How do you know if your aging parent needs more help than what a family member might provide? The My Advocate App will help you determine whether or not your loved one would benefit from the services provided by a professional patient Advocate.

A professional advocate is trained and experienced in patient care and management. But are all Advocates the same? No. A good advocate is part of a team of doctors, nurses and specialists. The Advocate can call upon this team to ensure that each issue involving her patient is handled well.

An Advocate can help your aging parent with routine tasks such as bill paying, shopping and travel plans. An Advocate can assist in heath care issues such as making medical appointments, taking the patient to the doctor’s appointment, explain the reasons for taking medications to the patient or the family and keep the family advised as to the outcome of a doctor’s visit. An Advocate is experienced in the selection of wheelchairs, walkers and other medical equipment a patient may need.

An Advocate is available whenever you have a need. Perhaps the time a patient most needs an Advocate is when a trip to the hospital emergency room is required. An experienced Advocate can help complete admissions forms, deal with insurance issues, and perhaps most important, be with the patient in the emergency room to ensure quality of care. Also, the Advocate can make sure that family members are kept apprised of the patient’s condition and the treatment options being selected.

Does your loved one need an Advocate? Take this test and find out.