CenterLight Teamcare is New York's largest Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE), and one of the oldest non-profit PACE plans in the United States. Each day, we deliver highly-personalized care to thousands of participants across the New York metropolitan area through the combined talents, expertise and dedication of our Interdisciplinary Team (IDT).
What is an Interdisciplinary Team?
The Interdisciplinary Team (IDT) is a group of dedicated healthcare professionals who work together to provide you with the care you need, when you need it. The IDT includes but is not limited to a physical therapist, an occupational therapist, a doctor, a social worker, a nurse, a therapeutic recreation specialist, a dietician, and a PACE manager (called IDT Manager at Teamcare).
Our goal is make sure that our participants stay healthy and living in their own homes and communities as long as possible. With Teamcare, each participant has a full team dedicated to them, who collaborate to discuss their needs, effective treatment, plan of care, and any other aspects in their lives that affect their well-being.
The PACE Interdisciplinary Team is not limited to the disciplines listed in this diagram.
Different Disciplines Working together to Provide Complete Care
Each discipline in the team has a specific role—with every person bringing a different perspective—allowing us to provide holistic and complete care to our participants.
Medical Directors are the clinical leads for each center. Because doctors are located on-site, they’re able to keep a close eye on your health and better focus on preventative care. If issues come up, the physician is always there to guide and lead the team and see the participants as needed.
All Teamcare PACE centers have a Nurse who can treat the participant on-site if they are not feeling well or if the team sees a change in condition. This helps prevent hospital and urgent care visits. Our centers are equipped to handle minor symptoms such as fever, minor headaches, body aches and pains, and our medical staff is able to administer specialized treatments and interventions including wound care and IV Therapy.
A Nurse also visits participants in their home to assess what their needs are and make sure they receive necessary care—allowing them to continue living at home in the most optimal state.
Each Teamcare participant is assigned a Social Worker who provides emotional support, counseling, referrals, and when possible, encourages family involvement.
The Therapeutic Recreation (TR) Specialists design activities with our participants’ needs in mind. TR Specialists coordinate services such as art therapy, music therapy, dance and movement therapy, and pet therapy. There are over 100 activities at each center per month, taking into consideration cultural diversity and the unique preferences of our participants.
Physical Therapists focus on evaluating participants ability to walk, climb up and down stairs, and their ability to go outside in the community, like go to a baseball park and have fun.
Occupational Therapists, on the other hand, look at your Activities of Daily Living (ADL) such as dressing, bathing, grooming, and so forth.
Our Registered Dieticians’ role is to provide appropriate nutrition interventions based on each participant’s care plan. This includes helping them manage their diabetes, hypertension, high cholesterol, and their weight. The dieticians are located in our centers, can answer any questions you may have and provide nutrition counseling.
In the coming months, we will describe each of these roles in more detail. For information on more members of the IDT, click here.
the Teamcare Approach
Since 1985, our team-based model has set us uniquely apart from the rest. Imagine all your clinicians, therapists, and care professionals under one roof – listening to you, working together, and communicating together as one team.The IDT meets on a regular basis. Because of this, each discipline is on the same page and issues can be resolved quickly and effectively.
H3329_2019_BlogInterdisciplinaryTeam Approved 09202019
Last updated September 18, 2019