Being a Guardian Angel: Avoiding Negligence
We now hear from Margy Campbell, whose professional adult and geriatric experience has proven invaluable to local attorneys in their professional need for expert witness testimony and to families as a family mediator and Personal Representative.
What are common cases that you are instructed on as an Expert Witness?
My expertise is specific to cases where the standard of care has been allegedly breached or neglected by a family member, interested party, agency or professional resulting in direct harm to the vulnerable adult.
The alleged harm may be due to a guardian’s medical, residential and/or environmental decision making, through a lack of fiduciary care to the vulnerable adult’s estate by a conservator or through agency/family mismanagement of a vulnerable adult’s care through management decisions or by agency/family caregivers providing inappropriate/unnecessary care.
Why are these cases so common and what could be done by professionals to avoid them? At what point would you recommend clients to take legal action?
Breach or neglect of the standard of care may be more common in the family guardian/conservator/caregiver setting due to these individuals choosing to make decisions based on what they feel is in the best interest of the vulnerable adult rather than following valid legal documents already in place, or making decisions by using substituted judgement – taking into account what the vulnerable adult would want.
When to take legal action is always a difficult question. When a vulnerable adult is at risk of harm – medically, emotionally, environmentally or financially, action should be taken quickly. This action may be in the form of a report to the attorney representing the vulnerable adult, to the court which has jurisdiction, to a state licencing authority or to a state ombudsman. If there seems to be no response and the threat of harm continues, then consulting an attorney may be the next step.
What qualities do you think make a good social worker?
Quality social workers will always attempt to follow the NASW – National Association of Social Workers, code of conduct and standards of practice. They will have clear boundaries of practice, place their client’s needs first, continue to educate themselves and surround themselves with other professional with solid ethics.
Quality guardians/conservators will always attempt to follow the code of conduct and standards of practice from the National Guardianship Association and stay in compliance with their state statues and licensing. Like social workers they will have clear boundaries of practice, place their client’s needs first, continue to educate themselves and surround themselves with other professional with solid ethics.
What are the biggest challenges through litigation? How do you use your expert knowledge to work your through this challenge?
One of the biggest challenges in dealing with legal matters is the willingness of the legal team to provide me with all of the information as I move into an initial consulting role.
The time needed to bring me up to speed with the nuances of the case does take time and financial resources, however without having all the facts – medical documents, bank and investment documents, charting from care managers and caregivers -, I am unable to evaluate the case adequately.
Communication is a necessary key to my work as a consultant and/or expert witness and staying in communication with the legal team through email, phone consultations, in-person meetings allows me to meet their timetables and deadlines.
In what ways do you think the legal system could change, for the advantage of your sector and clients?
In an ideal world, I would like to see more education of family/interested parties prior to their appointment as a court appointed guardian/conservator through a court sanctioned in-person education class as some states have when a couple is divorcing.
I would like agencies providing care management and caregivers to understand the role of a court appointed guardian/conservator. This would allow them to work effectively as a team member to provide care for the vulnerable adult and to notice the red flags which need to be reported.
For professionals I would like to see every state require licensing, as they do for social workers, and have these professionals be certified through the Centre for Guardianship Certification (CGC).
Margy M Campbell, LCSW, CFP, NMG Emeritus
Margy Campbell Conuslting, LLC
www.margycampbellconsulting.com
801-231-2018 phone
801-203-3033 fax
Margy Campbell is a Utah licensed clinical social worker (LCSW), certified financial planner (CFP) and National Master Guardian Emeritus (NMG Emeritus) registered with the National Guardianship Association. She has over 30 years of knowledge and expertise in the area of guardianship, conservatorship, care management and private/agency based home care for vulnerable adults.
She was CEO and Founder of Age Connections, Inc – a private geriatric care management company and non-medial home health agency from 1987-2011 and CEO & Co-Founder of Guardian & Conservator Services, Inc, from 1997-2016 – an agency which provides guardianship, conservatorship, trustee and other fiduciary services for vulnerable adults throughout the Intermountain West. Ms. Campbell served as the Programme Director for the Utah Special Needs Assistance Program Fund (Utah SNAP Fund), a non-profit organisation offering a pooled income fund to the disabled in Utah for over 10 years.
