YOUR GUIDE TO HANDLING HEALTH-RELATED CRISES
Health emergencies often arise without warning, leaving little time for clear decision-making — and even high-net-worth individuals can find unexpected vulnerabilities in their planning. Taking a proactive approach to healthcare crisis management can reduce stress, protect long-term health outcomes, and safeguard financial stability. Here are a few expert tips to help you prepare:
Build your support network – Identify key contacts, including healthcare providers, insurance representatives, and emergency caregivers. Maintain an up-to-date list of phone numbers and emails for quick access.
Develop a detailed plan – An expert healthcare advisor can help create a well-thought-out plan, including coordinating with family members, patients, doctors, aides, specialists, family offices, and emergency caregivers–and importantly, the preferred hospital. Establishing clear communication channels and defining roles in advance ensures that everyone involved is on the same page should a crisis arise.
Understand your insurance coverage – Familiarize yourself with your health insurance policy, including what’s covered in emergencies. Keep important documents like policy numbers and contact information in an easily accessible place.
Prepare emergency supplies – Create a “go pack” that includes a few days of essential medications and copies of important documents and information in case you need to leave your home urgently.
Plan for financial implications – Health emergencies can lead to unexpected expenses. Keep an emergency fund and consider how financial planning can help you prepare for high-cost care scenarios.
Leverage professional expertise –Consider working with a healthcare advisor or advocate who can assist with healthcare crisis preparedness and guide decision-making and coordinate care. They can help with everything from finding the best specialists to negotiating bills after the emergency has passed.
CASE STUDY:
Wellworth was able to help a client of a family office who had to evacuate due to the recent fires in Los Angeles. In the rush to evacuate, he was left without vital dementia medication and was becoming hostile. On top of that, the National Guard had the neighborhood on lockdown and the pharmacy had likely burned down. In collaboration with the homecare agency and the MFO, Wellworth developed a multi-pronged strategy:
The nurse would assess the client’s immediate condition.
Options included accompanying the client to an emergency room or an upscale urgent care facility.
Wellworth would liaise with the client’s physicians to create a longer-term care plan.
Wellworth quickly liaised with the MFO advisor, Dr. Abe Warshaw, a Senior Physician at Wellworth, a local homecare agency and local urgent care provider, their nurses and doctors, as well as the client’s health insurance company. The health insurance company was capable of looking up (with approval) the client’s medications in his portal. Wellworth and the homecare agency coordinated care to arrange a virtual visit with a leading private urgent care provider. Equipped with the necessary information, the urgent care physicians were able to prescribe his medications promptly.
This seamless response in this case study underscores the value of proactive partnerships. The MFO had pre-arranged a retainer with Wellworth, ensuring no time was lost in navigating contracts or logistics.
At Wellworth, we don’t rest. We are tireless in our commitment to guiding clients through health and wellness crises, providing unparalleled advocacy and expertise. This is what it means to have a dedicated partner in a broken healthcare system.
When moments matter, Wellworth is there — leading, coordinating, and delivering solutions with urgency and compassion. Whether the health care need happens at home or when the patient is far from home Wellworth is well positioned to identify the best options to optimize care and health outcomes.