Caring Before Crisis: Planning, Advocacy, and Aging Well
Social worker and aging life care manager Amy McWilliams shares her journey from caring her aging parents to founding Not Your Average Joe, an advocacy practice where she provides Personalized Senior Advocate Care Management and Services that help aging adults and their families navigate complex care systems. She opens up about balancing parents’ independence with safety, and the importance of planning. McWilliams also emphasizes how small acts of advocacy can transform lives and discusses building trust with overwhelmed families, supporting neurodiverse clients, and what she’s learned from her daughter’s late autism diagnosis.
Resources Mentioned:
Not Your Average Joe (care management practice; Metro Atlanta)
Advance Directive and POLST (Physician Orders for Life-Sustaining Treatment)
Medicare; Medicaid waivers; Area Agency on Aging
Rehabilitation facilities; CNA training and staffing
Aging Life Care Association (ALCA)
Virtual reality autism training experience
126127 Legacy Foundation (medical mission work led by Dr. Benjamin Abraham)
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TRANSCRIPT
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Host
Amy McWilliams, thank you so much for being on the podcast. What was the most unexpected challenge you had when you first started caring for your aging parents?
Amy McWilliams
Yeah, thank you for having me.
Amy McWilliams
wow.
Amy McWilliams
Let me think about that.
Amy McWilliams
I think some of the unexpected was probably the resistance sometimes that some of my parents, my parents have about certain dynamics. Trying to navigate their autonomy, Like navigating their independence, but also keeping them safe was probably one of the first things I run up against. And navigating how you communicate that to them, right? Like in a way that's less
Britney.
Host
Yeah, I remember in our in our little talk we had before the interview, you mentioned that there's no manual for doing what you do. And so I guess my question would be if you could create one, what would be on the first page?
Amy McWilliams
I think the first thing, the first page would definitely be be compassionate with yourself because it's not an easy road to travel, right? I think that would be the first thing. Like there isn't a magic bullet or any exact science in working with the aging population, including your own parents. Even I do this for a living and I still struggle with navigating it at times. So yes, I think
Host
Thank
Amy McWilliams
Be compassionate with yourself and try to stay in the moment as you're doing it. I think it's really important.
Host
Well, speaking of that, mean, you know, being in the moment, being compassionate with yourself, a lot of families, especially people who helping their own parents, they do feel overwhelmed by the healthcare system in that overwhelm and in that kind of space of being new to the whole problem and just being kind of a rookie in it for most people. What, what are some of the biggest mistakes you see them make? and how can they avoid them?
Amy McWilliams
One of the biggest mistakes I think I see is not proper planning. Like getting, having discussions with your loved ones before the crisis. That's probably the biggest mistake. think, you know, it's all inevitable. We're aging, right? Every day. But I think there's a lot of difficulty in really having those conversations.
Host
Thank
Amy McWilliams
and maybe the anxiety around maybe upsetting your loved ones if you talk about, what would you want if you couldn't speak for yourself? Like some of the hard questions, right? But even the easy questions like, hey mom, what Medicare plan do you have? You gotta have that like to start, like that's like the number one thing that you're gonna need if you're gonna advocate for someone because sadly everything's driven by insurance, right? So yes, proper planning is probably the biggest mistake.
And yeah, I would say that would definitely be the first thing.
Host
So I heard a couple different things right there in that conversation. One is medical directives, right? What would they actually want if they weren't able to make the decision themselves because they were incapacitated. Also some logistic conversations just about what insurance you have, which doctors have you seen, what medications are you on?
Amy McWilliams
Yes.
Host
Do you find that there's a right way and a wrong way to approach having those conversations or you just kind of have to say, listen, we got to talk about some hard stuff. Let's sit down and talk.
Amy McWilliams
Yeah, I think there is a approach that you have to take, obviously, coming from a place of, I care about you. This is a lot like validating how much it is, because I don't think people realize when they're overwhelmed. They're so overwhelmed that they think they're only ones not doing well with it when actually it's it's complicated. Literally, I was just on the phone with an insurance agent before this podcast, navigating here and eight, like all of it is just
a lot. I think definitely validating, hey, this is a lot for the average person, even younger person. And let's work together like it truly takes a village and trying to normalize the health. I think it's really important. And then you can go into some of the harder questions. Definitely starting with the Democrats. Hey, what insurance do you have? One of the biggest questions we a lot of
adult children don't know is whether mom and dad have a long-term care policy, which is so important when you start seeing what you need to help someone. So yeah, definitely more of the, I guess, less emotional first probably would kind of grease the wheel, I guess. And then you can lean into more of the harder questions. Hey, do you have an advanced directive? Do you have a post, which, you know, is the way that we honor kind of what their wishes are. And so,
Host
Sure.
Host
What did you say? have a what? A pole.
Amy McWilliams
a pulse. It's the physician's order for life-sustaining measures. So there's all different ways you can ask. And even just going to the doctor with them, you might be able to get an invite into the conversation just hearing what the doctor's asking if you're afraid to ask alone.
Host
That makes a lot of sense. You mentioned it's a lot even for the average person. Ironically, your advocacy is called Not Your Average Joe. Who is Joe? Tell us the story about how that got its name, who he was, and what it meant to you.
Amy McWilliams
Yeah, thanks. Yeah, Joe was a dear friend of mine that I actually met professionally. You generally don't, as a social worker, keep contact with people personal. It's actually very against kind of our code of ethics. But I've broken the rule twice, just out of pure love for people. And Joe was one of them. He didn't have any children. He was never married. He was living alone.
and trying to manage his chronic condition and his quality of life had gone down significantly. And Joe was so kind, even in the midst of that struggle and so independent. And so as I started to get to know him, he had a neat background. was self-taught, somewhat of architect. He drew houses on the computer and sold those plans to people and he was self-made.
in that way, so he was very sustainable financially himself. However, he had resources, but he didn't know how to advocate or navigate the system and was really neglected in multiple avenues of his care. And when I found out what was going on and he was trying to advocate for himself, it was just so, and he was sick, mind you. It's like when you're sick, it's hard enough to just...
do the basics, let alone advocate. So we were able to forge a friendship and through that he was allowing me to help him navigate how to advocate for himself. was even writing on his, this is how cool he was, he had a spreadsheet for the measurements on it. He had a wound, which wounds are really hard to manage even from a clinical standpoint, but he had a spreadsheet on the size of his wounds trying to track.
himself. So that's how independent he was. But when I met with him, sadly, it wasn't going in the right direction. And gratefully, with a little bit of help, he actually rebounded, was able to go back home, live independently for another 10 years with good quality of life and care. And he was a prime example of what it what some people just need a little bit of support.
Amy McWilliams
You can still honor their wishes, but just a little bit of advocacy and the right care can really make a huge difference. And convincing him to spend a little bit of his hard-earned money in a way that's smart, but also maintain his care. Because that's always the balance of resources versus care in a lot
Host
Yeah, sure. And you and you met him as a social worker. So this was probably before you kind of jumped, you know, head first into the advocacy space, I would assume.
Amy McWilliams
Yes, I met him, I was in home health. So I had been working in home health for probably about six years, which is a very limited role. I was generally able to go in one time in the home health space. It's more of a value to do therapy because it's somewhat of a money making service as in mine is more of a just a perk, I guess in the home health space. And so.
Host
And when you say therapy, you're talking about physical therapy or things like that.
Amy McWilliams
Yeah, occupational therapy, physical therapy, they would get a home health nurse, but Medicare lets you come in for an episode. So it's a month, a month and a half, depending on your situation. And social work is only really allowed to go once. I would have to get approval to go twice on a client. I would have to really state my case on why I needed to follow up.
Host
Right.
Host
And so for people who aren't aware, now if you're a social worker, maybe you're in private practice and you see clients in a therapeutic sense and sometimes they come in week by week. So for those social workers who aren't aware of what your role would be for that one and only session, walk me through what that was and how frustrating it must have been for you. And for people who obviously aren't social workers either.
Amy McWilliams
Correct, yes. So you would get a name and an address and literally would walk in not having much information other than there was a need for quote unquote social work. And then you would go in and I had a tablet that the company provided that had a list of questions. I learned quickly how to navigate those questions to get what I needed, but it was obviously to file a claim with Medicare, questions. And they were pretty good. I mean, it was like, do you have transportation?
Do you have support? Do you have medical equipment? Some of the basic questions. But really, I was building a relationship with the family in one session to get them to trust me to share what was really going on. Because often, as we do Prideful, Pridefully, we don't always want to lay out all our kind of baggage for people. But fortunately, I was able to kind of connect and at least give them
as much as I could in one session. A lot of times it was, here's the area on aging. There's Medicaid waivers, or I would be able to look at their income based on what they would share. So I would always warn them, this is a nosy process. Like I would have to like literally ask them how much they bring in every month the first time I meet them to tell them whether they were eligible for other services because there's a real clear cutoff for that.
Host
Right.
Amy McWilliams
And so, yeah, I it was I would on average spend at least an hour, hour and a half. Sometimes it was two and that was really on my own time because it was very limited what how long I could stay based on insurance. But I would try to give them as much as I could. And sometimes I would follow up afterward just on my own time because you just one appointment is not enough to really cover what these families need. And some of them were paraplegic. Some of them had
some of them, which is the breathing tube in the neck. mean, there were some really sick individuals and some had income of like $700 a month. So it's like navigating equipment and supplies and often I was getting clients who would come home from the hospital with a plan, but it wasn't really implemented. So they were like, we were supposed to get a wheelchair and we didn't get one and things like that. So
it was definitely sometimes a little bit of damage control, right? Like cleaning up some things that just, because the system is just so inundated, you know.
Host
mean, in addition to feeling probably undervalued, you probably felt completely shackled. So what gave you the strength to keep going and have the kind of impact that you had?
Amy McWilliams
you know what? I think part of it was the clients were so grateful. Even that hour, they were so grateful. mean, one of the first clients I met, I think I shared at the beginning was like in the first wave of Normandy, which is so cool to meet a fella. And I even called him on Veterans Day after I met him to just say, you know, thank you for your service. Like ageism, I think is so real. And so I think...
when you show even a small amount of kindness or appreciation, they're just so grateful. And that's what got me continuing to go back. And we were able to make some changes. I was able to communicate with physical therapy or occupational therapy or nursing and have moved the ball in some ways. that's what got me to keep going is there wasn't
I guess there was so much of a need that even if you did a little, it was a lot to them.
Host
So coming from that world, you started your own advocacy practice right around the middle of COVID. Am I getting the timeline right?
Amy McWilliams
Yes, I opened it November of 2020.
Host
So what was the motivation behind starting your own practice, especially during that crazy time of the world?
Amy McWilliams
Well, one of the things was that I had a shift in employment. I was going into assisted living, doing therapy with seniors. And obviously I couldn't do that anymore. And we were doing virtual, which actually my clients did a great job getting on virtually. It was interesting trying to get them on their iPads and whatnot, but it was still very limited. So I had some space on my schedule. I also,
had been daydreaming about doing this. even have a business card in my office that's like a, what do you call it? a idea business card where I was playing around with the logo and what I would do. And it was kind of my inspirational card. Like if I ever were to do it, if I was ever gonna open my own business. I also got calls all the time outside of work for questions and started to realize,
I'm getting this reputation for being able to navigate the system and advocate. And so I was like, you know, this is such a passion of mine. I want to be able to really get my hands dirty with some clients, meaning I want to really be able to kind of help more than what I'm able to do under the insurance umbrella. So when I learned about care management, it was, it was kind of like a
a win-win. This is a service out there that's not well known. However, it's so beneficial and so many clients even now tell me, I wish I had known about this like five years ago. Or when I have had people say when my parents were living, when they heard later about what I, I wish I'd known about this when my mom was alive.
Host
Right. And how do you find that you're that you started? I mean, it's five years later and your your practices is still going strong. How did you build your practice from the start? And and is that different to how you grow it today?
Amy McWilliams
Okay.
Amy McWilliams
gosh, that's a good question. Well, I started out only wanting to be a solo practitioner, which you generally have group practices or like a one woman show or one man show. And the need is so great. And I realized very quickly that it's gonna be really hard to do alone. If I really want to like serve, you know, families, you only have so much bandwidth in a day.
Host
Right.
Amy McWilliams
Care management is very personalized so you can go spend two three hours. I like home health I could spend a half a day with a client easy depending on what's going on And so yes I quickly realized that I needed to grow it my team more than specifically and I didn't want to just hang a job description out there and I lucked out getting my
Host
Mm-hmm.
Amy McWilliams
a first colleague through word of mouth and it's been a blessing. Her name's Lauren and she covers a different part of the state for me, but she is amazing. So I just needed somebody that had the level of compassion for what I do. And I think that's, and because it's your, you know, not only is it your business, but it's something you hold dear to. So you have to trust that with somebody that can represent it well and kind of.
what the value is that not your average Joe and she gets it. And so I've been very fortunate. And then we slowly have just taken on a few other, we have an assistant now that can do things that are a little bit less skilled, but and so it helps us kind of be in two places at once, one with a skill like taking somebody to the doctor and advocating versus somebody just transporting them for an MRI. Like there's just a different level that you need.
And so that was a beautiful addition that we just made. And one of the assistants has actually got a master's in psychology and she is actually doing some life review with one of our clients who's aging. So it's a beautiful, not counseling, but more just visiting and kind of reflection. Sometimes as care managers, we don't have time just to sit and just visit, even though.
I would love if I had a clone, would send them out to all the assisted living just to visit with people, but there's so many that just need a visitor. So that's really cool that we can kind of make it very, for lack of a better word, boutique, where if that's a need that a client has, then we can serve in that way like emotionally, not just like a physical, like advocacy need. So that's exciting.
Another thing that we're doing in reference to growing is I have a real heart personally and professionally for the neurodiverse space, meeting individuals that are on the spectrum or special needs. Lauren has a heart big time for the special needs population. She's worked in that space. And so we're starting to network and connect more in that space. just went yesterday actually to a
Host
Mm-hmm.
Amy McWilliams
virtual reality autism tour where I got to immerse myself in what it would be like to have autism, to have real understanding of what they experience. And that was, it was amazing. Yes. I'm settling at times, sensory wise, your sensory system is completely turned on its head. And so much
Host
What was that like? Tell me about.
Amy McWilliams
compassion for how that would work on a daily, like how you just have compassion for understanding vision, like the whole vision part was fascinating. The people who designed the glasses for this virtual reality experience were from NASA and they studied, I guess, a tremendous amount of individuals in the States and I was just fascinated how they did this.
to figure out how to engineer these glasses that you put on to mimic what it may feel like with someone on the spectrum.
Host
Can you describe what it felt like? mean, you said it was disorienting, like were the lights, you know.
Amy McWilliams
Well, you bump into things because your distortion neurologically with autism, your nervous system can't regulate space the same way that neurotypical. So at times, you know, coordination, right? Like navigating a doorway, you may think the doors here, you know, like closer to your, somebody's listening, they feel like it might be closer to their side than it is. they, they might walk through the doorframe kind of
Halfway and maybe bump something. So the glasses distort it so much that yes, I bumped into a doorframe. I kind of mismanaged the seat I needed to sit in. So I was using my hands to kind of feel where I needed to go. And so it was fascinating. mean, some people see 2D and 3D. Like the vision, the sensory world is just very...
Amy McWilliams
I don't want to say distorted, that's not the right word, but it just very much impacted neurologically. it was like, it almost felt like nauseous when I took them off and we processed that, everybody was kind of trying to get their, almost like their sensory system back online to where they didn't feel like they were like on a cruise ship in some way. So very fascinating. I really want to support that mission that's going on.
Host
Right.
Host
Where does that passion for you come from? Has it just been something that was always in you?
Amy McWilliams
Oh no, I have a daughter who is 18 who is diagnosed late in life. She's diagnosed at 13. Girls are often misdiagnosed or undiagnosed.
Host
Okay.
Host
Why is that? Why do you think that is?
Amy McWilliams
I think because they exhibit like the anxiety of it differently and she functions like she was in regular school like academically, cognitively she functions, you know, I guess quote as a normal typical she didn't have any developmental delays. However, when she reached puberty, it was very clear and COVID actually COVID brought a lot of it out her anxiety and some of the things that she was masking up until probably 13.
But for so long she was able to mimic. And it was always interesting to me that I could see that she was almost mimicking, but I thought it was just kind of her personality. didn't realize it was kind of really mimic masking. And so yes, it came out later for her. And I think for girls, they're not as physically aggressive so it can look different. Like they maybe label it as something else other than like, you know, often boys might have more of a combative.
Host
Right.
Amy McWilliams
You know,
Host
Yeah, sure. What kind of barriers do people in that in that community, the neurodiverse community face that most people don't even realize exist?
Amy McWilliams
Oh, you know, it's great you asked that because we were just talking about that yesterday. There's so many, there's so much stigma still out there, including misinformation for parents to understand their children. That is a huge barrier. The stigma around what people envision when they think of neurodiverse is more of some of what was originally, you know, probably diagnosed where they were often
individuals who couldn't speak or they might have some stimming which is like different ways that they move their bodies. Sometimes they do some flapping of their arms and whatnot to regulate or rocking. So a lot of the barrier is misinformation or stigma, which I think is really coming out more. We're trying to normalize. I actually believe we're all on the spectrum on some level and I think a lot of people feel that way. So I think trying to normalize.
I'm not taking away for the severity that some individuals struggle with when it comes to certain parts of the disability, but there is just some beautiful things about it as well. They're extremely creative. My daughter is incredibly creative. She's into costumes and design. She's doing DragonCon this weekend. mean, she's very gifted in that space. She's big in the Dungeons and Dragons and creates a whole world in her head.
with these creates these characters. It's just a fascinating ability that she has to be imaginative and like live in that world. So there's a lot of beautiful.
Host
I would assume since you have experience with your own family, that that's a quick way to develop trust with other clients who might be experiencing some challenges in that world. And I think trust kind of plays a big role in your ability to get referrals, work with other families. How do you, if it's outside the neurodiverse community, how do you find that you build trust and kind of gain that so quickly from your clients?
Amy McWilliams
You know, that's important. think I try to like, I genuinely feel like I'm at their level. Like I've had people tell me before when I've sat with a client to talk to another provider, because we bring in other resources a lot. We're trying to collaborate a lot. And one person gave me great feedback. You like referred to the client so much in part of the meeting. I think that's really part of the trust is realizing I'm not in here to take over. I'm here to just partner with you.
in navigating this because they do have a wealth of information or they may have a contact. So I think humility is a huge part of it. Also, in some ways, I think if you were my mother, how would I want to be treated, right? Like how would I want them to treat, know, treat my mother? So I think I really try to go from that approach. I actually just really love doing what I do. So I don't, there's not this...
I guess ego to it. And I say, listen, if I don't know something, I'm going to tell you I don't know it. I'm pretty good at finding stuff. Like I'm extremely resourceful, but I definitely try to stay in my lane when it comes to what is my skill set. And so I think people respond to that. They appreciate the honesty. I think.
I started social work working with teens and I felt like teens, they really appreciated the honesty. And I think that kind of probably developed some of my skill in being able to just be on the same playing field, right? And that's definitely what I did with Joe, if you think about it, like I was, because he was a smart guy. I wasn't going to over intellectualize him at any means. But just coming at a level of, let's work together. And the same thing for families.
Host
Right. Right.
Amy McWilliams
particularly if they're overwhelmed. They don't need anybody coming in and just trying to take over. mean, some want you to, but there's a balance on that too, right? Because you can't be everything to everyone. You gotta have a balance and ownership to a certain extent, but it just depends on the client.
Host
Right, right.
Host
You you said that you found teens appreciate honesty. I have a 14 year old. I'm just navigating this now. I have not found that to be the case, at least in my in my family. Tell me a little bit more selfishly. I'm like, what do mean? What kind of honesty? What are you? What are we talking about? Maybe I got some point here.
Amy McWilliams
That's funny well they don't like from my experience the team I work with teams in the foster care system so it might be a little different but they they could read through you trying to patronize them or or give them Some type of directive that was Almost like discrediting them right like it was a balance of saying listen
I may not know it all, but here's a few things might be helpful to you, right? Or, hey, that behavior is not going to serve you well, you know, kind of stuff, because I would chase them all through this Atlanta when they would be kicked out of group homes and whatnot. So I guess I just tried to, or maybe it was all the ice cream I bought them. I bought a lot of ice cream. really did. Yeah, exactly. I think I spent half my paycheck and I didn't make a lot of the time. So yeah, but you know, it opened the floodgates a little bit with them.
Host
That trick I know.
Amy McWilliams
But yes, honesty is, they just can read through if you're trying to give them lip service, I guess, in some ways.
Host
Got it. Got it. So it's, it's not necessarily the hard truths, but it's not, uh, it's not kind of trying to pull the wool over their eyes. Gotcha. You know, I remember you and I talked briefly before we met about rehab facilities and why it's so difficult to get care of there. Talk to me a little bit about that and, what kind of rehab facilities and why it's so challenging.
Amy McWilliams
Yes, right. Yeah.
Amy McWilliams
gosh, that's a whole topic in itself. rehab, the concept of them is great, right? Somebody falls, breaks a hip, they need to go get extra intensive therapy to get stronger after the procedure if they have surgery, right? Often the rehabs are understaffed.
Interestingly, the therapy seems to be probably the strongest, like the physical therapy. And you know, physical therapists now I think have to get a doctorate. So I think they're highly credentialed in a lot of ways. more, some of them are probably grandfathered in, but generally a lot of the PT, occupational therapy, physical therapy, speech therapy is pretty solid. It's the staffing of the nurses and the...
the CNAs of the certified nursing assistant that is very minimal. I was just talking to my niece who just got her CNA literally this week to take care of my mom. She did kind of a two week course that was kind of really strong and then she did clinical and she went into a, not, it wasn't a rehab but an assisted living and she's like, mom, Amy, did you know that the regulations for an assisted living is two?
Two CNAs for one medical assistant on a floor. And I don't know how many residents were there. I'm sure it's a number there that is there. I think about 15, 20 maybe. And I said, yeah, it's the regulations that are the problem. And the staffing of finding the individuals. I think it's also the pay. Certified nursing assistants are so important.
but they're paid so little. And so I think it's hard to get consistent care. And what I've learned from caregiver companies who I vet all the time and I'm constantly thinking in their brains about how to improve that part of the system. From an advocacy standpoint, they are your important people because they have a day-to-day care, but they're really tricky to navigate and find good care.
Amy McWilliams
And I asked them this about pay and you know, they don't have a lot of answers. They got overhead and things like that, right? They've got to bring in, they've got the company, but I'm always asking them, how can we improve this? Like training for the CNA. That's a whole other part of the rehab. It's good training. How I had a father that was in a rehab, a father-in-law, and he had macular degeneration.
couldn't see and they would come in and not announce themselves and touch him and he would jump out of his skin. And you know, so, so I tried to put a sign over his bed that says, have macular degeneration. Please announce when you come in. And that was a HIPAA violation. So I had to take it down. But so some of it's just training to say, Hey, announce yourself when you come in, ask them, Hey, can I touch your right arm? I'm about to touch your right arm and move you, you know, but
To their defense, they've got a lot of work to do if there's only two of them and they're trying to get in and get the job done. But it's a system issue. And if we could figure out how to, the regulations, we need more regulations on it, to be honest, and more pay for these individuals.
Host
Yeah. Yeah. It's always an amount of resources. Like you mentioned earlier, even with Joe, it's this trade between resources and care. It's a challenging situation to be in. Speaking of, of places that have, you know, very limited resources. I know you also went to Indonesia and did some work there. Tell us about that.
Amy McWilliams
Yes, absolutely.
Amy McWilliams
Yes, that was amazing. I went and flew into Jakarta and stayed for two weeks and we traveled throughout Indonesia. We went into two other locations, yeah, two other locations and worked with families and children. And we did a medical mission. So I went with this amazing geriatrician in Snowville here. His name is Dr. Benjamin Abraham.
And he, I met him through another job. And he was one of the first doctors, I have a few others that I've worked with that really understood the value of social work. So when I worked in his practice as like a third party, he would always refer to me for clients. And so I'm so grateful because for a doctor to take the time to understand the client as a whole, right, is just beautiful. To their defense, they don't have a lot of time, right? But...
Dr. Abraham has been able to maintain that and a lot of it is part of who he is. And so he invited me to come on this mission with him and he did the medical component. Well, he did everything, but his primary focus and one of the places we went to was to do the medical assistance with medical staff. And then I was with other leaders doing work with the children. And so there's a couple orphanages over there.
that these children are just open for just being loved on and they have very little, but they are the very content. And it put a lot of things in perspective for me on how you can have a lot less and still be filled with joy and gratitude, right? For anyone just wanting to connect with you.
It just put a lot of things for perspective for me and I was just really grateful I hope to go back next year. He goes every year the name can I plug the foundation? Am I allowed to do that? Yeah, it's a nonprofit if you want to support something it's one two six one two seven legacy foundation and
Host
Sure, yeah, go ahead.
Host
And you mentioned he does a lot of geriatric work. What did you learn about the aging population when you went?
Amy McWilliams
what did I not learn? mean, it's amazing. He taught me so much about, well, I know enough to be dangerous medically because I'm a social worker, but I'm staying in my lane there. But just kind of advocate. He's even really mindful about medication calls for people. Like he looks at it from the whole plate. Like he'll warn you, okay, I can prescribe this medication for hallucinations for dementia, but it's a very expensive drug. You all want that. Like, you know, at least
Host
Right.
Amy McWilliams
being again being honest with people and also just not throwing something at them that might give them false hope and then realize how expensive he's just his humility on what he does and how he does it is served him so well and he has a very successful practice. He's in his 70s. I told him and he can go I mean he and in Asia I was like what are you eating because he can he can go non-stop. I mean he's just filled with just good energy and
Host
Right.
Host
Wow.
Amy McWilliams
And he has a very strong faith, so that makes a difference.
Host
Well, what kind of clients should be reaching out to you and how do they find your practice?
Amy McWilliams
Yeah, thanks for asking. Yeah, they can reach out to us through if you look up not your average Joe and if you look up probably under senior, senior advocate care, if you connect not your average Joe and advocate, you'll find us easy. If you don't do the advocate, you'll get coffee. Exactly.
Host
That's a good tip.
Amy McWilliams
Ideally, we love to meet with families and do an assessment before the crisis. We get a lot of crisis calls. But if you're wondering, hey, I want to love my parents well, and I want to be ahead of the crisis, we can always do an assessment and talk to you about what are the things, the steps to kind of prepare. If you're in crisis and you still need help, we do that. We go into the ER or we're advocating constantly and educating families.
when they're like, mom's being pushed to subacute rehab, what does that mean and which one do I pick, right? Things like that. We are primarily in Metro Atlanta. We do a little work outside of there, but we try to honor that we know Atlanta, right? So if they want a care manager in this space in another state, there is a foundation called the Aging Life Care.
What is it? Aging Life Care Foundation. Aging. Yeah. ALCA. A-L-C-A. Yeah. And so that's a great place to search based on your zip code. And you can find people like me that are certified in what we do. So, and we work together very closely. Like if I have a client in, like I have a client right now in Maryland and I reached out to look for an elder care because the family wanted, the son's here, but the mom's in Maryland. And we're just trying to figure out the different dates.
know, benefits. So we do work closely together in a lot of ways because we love we all are really, you know, dedicated to what we do, which is really great through this foundation. So, or association, guess.
Host
Sounds good.
Host
Well, Amy McWilliams, thank you so much for your time and all of your insights. was nice to get to know you and your history and your practice.
Amy McWilliams
Thank you so much. I'm really honored that I could be a part of this.
