To whom it may concern,
After our father passed away in 2011, mom moved into an independent senior apartment in Omaha. At the time, she could still manage fairly well, but did need some assistance to live on her own. We were fortunate to be able to employ the PCA that had taken care of our father in the year before his death, for mom. It made the transition a bit easier on everyone. After some months however, we realized we also needed a service that could assist with mom’s care on weekends and some evenings. Since only one of the six adult children lived in Nebraska, it was necessary to have a cadre of staff to call upon when needed and as things evolved with her health.
Physician’s Choice came highly recommended and we brought them on board. . .initially for filling gaps in the schedule and for evenings, weekends and holidays. Eventually though, our full-time private PCA moved on to another state. At this point we had used the Physician’s Choice staff part time and had been very happy with their care of mom, so decided to hire their agency on a full-time basis going forward.
Physician’s Choice provided consistency of care, as well as clear communication with family members. It was such a relief to have them “managing” mom’s care as her physical needs continued to become more and more complex in the last two years of her life. We established great communication lines with the staff and management team and our concerns were always addressed promptly and with much respect for mom and all of us. They seemed to know how difficult it was to be at a distance and were so aware and respectful of our feelings. The people that became “mom’s team” were strong, caring and competent. Mom needed daily ostomy care, Foley catheter care, medication management and meal preparation. They attended to all of that. Mom received showers 2-3 times a week or more if needed. Her staff would transport her to her many doctor appointments and when she was feeling well enough to Hy-Vee grocery store (her favorite outing!).
Physician’s Choice also provided an RN who came to check on mom at least twice a week and was always available for any urgent situations. Unfortunately, in addition to the many physical issues mom was battling, she had growing confusion and dementia issues in her last year. The staff provided the calm and caring stability that was crucial to her well-being. As things progressed, family members came to town more and more often. They never hesitated to accommodate us with flexibility around scheduling so we could spend as much quality time as we wanted with mom. They truly understood and stood by us, supporting all of us, in addition to mom on this journey.
It has been just over a year now since our mom passed away in 2015 and I can tell you that it warms my heart to know that mom was surrounded by such a caring, loving group of people during the last months of her life. I would highly recommend Physician’s Choice. . .they truly care.
Maureen Ziegler
