Veterans Adm Foster Home Ms Ferlin Charles.mp3
Ms. Charles made a presentation to the Coatesville City Council and to the public.
“It’s a relatively new program… Nationally it’s been around for about 2 years. And I wanted to reach out to Coatesville residents as I search for homes for care givers who are willing to open their homes for veterans…Basically our veterans will be World War II Veterans, Vietnam Veterans and across the country we have… Iraq Veterans. Part of my job is to find caregivers in the community pool to provide 24 hour care with physician support.
Veterans out of his or her pocket will reimburse the care giver…The compensation can be $1,500 a month to $2,500 a month depending upon the level of care.
One of the things that we prefer is that the bedroom is on the first floor. If you have a bedroom on the second floor you have to have a sprinkler system… I’ve met some caregivers who are willing to convert a living room or dining room on the first floor for that veteran."
Councilperson Jarrell Brazzle asked, “How many veterans can you have in a house?”
Ms. Charles replied, “Each home cannot have any more than 3 veterans. I would like to have 2 or 3 veterans in each home rather than by his or her self unless they absolutely insist…
We have a home based primary medical team that goes into the home and provides services and I’m also in the home as an assistant on a regular basis."
Coatesville City Council President Ed Simpson asked, “Now the veterans that need assisted living to have medications given, would they be in the homes?”
Ms. Charles, “Yes.”
Mr. Simpson, “And somebody, a nurse would come out every day?
Ms. Charles, “Absolutely not, “The nurse would provide the support. The caregiver would be the one that would provide the medication…
The caregiver is trained to administer these medications and then the nurse obviously is there for support."
Mr. Brazzle, “Does the caregiver have to live in the house with the veteran?”
Ms. Charles, “Absolutely; the VA has a program where the caregivers don’t have to live in the home. That’s not this program. This program is a little bit more personal than the other program. And also that program that is not within a home can have more than 3 residents…”
It covers the entire Coatesville area to about 30 miles out from the Veteran’s Hospital in Coatesville.
Ms. Charles, “There is a very strict application process. Every applicant has to go through an FBI background check, medical clearances, they have to be 21 years or older. They have to have some kind of experience taking care others; if you say I’ve been taking care of my dad, that’s enough.
If you are accepted into the program you might not get a veteran right away because the matching process also takes a while.”
The veterans in the Foster Care Program tend to be elderly veterans.
Ms. Charles, “It’s a process but the end result is well worth it.”
There is much more on the recording.
If you are interested in the Medical Foster Home Care Program, please contact Ferlin Charles, medical foster home coordinator, at 610-466-2273.
Daily Local News:
Thursday, December 9, 2010
How is Ms. Charles working for the Veterans Administration Hospital and simultaneously working on staff for a mental health clinic in Boston, MA?
ReplyDeleteHow is Ms. Charles working at the VA Hospital in PA and simultaneously working for a mental health clinic in Boston, MA?
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