November is Hospice month

November is Hospice month

As a registered nurse and former director of the Charles City Hospice (a satellite of Hospice of North Iowa) for fourteen years, I was blessed to have an incredible staff and also the honor of sharing unforgettable experiences with countless patients and their families. Across the nation, November is Hospice Month – a time to learn more about it and what it can mean to a patient and family.

Hospice is not a place, but a cost-effective medically based program for very ill patients. It not only deals with pain and symptom control but addresses the psychological, social and spiritual needs of the patient and family. Bereavement follow-up after a death is also part of hospice.

A goal of hospice is to treat all people with dignity and respect. Hospice is a team effort! Along with medical professionals in our area who help to control pain and manage symptoms. Hospice of North Iowa staff, volunteers and incredible family care givers all help a patient to “live each day” possible. All others, including our local advisory board, committees, donors and people who support hospice in unique and fiving ways, are also part of the team.

A very knowledgeable caring staff of Dr. Royer, Rob Grayson & Conray Huinker, RNs, Sarah Garbes, social worker, and Steph Hanson, volunteer coordinator, serve Charles City and surrounding communities. If you have questions or need hospice help, please call 1-800-297-4719 and someone will get in touch with you. A recent family who used our local, nonprofit hospice said, “They were absolutely phenomenal in their care/concern of our dad. We discovered that it’s a Medicare benefit too, which really helped with our expenses. We just should have called hospice sooner.” Thank you to Hospice of North Iowa staff, Charles City site, who have touched hundreds of lives in the past 26 years. Please keep up your caring, compassionate work. Go bless all!

Judy Hauser, Charles City Advisory Board member

Protecting our veterans from scams

Iowa veterans and their families can be targeted by scams and disreputable businesses that promise to help them with VA benefits, pensions, investments and special offers. Our veterans deserve to know all the services, benefits and programs they qualify for — and how to receive them.

That’s why we approved consumer protections requiring that private individuals or businesses offering to help veterans get their benefits for a fee must give all prospective clients a written statement disclosing that veterans may apply for these same services at no charge through a local service organization or county office. Before entering into an agreement or contract, the veteran must sign the disclosure statement to acknowledge they are aware that they can receive similar help free.

A violation of these requirements results in a civil penalty of up to $1,000 for each violation. Any civil penalties recovered will be deposited in the Iowa Veterans Trust Fund.

The Iowa Attorney General’s office is also on alert for scams targeting veterans. Here are a few they’re warning Iowans about:

These are offers for free help with pension- related paperwork, or lump-sum payment offers to military veterans. In some cases, a veteran might receive a large up-front payment, which in reality is only a small amount of what they’d have earned had they waited to receive full pension payments.

Unscrupulous brokers, insurance agents, lawyers or financial planners may convince veterans to sign up for benefits that could cause them to lose eligibility for Medicaid services or create long-term financial setbacks. The AG warns veterans to never give a creditor access to an account where benefits are deposited.

While many businesses want to thank veterans for their service through special offers, others may try to take advantage of them. Whether it’s a loan, rental or purchase, veterans should research any “special deal” for vets before committing.

For more information on programs and benefits for veterans and their families, contact the Iowa Department of Veterans Affairs at 515-252-4698 or go to www.va.iowa.gov.

Sen. Mary Jo Wilhelm, Cresco