Programs & Services
Older Adult Services
There is no such person as "the older adult." Growing older is as complex and varied as any other stage of life. Just because we’re over 50 or 60 or 70 doesn’t mean we all fit the same description. We didn’t when we were younger, so why should we now?
Mercy Medical Center-Sioux City recognizes this diversity and in response, we offer a wide and growing array of programs to meet the needs of different people or of the same people at different times.
Call (712) 279-5936 for information on the following services.
Geriatric Assessment Clinic
The complex medical problems of older adults can be very puzzling. The elderly often suffer from more than one medical problem and have conditions that are obscured by unusual symptoms.
Some elderly people have a tendency to accept their symptoms, assuming they are a normal accompaniment to aging. Mercy’s Geriatric Assessment Clinic can help. The Clinic is intended for elderly patients who suffer from one or more of the following:
- Multiple chronic illnesses
- Impaired memory
- Depression or loneliness
- Episodes of dizziness or falling
- Weight loss
- Lack of independent functioning
The assessment process begins with a phone call to your doctor or to Mercy Medical Center-Sioux City at (712) 279-5936. A registered nurse will then contact you to schedule an in-home appointment for the initial assessment.
Silver Advantage Program
Health is a state of body and mind that is:
Active
Meet new friends…Enjoy trips and social events…Attend educational programs.
Independent
Identify, prevent or cope with specific health issues.
Up to date on general health questions
Attend wellness programs…Receive newsletters on timely health-related issues.
Informed about personal health questions
Take advantage of health screening and referrals to services that can meet your personal health-related needs.
Participate in helpful support groups.
For trips, tours, dinners, and programs ranging from improving your memory to detecting diabetes to choosing a hearing aid to gardening – join Silver Advantage. Call (712) 279-5936 for free membership information.
Bill Help Program
"How do I make sense of my Medicare statements?"…"Is long term care right for me?"…"How can I help my parents with insurance questions?"
Get answers for your questions!
Mercy in conjunction with the Senior Health Insurance Information Program (SHIIP), a special program of the State of Iowa Insurance Division, has started the Bill Help Program. The program provides information on Medicare, Medicare supplement insurance, long term care insurance, and assistance with claims filing for people 65 and older and their families.
Mercy’s Bill Help staff and volunteers will assist you with:
- Explaining Mercy hospital bills or other provider bills
- Making payment arrangements
- Applying for Title 19
- Understanding health insurance
- Submitting bills for reimbursement
- Visiting homebound clients
Bill Help is confidential, objective and free. Personal assistance with questions and paperwork is only a phone call away. Call (712) 279-5936 for an appointment
Patient & Family Advocacy Program
At her initial screening, 80-year-old "Mary" tells the nurse she will be walking home after her cataract operation – in the care of her 83-year-old sister!
A surgery patient’s husband is reluctant to go to the rest room or cafeteria, fearing he might miss the doctor or get lost.
Hospitals can be confusing, even frightening. But with Mercy’s Senior Advocacy Program, you are not left alone. Volunteers will provide a shoulder for you and your family to lean on. At your request, they can:
- Accompany you to a waiting room
- Wait with you until the doctor can speak with you
- Take you to our cafeteria or chapel
- Assist with hotel reservations
- Provide directions to parking areas
If you would like to use the Patient & Family Advocacy Program, call (712) 279-5936.
Mercy Medical Center-Sioux City
Older Adult Services
801 Fifth Street
Sioux City, Iowa 51101
Phone: (712) 279-5936