How to Form an Elderly Foster Care Home
America's aging population challenges public policy and welfare officials to look for solutions for the care of older people. Fewer seniors are entering nursing or old-age homes when they can no longer live independently, according to 2007 U.S. Census data. Society has recognized that the different need levels of the elderly require different types of living facilities. Foster care homes for the elderly enable clients to live in a home where they receive the care and assistance they need while maintaining as much independence as possible.
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Instructions
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Find a location for the foster home. Consider the area--a foster home for elderly clients should offer access to community centers, religious institutions, shopping centers and medical facilities. Locate where public transportation is easily available or include a van or other transportation service for the foster home.
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Plan the physical layout. The foster home must include bedrooms for the people who care for clients, as well as bedrooms for each client. There must be at least one bathroom for every three or four residents, including the caretakers and their family, if they live there also. A single-story home (no stairs) will offer the easiest mobility for all residents.
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Prepare a daily operation plan, including a schedule that keeps a caretaker on the premises at all times if the residents' conditions dictate it. Decide how to plan meals (will you allow clients to prepare some food or have a caretaker prepare all meals?) and transport clients to doctors' appointments, community or cultural events and other events and locations.
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Obtain theft, fire and liability insurance for the foster home. Add a malpractice insurance policy if the foster home will offer any medical care.
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Decide on the range of care available in the foster home. Decide who will clean, give clients daily living assistance and provide meals and transportation. Figure out how to provide medical care to the foster home's residents when needed, whether through a visiting nurse service or by transporting residents to clinics or therapy sessions when necessary. Plan how the foster home staff will oversee administration of residents' daily medications.
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Ensure that all caretakers in the elderly foster care home have CPR and first-aid certification. Find a course for caretakers who do not have this certification. The American Red Cross offers courses throughout the year at community centers and adult education centers.
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Obtain all zoning and business permits from the local municipality or county. Every area has its own laws and licensing requirements for foster care homes. Review the local regulations thoroughly.
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Register the home with your state department of social services licensing division and Medicaid. Follow all state licensing requirements, which generally include inspections of the facilities, training and health evaluations of the staff and criminal background checks. Provide insurance companies with information about the home's operation to allow them to send clients there. Insurance companies rely on Medicaid and Supplemental Social Security Income approval of group homes when referring clients to a facility.
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Prepare to meet all your state health department's licensing requirements for food preparation. Each state will have its own regulations detailing at which level of function (how many clients in the home) a food preparation license becomes necessary. Research your state's regulations by contacting the state Department of Health's licensing bureau and asking for all available information.
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Set up financial and administrative accounting procedures for the home. A certified public accountant can assist in setting up procedures for recording incoming and outgoing monthly expenses. Ask the accountant to establish an ordered bookkeeping system to allow for easy periodic reviews of the accounting records by tax officials and state authorities.
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Register the home with the IRS and the state treasury for tax purposes. Obtain an IRS Employee Identification Number for each employee of the group home.
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Advertise in community newspapers and newsletters. Hang fliers up in doctors' offices, rehabilitation centers, churches and community centers to announce the home's opening to potential clients and their families.
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Draw up a contract detailing the home's operations and ask the clients and/or their families to sign copies. Spell out exactly what services the home will offer, how the facility will care for residents under various circumstances (illness, severe memory-loss, a higher level of daily personal care) and under what circumstances the facility will move clients to a more intensive-care facility. Detail which individuals will serve on any review board making such decisions.
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