Story by James Coburn, Feature Writer
Every day there is someone who has it in their heart to care for people helping clients of Excell Private Care Services, said Crystal Warner, CEO.
Excell Private Care Services is a home care agency providing private duty, Veterans Administration Services, a Medicaid Advantage program, and case management for the state. Certified nurse aides can provide 24-hour in-home care with bathing, cooking, cleaning, companion care, emptying a foley bag, meal prep, medication reminders, and shopping.
“We have RNs on staff. So, they would come in and do an assessment, and then we would find an aide that would work well with the family,” Warner said. “We don’t require a referral from a doctor. It’s just anybody who would need in-home care.”
Excell Private Care Services partners with home health and hospice services to help with skilled needs for an hour or two.
“Then they’re gone. They’re there to see them for that skilled need for a certain amount of time. Because our aides can be there for however long the family wants us there, having an aide there — they are less likely to return to the emergency room. They have someone to call. We have nurses on call 24 hours a day,” Warner said.
The CNAs may stay with the patient for up to 24 hours. Private care aides only clean the house but can be prepared by a CNA to go to CNA school to earn their CAN license. There are also educational opportunities for LPNs to advance within the company.
Compassion is an indispensable element for the staff. Screening includes several different background checks to make sure the aide can provide a safe environment and has not committed a crime, Warner said.
“We go through CPR training, lifesaver courses,” she added.
Family members can rest assured their loved on has a CNA or caregiver in the home with them if an emergency happens.
Sometimes a client does not need to go to an emergency room. It may be that they are scared during a storm or feel lonely. They may need to have somebody to ask questions to.
Having another set of eyes also helps hospitals that depend on Medicare to avoid unnecessary emergency room visits.
“We will also partner with communities and sit with the patient and do companion care,” Warner continued.
Many health care providers were short on staff during the COVID pandemic. Family members knowing their loved one was at risk of a fall were thankful to have a CNA sit with their aging parent.
A lot of long-term health policies will pay for Excell Private Care Services, including VA insurance and Medicaid.
“If you have insurance that says it will pay for the service, it will take care of everything,” Warner said.
The feedback that Excell Private Care Services has received has been exceptional. A recent family member wrote how much the family loves the CNA being so compatible and friendly.
“We love the conversation that we’ve had. ‘She’s helped us a lot with the house,’” Warner paraphrased a family member. “It’s always nice for us to hear that because until we call around to do our checks and ask if they like the aide, we may not hear. So, it’s nice when someone reaches out and lets us know.”
Patients and family members understand they can call Excell Private Care Services whenever they need a resource as simple as providing a wheelchair.
They can call Warner seven days a week at any hour of the day or night, she said. Warner has gone to be with families until an ambulance has arrived at a client’s home.
The company provides services throughout the Oklahoma City metro and also has an office in Tulsa. The staff also travels to Duncan and Lawton. There are not too many counties that Excell Private Care Services does not reach, except in the panhandle and the far southeast corner of the state.
“We’re going to be opening a new satellite in Chickasha,” Warner said.
The need for services is growing in demand as the population of older Americans continues to grow.
Many elders have no clue that they would be able to receive such a service.
“We’ll help them go through the process even if they don’t choose our company and they choose someone else,” she said. “We’ll help them get signed up so they will have somebody come to their house under the Medicaid program.”
Being able to bridge a gap by providing community services is personally enriching for Warner.
“It’s being able to help the people that need the help, and also help the families get through a tough time,” Warner said. “Allowing a mom to still live in her home independently, allowing a daughter to be a daughter and not a caregiver, or a son being able to be a son and not a caregiver — it’s being able to help those families.” For more information visit: www.excellcares.com
