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In 2020 Mom and I had a bad experience at in Van Nuys, CA when I took mom in for her visit.
Mom moved in with my sister and her husband October 2021. When caring became difficult, she thought she’d see if Kaiser could help. Today, she took her somewhere in Lincoln, CA, and also had a really bad experience. Doctor accused her of having terrible conflicts at home. She said, go home and resolve them. Then come back and will try again. Doctor said they didn't care about mom's health. Incredibly insensitive, unhelpful, and judgmental.

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"...treats dementia patients and their caregivers with respect"... can you be more specific? What type of "respect" do you wish to have? What do are you hoping for?

Also, can you please give details about what was "bad" about your mom's experience in Van Nuys?

When your mom went to the doctor in Lincoln and also had a "bad" experience, was she in the exam room alone with the doctor or did your sister sit in with her? I'm asking because you say your mom has dementia but if no one was in the room with her then she may not be recounting what happened with accuracy. This is a common problem with dementia.

Please provide more details so that you can get the best guidance possible.
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Alegria Jan 2022
Thanks for reaching out. Our mom was treated disrespectfully by two geriatrics doctors from Kaiser Medicare. The intent of this post was to help my sister get practical help - recommendations for a Medicare insurance in the Sacramento area of CA.
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All you need to do is change to a Dr. who takes Medicare. Maybe a generic one. If you get a Medicare Advantage you are stuck with using the Drs in their network. I live in a small populated area so I know the Drs in the area. I find those in MAs net work I would not even consider going to.

Maybe the problem with Sister and Mom was that the Dr was asking Mom questions and your sister was disagreeing with her so Dr. could not get straight answers. I did the same thing with my nephew and the Dr. told me nicely to be quiet. So when I took Mom I knew to allow him to ask his questions with Mom. He would look at me and I would shake my head yes or no. After that visit, I had a list ready of what she had been doing. He did read it and based his questions on that list.
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Alegria Jan 2022
Perhaps my post was too narrow. We are looking for recommendations for Medicare programs in the Sacramento area of CA. Thanks for sharing your thoughts about your experience in MA.
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Are you looking for a different doctor or a different healthcare insurance plan?

If it's the insurance, my mom had SCAN in Southern California. They were great, but they had nothing to do with whether she liked her doctors or not.

IMO, Kaiser is only good for younger people who are healthy. My folks had Kaiser, and while my always-healthy dad loved it, my mom's doctor told her she needed more exercise when we took her in. She'd been white as a sheet and wouldn't wake up, but sure -- exercise was the problem for a woman who could barely walk on her best days. 🙄

After that appointment, Dad took Mom back home, I drove home (90 minutes), and as soon as I pulled into the driveway, my phone rang. The doctor had called Dad and told him to get Mom to the ER immediately as her bloodwork showed she had severe anemia. She ended up in the hospital for five days and had four blood transfusions due to a bleeding ulcer or so they thought. They never did confirm it.

That's the treatment you get at Kaiser when you're old, ill, and have dementia. Needless to say, after Dad died I switched Mom to SCAN. You also don't want Kaiser if you need to put Mom in a nursing home one day.
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Alegria Jan 2022
Thanks for sharing your experiences with Kaiser Permanente. My sister plans to find a better Medicare plan when open enrollment begins in the end of the year. Meanwhile she and mom will expect minimal services.
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Are you looking for a different Medicare Advantage plan?

If you have straight Medicare, there is no "plan". You can go to any doctor who accepts Medicare.
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