Personal Stories

When my uncle died, I became responsible for my 97-year-old aunt. Even though my husband is a physician and I was used to traveling in medical circles, I didn't know what to do. My uncle (who had also been a doctor) had always managed his wife's complicated medical condition. Happily, I was introduced to Dr. Korff who was able to provide the specialized care that my aunt needed. She was able to diagnose her issues immediately and then she set in motion a plan to help my aunt regain some autonomy. I truly believe that without Dr. Korff my aunt would have died. Today, she has regained some control of her life and is living comfortably in her own home. In addition to caring for my elderly aunt, Dr. Korff also helps me care for my parents. When my father was in an acute medical state, I once again turned to Dr. Korff when neither I nor my husband could immediately figure out what to do. Dr. Korff was able to arrange emergency visits to the doctors who were able to diagnose my father's life-threatening medical condition. She also provided invaluable oversight when my father had to be hospitalized for both that illness and a complication twice in one week. I can categorically state that my father is alive today only because of the intervention that Dr. Korff was able to provide, even though she had not previously been providing any medical services to my father.

Dr. Korff supervised the care of my father in the last two years of his life. We first called Dr. Korff when my father's care regime started to fall apart. When Dr. Korff put it back together, everything changed and quickly became first-rate. Dr. Korff managed all aspects of my father's care ranging from coordinating his medical care to supervising the caretakers which resulted in a dramatic improvement in his condition. She put a stop to wasteful and unwarranted procedures, and her meticulous management measurably helped my father's finances. From the day she intervened until the day of my father's funeral, Dr. Korff's superb expertise was invaluable. I could finally sleep at night knowing that my father was getting the best care imaginable.

My 82-year-old mother was released from a well-reputed medical center after having dangerously high potassium, a bladder blockage and barely functioning kidneys—from which she nearly died. We subsequently found out that she had had a recent significant stroke, and that explained why she had become functionally blind. My mother was full of anxiety and not acting rationally. In short, it was a nightmare and my mother was a danger to herself. We saw a neurologist who confirmed the stroke and prescribed medication for her anxiety, but told us that he was not a specialist and that we should see a geriatrician. I called several, but even with this urgent situation, I wasn't able to get an appointment any sooner than six weeks away. I heard about Dr. Janice Korff and called her. She immediately sprang into action, prescribing a combination of medications that immediately calmed my mother and enabled my father to rest and me to return to my own home. My father hired a 24-hour aide who kept in contact with Dr. Korff on a daily basis so that Dr. Korff could closely monitor my mother's vital signs and behavior. Dr. Korff encouraged my father to call her in the middle of the night if need be (and it was needed) so that she could make adjustments on the spot. When you need this kind of care, as we did, this medical model is the only thing that can work. It made it possible for us to keep my mother out of a nursing home. I honestly don't know how people in this situation function if they don't have someone like Dr. Korff whom they can call upon.

Dr. Korff has been taking care of my parents for almost two years. She started working with us when my mother had a stroke which affected her memory; my father already had severe problems walking and keeping his balance, so as a result, they could no longer take care of themselves. Dr. Korff took control of everything. She found a very reliable service for in-house care. When one of the caregivers didn't work out, Dr. Korff handled the unpleasant task of arranging for a replacement. Dr. Korff also managed a drug regime for my mother which has stabilized her memory loss and has kept her in a remarkably good mood all this time. As a result, the rest of the family is able to have only pleasant interactions with my parents — we don't have to make medical decisions and we need not concern ourselves with drug and equipment issues. Dr. Korff is extremely knowledgeable and is a strong negotiator with insurance companies, as well as having expertise with Medicare. She even knew of a veteran's pension benefit my father was entitled to which provides him (as a World War II veteran) with much needed extra income. As a result, the government actually pays a large part of the expense for Dr. Korff's services. My parents live in Irvine, California, and Dr. Korff is located on Manhattan's Upper East Side. Yet she is able to act efficiently to care for my parents by telephone and internet. She hires nurses and aides who report to her, so she doesn't need to see my parents personally. Although at first we were nervous about this and thought that person-to-person contact was important, we became quite convinced that this relationship works perfectly on a long-distance basis. When local physicians are (infrequently) needed for a visit, Dr. Korff has arranged for this. Thanks to Dr. Korff, my parents — both severely disabled — are able to stay in their home. This has made all the difference for my parents in their twilight years. Our family is eternally grateful to Dr. Korff—we have no idea what we would have done without her.