clients. These services assist clients in learning how to restore function by training on gait, use of cane, walker, wheelchair, artificial limb, and energy conservation.
4. Relative Nurses and Caregivers: PCM employs family and close family friends to provide care at the same level of our attendant Nurses and Caregivers. The relative Nurses and Caregivers will receive training to provide care for the needs of the people they are providing care.

What makes PCM’s Nurses and Caregivers so special?

One important distinction of PCM’s Nurses and Caregivers is that they are all employees of PCM – not contractors. This point is very important – it’s how PCM assures its high service quality standards. With Nurses and Caregivers as employees, the company has direct control over the level of safety, security and care quality provided.

At PCM, clients’ safety, security and peace of mind are of the utmost importance, and we ensure it by implementing the following for our employee Nurses and Caregivers:

• Hiring: All of PCM’s Nurses and Caregivers go through a strict hiring process that includes background checks and professional credential verification.
• Training: When hired, Nurses and Caregivers undergo a client-focused job orientation process, which trains them in the unique needs of PCM’s clients and instructs them on the standards of professional conduct expected from Nurses and Caregivers.
• Liability: PCM provides liability insurance coverage for Nurses and Caregivers while they are in the client’s home. Knowing that PCM has adequate insurance for its Nurses and Caregivers gives our clients peace of mind and protection.
• Taxes: PCM complies with employment and withholding tax laws for its employees.  As opposed to contractors, clients never have to worry whether a caretaker is appropriately paying taxes or complying with unemployment insurances.
• Oversight: All Nurses and Caregivers are supervised by the client’s local case manager—in person. PCM has several additional oversight committees to ensure that Nurses and Caregivers maintain strict compliance with company policies and legal regulations.
• Drug testing: PCM Nurses and Caregivers must submit to random drug tests throughout the course of their employment with the company.
• Tenure: Many employees have worked for PCM for a very long time, and have become very specialized in the care needs of the company’s unique clientele. Long-term employees also provide excellent continuity of care for clients.