Fraud and Financial Abuse Prevention (Required)

  • Purpose
    • To define the legal activities employees must not become involved when providing client care
    • To ensure clients’ finances and property are properly safeguarded, documented, and accounted for
    • To prohibit agency or registry from allowing a consumer to client to endorse a check to the home care agency or registry
    • To protect clients and employees
    • In the case of misuse, to provide direction in the investigation and reporting
  • Policy
    • Compati Home Care has strict criteria, policies, and procedures involving a client’s finances/property legalities and recording clients’ financial transactions for managing client’s property:
    • Employees shall not partake in the following, which include, but are not limited to:
      • Accepting Power of Attorney for a client, client’s representative, family or other responsible person associated with the client
      • Becoming an appointee or having any legal involvement with the client, client’s representative, family or other responsible person
      • Assisting a client in making out his/her will
      • Becoming beneficiaries of a client’s will; If an employee suspects he/she is a beneficiary of a client’s will, that suspicion shall be reported to the supervisor
      • Becoming an executor of a client’s will
    • Another form of abuse is ‘financial abuse.’ This involves taking property or money from a resident or encouraging a resident to hand over his/her assets. Residents have the right to protection of their money and property.
  • Procedures

1. Financial transactions, conducted on behalf of clients, may include:

    • Assisting with household budgeting
    • Payment of bills
    • Collection of pensions or other cash benefits
    • Purchasing household goods
    • Agency or registry is prohibited from allowing consumer to endorse a check over to the home care agency or registry

2. Employees shall not have access to clients’ bank accounts, credit cards, or other financial information

3. Wherever possible, clients shall be allowed/encouraged to handle their own finances/property. 4. When clients are not able to handle their own finances/property, a relative, friend, or responsible person should be appointed to do so, preferably by the client.

4. When clients are not able to handle their own finances/property, a relative, friend, or responsible person should be appointed to do so, preferably by the client.

5. Only when there are no other alternatives, and all other options have been reviewed, shall the agency be involved in handling finances/property.

6. Employees shall handle clients’ finances/property only when these activities have been specified in their service plan.

7. Employees shall never be permitted to know clients’ account numbers or PIN numbers.

8. If employees become aware that a client is keeping a large amount of cash at home, they shall report the details to the supervisor.

9. Employees may pick up a mentally capable client’s monies, including pension checks and personal checks, from external mail sources such as off-site postal boxes or post offices only when the activity is specified in the service plan. In these situations, the Supervisor shall give authorization and document this approval in the client’s file.

10. Employees shall never pick up a mentally incapable client’s off-site mail.

11. Employees shall pay clients’ bills only when the activity is specified in the service plan.

12. Employees shall deliver monies and/or checks to the client as soon as possible after the transactions have been completed. Employees shall never take monies/checks to their own homes or keep them in their possession overnight.

13. When shopping for a client, employees shall:

    • Obtain client’s input regarding which store(s) to shop at
    • Consult with the client regarding items to purchase, sizes, brand names, amounts, etc.
    • Consider the client’s dietary needs, religious restrictions, cultural preferences, and item cost to ensure value for money
    • Request receipts for all transactions, which shall be given to the client
    • Confirm that monies and receipts are correct before leaving the cashier
    • Keep client’s money separate from their own
    • Not shop simultaneously for other clients or for themselves when shopping for one client; employees may complete shopping for one client and then shop for another client before delivering purchases to clients, but each client’s money shall be kept separate from the others
    • Not use their own bonus card to collect points on items the client has paid for, even if the client does not have or does not use a bonus card

14. Employees shall utilize the agency’s Financial Transactions Record for recording financial details and obtaining the client/client’s representative’s signature once the transaction has been documented and the unspent monies have been given to him/her.

15. Receipts or documentation of all transactions and purchases paid with the clients’ funds must be recorded on the agency’s Financial Transactions Record, which shall include:

    • Client’s name
    • Employee’s name
    • Date
    • Amount of money employee received from the client, which should be counted out and confirmed with the client; where practical, the client should confirm his/her agreement with a signature
    • List of items purchased or money collected
    • Total amount spent or total amount collected
    • Change given back to the client; employee shall count out the amount being returned and confirm it with the client, and confirm his/her agreement with a signature where practical; Financial Transaction Records shall be kept in the client’s home and taken to the Agency when completed, where they will be retained for the mandatory period of time

16. Employees may obtain cash amounts for clients up to and including $50. Any requests for amounts in excess of $50 shall be authorized by the supervisor.

17. Employees shall not simultaneously obtain cash for themselves while obtaining cash for clients.

18. Employees shall not use a client’s telephone for personal reasons except for emergency purposes or for calling the supervisor.

19. Employees shall not assume responsibility for looking after clients’ valuable items.

20. Employees shall not consume the client’s food and/or beverages.

21. In respect to computers, employees shall not:

    • Use the client’s computer for personal reasons
    • Attempt to solve problems with the client’s computer
    • Give directions to the client on how to solve computer problems

22. Employees shall never borrow anything from or lend anything to a client.

23. Employees shall never buy anything from or sell anything to a client.

24. Employees shall never incur a liability on behalf of a client (e.g. borrow money to give to a client or charge an item for the client to the employee’s credit card or debit card, etc.)

25. Employees shall never involve clients in gambling activities such as giving opinions on, or purchasing tickets for, lotteries, betting pools, etc.

26. Employees shall never arrange for members of their own families to do paid work for clients.

27. Employees shall be diligent when handling clients’ finances/property. Failure to do so may result in disciplinary action and/or notification of law enforcement.