We already knew several ways and had discussed them at our seminars; people giving out too much information at financial planning meetings, loose-lipped caregivers who tip off guardians, house cleaning staff, “well meaning” neighbors and so on.
Dan and I have searched for the common denominator by connecting some of these victims together.
Well, we found one, and it should have been clear as day. Perhaps it was, and that was why we didn’t see it before - it was there in plain sight.
We found families whose loved one landed in guardianship as a result of a simple “slip and fall” that placed them in a hospital. And it went downhill from there.
While they were in the hospital, a doctor would be asked to give the patient a cognitive evaluation; perhaps a nurse thought they needed extra care, and as outlined in Dan’s article, one particular guardian trolls the halls looking for wards.
We also discovered that the physician’s certificate form checked off by the doctor is readily available. More importantly, the doctor may, or may not be aware that the form is going to be used exclusively for a guardianship issue.
In speaking to one such doctor, we were told that his/her patient may need help, be it in home care or a guardian at the time of the evaluation, but a week or month from then, things may be back to normal.
The doctor assumed they would then be re-evaluated. No statement like that was on any chart we reviewed. All seemed to indicate permanent mental incapacitation.
Was it an error by omission? This kind of error has cost people we met a year, or more of their lives and a tremendous amount of money.
Full Article and Source:
The Vegas Voice: Guardianship Part 3: NOW GET RESULTS