Baton Rouge Senior AdvisorWhat usually starts a senior care search in Baton Rouge?
Most often a discharge from Our Lady of the Lake, Baton Rouge General, Ochsner Baton Rouge or Lane Regional, a fall at home, a new dementia diagnosis, a family caregiver who cannot keep going, savings running low, or a storm or flood that shows a parent cannot manage alone.
Each guide below starts at that moment and lays out the steps in order, with the Louisiana rules and local phone numbers that apply.
Who can help us work out the next step at no cost?
The parish council on aging (in East Baton Rouge, (225) 923-8000), the Capital Area Agency on Aging's resource center at (225) 922-2525, Louisiana Options in Long-Term Care at 1-877-456-1146 for Medicaid long-term care requests, and a senior advisor who knows the licensed options; none of them charge families.
If someone is in danger, call 911. Suspected abuse or neglect of anyone 60 or older goes to Elderly Protective Services at 1-833-577-6532.
What if our situation is not listed?
Start from the help needed and the timing: write down the daily tasks your parent can no longer do safely, whether help is needed overnight, whether your parent could leave the house in an emergency with help, and what the budget can carry for two or three years.
Those answers usually narrow the choice to one or two Louisiana license levels, and the directory shows which licensed providers are nearby.
Situations: every guide
When a parent is being discharged from a Baton Rouge hospital
What Baton Rouge families should do when a parent is discharged from Our Lady of the Lake, Baton Rouge General, Ochsner or Lane Regional: inpatient status, rehab options, Medicare rules and going back to an ARCP.
Open guide →When a parent should not live alone any more
Signs an older parent in the Baton Rouge area cannot safely live alone, and the options: home care, adult day, Medicaid home programs, PACE Baton Rouge, an ARCP or a nursing home.
Open guide →After a dementia diagnosis: the next steps
Next steps for Baton Rouge families after a parent's Alzheimer's or dementia diagnosis: legal documents, driving and safety, caregiver support, Medicaid timing, and Louisiana's memory care rules.
Open guide →When savings for care are running low
Options for Baton Rouge families when savings for assisted living run low: VA pension, Louisiana Medicaid home programs, nursing home Medicaid, PACE and how to plan the transition.
Open guide →Planning for storms, floods and outages with an older parent
Emergency planning for older adults in the Baton Rouge area: flood risk from the Amite and Comite rivers, extended outages after hurricanes, medications, special needs shelters and what to ask a facility.
Open guide →Caregiving for a Baton Rouge parent from a distance
Practical steps for adult children caring for a parent in the Baton Rouge area from another city: local contacts, documents, checking a provider's state record, and what to look for on visits.
Open guide →When the family caregiver is worn out
Signs of caregiver burnout and where Baton Rouge-area caregivers find respite: adult day health care, council on aging respite, the Community Choices Waiver, PACE and short ARCP stays.
Open guide →After a fall: what to do next
What Baton Rouge families should do after an older parent falls: medical evaluation, home safety, therapy, medical alert devices, and when a fall means a care change.
Open guide →