“Are the elderly and sick facing a larger issue than just Covid?”
Recently my mom had to go to one of the local Rehab facilities in the area due to injuring her back. I had promised dad that we’d take care of her after he was diagnosed with cancer and eventually passed away, and after many thoughts and planning I decided that a rehab facility was needed to get her back on her feet. At first, she was receiving treatment at a Rehab in Wadley Georgia but after another fall, she went to Twin View Rehab in Twin City Georgia where she is currently.
During this time, I could not help noticing that on numerous occasions, my mom would either miss important appointments for the cardiologist, dentist etc. due to transportation, or either she would be away from the facility up to 6hrs for a 45min appointment. At first, I blamed the facility where she was getting her rehab, but as I continued to investigate, it became clear there was a bigger issue that was going unnoticed by the larger public when it comes to the care of their love ones.
The majority of the Rehab/Nursing Facilities use a service called Modivcare (used to be known as Logisticare) to request transportation for any of their patients. This company then contracts drivers to drive the patients to and from their appointments. Most of these patients like my mom make this transportation in wheelchairs. For an 88yr old this can be tiring to say the least, and sitting in a wheelchair for 4hrs longer than necessary due to bad planning is totally unacceptable, especially for those who cannot speak for themselves. I’ve spoken to the company, and of course Covid was mentioned as being part of the problem due to lack of drivers, however I reminded them that proper communication and planning are key especially since a lot of businesses are dealing with Covid. If a pickup cannot be made or canceled, this is simple so the passenger does not sit for hours not knowing what’s happening.
As my company faced staffing issues due to Covid, we had to readjust to ensure quality of service to our customers would continue. If not, we lose that business. Let’s face it; even during the era of Covid, customers still expect a certain level of service that fits their needs. If a company cannot provide that service, they should re-evaluate the service they are providing especially when there are lives at stake. At no time should the old mighty dollar be placed above people’s lives. I’m aware that this happens all the time, but this time they are messing with my mom as well as other’s that cannot speak for themselves. In Georgia alone this has become a major issue. I don’t have the power to do much about this on my own, but I’m hoping that others may get to read about this and will see that they are not alone in feeling helpless and their love ones are being neglected when it comes to providing this important service.
The Rehab Facilities have tried to address this continuously but seem to be falling on deaf ears, so I mentioned to them that I would reach out to the newspapers to possibly shine a light on this.
Please feel free to contact me if need.
Thank you,
Monroe S Tarver
