2/5/2010 My mother is 85 years old and her physical and mental capabilities are starting to fail. She would like to stay in her own home as long as possible, but I live far away and am unfamiliar with the elderly home care services in her area. How can I find out about the resources in her community that could help her to continue living in her own home, and later assist in finding an appropriate place for her to live when staying in her home is no longer an option?
You will find several resources on FloridaHealthFinder.gov to help you and your mother find the information you are looking for. Under Find and Compare on the homepage, click Compare Nursing Homes. This provides a lot of information regarding long term care options, terms and definitions, quality ratings of facilities and much more. You can also click on “Senior Health” toward the bottom-right of the FloridaHealthFinder.gov homepage to find links to information, brochures, guides, and state agencies and programs that can help you get answers to your questions. In addition, you can learn more about (and locate) Florida health care facilities and providers by clicking on the links under the “Locate a Facility or Provider” section also on our homepage. 1/14/2010 We are exploring the options of placing our loved one in a nursing home or assisted living facility. We would like to review inspection reports of various facilities before we make a final decision. Can you assist us?
You can view inspection reports for the health care facilities and agencies that the Agency inspects by clicking on http://ahcaxnet.fdhc.state.fl.us/dm_web. The website was started in the summer of 2008 and does not include historical data, so inspection information is available only for those facilities/agencies that have been inspected sometime during 2008 and thereafter. Each month more facilities will be added as their reports become available. 1/7/2010 There are so many different state agencies. How do I find out where to go for the answers or services I need?
There are two locations on our website where you can read about Florida state agencies that provide health and social service programs, including website links and phone numbers. On the FloridaHealthFinder.gov homepage click “Important Links and Phone Numbers” then click on the agency you want to read about or scroll down the page.
Also, from the FloridaHealthFinder.gov homepage click on “Brochures and Guides” then click “Health and Human Services Programs.” This is a brochure that lists state agencies and the programs they provide. You can also find this brochure in Spanish by clicking the “aqui” link at the top of the “Brochures and Guides” page then click “Programas de salud y servicios humanos.” The English and Spanish brochures can also be ordered by calling the toll-free number (888) 419-3456. 12/30/2009 I’m trying to find a doctor and want to know where can I find information to compare them?
First of all, are you covered by a health insurance plan? Are you in the Florida Medicaid Program? If you are covered by a health plan you need to first contact the health plan to ask which doctors are in your health plan. If you are covered by the Florida Medicaid Program you can find information about choosing a doctor by going to the FloridaHealthFinder.gov homepage and clicking the “Medicaid” link. On the page that comes up click “Find Medicaid Doctors, Dentists and Specialists.”
When you have the name of one or more doctors, dentists, or specialists you can find more information about their licenses by going to the FloridaHealthFinder.gov homepage and clicking the “Find Doctors and Specialists” link. In the page that comes up, the first paragraph explains that health care professionals are licensed by the Florida Department of Health. When you click the link in that first paragraph you will be taken to the Dept. of Health (DOH) website. On the DOH website click “Citizen/Consumer.” 12/8/2009 With the arrival of cold & flu season, sometimes I get confused on what over the counter medications I should buy for what symptoms. Does your website help with this kind of information?
A new feature on FloridaHealthFinder is the Multimedia Encyclopedia - a new interactive tool that provides answers to common questions about everyday health care decisions. This option provides over 3,900 unique articles to assist in researching a disease or condition, lookup a symptom, learn about a test, prepare for surgery or a procedure. It also includes over 3,000 illustrations, diagrams and photos and over 80 multimedia patient health care videos imbedded with the articles that cover health topics such as tracking your blood pressure at home, the difference between a cold and the flu, and even how to use an asthma inhaler. These videos can be found on the bottom right hand side of the FloridaHealthFinder home page, and by scrolling through the options, you will find videos on topics ranging from Heart Health, Caring for Young Children, or General Self Care to Life with A Newborn. In this case, there are two videos that you might find helpful – “Cold treatments for Kids” and “Tips on Buying Cold and Flu Medicines”. These are great tools to help you when making decisions about your family’s health care. Just remember - while health information provided through the website may be a valuable resource, it is not designed to offer medical advice. Talk with your doctor about any specific medical care questions you may have. 11/20/2009 Q. I am having surgery on my ankle and would like to find and compare Orthopaedic Surgeons in my area.
The Florida Department of Health licenses and regulates health care professionals. On their website you will find a list of licensed professionals and their profiles. On the FloridaHealthFinder.gov homepage click Find Doctors and Specialists located under Locate a Facility or Provider. A link to the DOH website will be displayed. Click on www.FLHealthSource.com, then Citizen/Consumer. To search for a practitioner click on Search Practitioner Profile located under Health Information Services. This feature will allow searches by various information sources, including specialty and location.
11/13/2009 My family and I are concerned about the care given to my father in a Florida nursing home. We believe that the facility is out of compliance. How do I file a complaint?
The Agency regulates 41 types of health care service providers, including hospitals, nursing homes, assisted living facilities and home health agencies. Health care consumers can search FloridaHealthFinder.gov to see if a health care facility is regulated by the Agency. If a consumer has a complaint or would like to report a suspicious activity, they can anonymously complete the Agency’s online complaint form at FloridaHealthFinder.gov and click on File a Complaint. The only information needed to file a complaint is the name of the health care facility, address, date of the incident, and the patient/resident’s name and date of birth, if available. For Floridians who do not have access to the Internet, but would like to file a complaint, they can call the Agency toll-free at (888) 419-3456. |
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