Thanks and Gratitude

The years seem to fly by so quickly sometimes.  It seems like we just wrote our annual Thanksgiving post here on the blog.

Roman Bloemke, Welcome Home Management

This post for me comes really easy every year, because we have so much to be thankful for.  When you work with caring and compassionate people, it just makes coming to work that much more enjoyable.  As many of our residents will tell you, they are all just wonderful – and I agree!

I’m thankful for the care providers who take the best care of our residents.  I’m thankful for the dining services people who prepare the wonderful food we get to eat.  I’m thankful for the Community Life Coordinators who make the community fun and exciting.  I’m thankful for the Maintenance staff who work to keep things looking nice and operating well.  I’m thankful for the marketing people who are there to help families work through what can be a difficult transition.  I’m thankful for the Nurses who are the most compassionate people I know.  I am thankful for the Memory Care Coordinators who hold a special place in so many people’s hearts.  I’m thankful for the Director’s of Resident Services who do such an amazing job.  And I’m thankful for our office team who work behind the scenes to support the communities.

All of you are just like a family to us.

Finally, I’m thankful for my wife and my two boys who have always been supportive in both my career and my personal life.

As you’ll read below, our team members contributed to our annual post.  Thank you for considering Welcome Home and our properties for your loved ones.  From all of our family to yours, we wish you a happy Thanksgiving.

Home for the Holidays

By Todd Corrow, Marketing Associate at Legends at Heritage Place and Lisa Lehmann, Director of Resident Services at Twin Town Villa.

As families gather together during this upcoming Holiday Season, some may face seeing changes in their parents.  Our goal is to assist all families with these difficult decisions.  We have started a support group for all families in which the topics cover how to make the best decisions for everyone involved.  When a family comes to us looking to take that next step, we sit down with all of them and take the time for them to communicate exactly what they are looking for and what concerns they have.  We assist the families with finding the solution that works best for them.

Another area that we emphasize is that even if Mom and Dad come to live with us, it doesn’t have to mean that Mom and Dad can’t host the family get together.  This Thanksgiving we are working with several of our residents to bring their family to the community for their traditional family gathering.  We know this will mean the world to not only the residents, but to all of us here.  We will have an opportunity to visit with the family and all our residents will have the opportunity to share in the joy of family.

We as a staff strive to allow the families to become just that – a family again, with the caregiver role becoming ours.  This way the spouse can again become the husband or wife without the stress of taking care of the other, we want them to regain the smiles and relaxing times that we all cherish.  We want the sons and daughters to be able to bring the grandchildren in and have the smiles brighten up the entire building.  Smiles and laughter truly possess a healing power and create a warm and positive environment.

Coming home for the holiday’s can sometimes be an eye opener when you come home to an elderly parent(s).  Sometimes it is amazing what declines we see this month that we didn’t notice six months ago when we were home last.

Things you might notice or signs that you should keep an eye out for –

•  Your parent seems depressed. Depression is common in seniors who are isolated and alone.
• Dad is reaching for the backs of the furniture while getting around the house, leads us to believe that he is losses his balance more often, making it more difficult to get around.
• You notice frequent bruises, although your parent may try to cover them up. This may be a sign of falling or mobility and balance problems.
• Your parent wears the same clothes over and over again or neglects personal hygiene. This can indicate that doing laundry and bathing is physically challenging.
• Did you notice that mom isn’t wearing any of her favorite blouses?  She is having a hard time buttoning them up.
• Mom seems more confused lately, she maybe having trouble keeping her medications straight.  Mixing up the times and doses can lead to more confusion.
• The house and yard isn’t as clean and tidy as it used to be.
• Your parent forgets things, including doctor’s appointments and when to take medication. This may be due to memory loss.
• You notice strange or inappropriate behavior. For example, your parent may dress inappropriately for the weather. This can be a sign that your parent is experiencing confusion.

So as we gather for the Holidays lets be thankful for the opportunity to come together and create lasting memories.  If you see things that concern you do not fear what the future holds embrace the opportunity to work with a Community which will provide a safe and caring environment where there will be opportunity to create more memories.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving weekend!

Heart and Soul – LCM Workshop

Today, the heart and soul of the care providers visited Welcome Home for their Fall Workshop.

We covered a variety of topics, but the overall goal was sharing information between all of the communities.  What works, best practices, scheduling ideas, taking inventory, and being a leader in the community.

The overall result was a

First Advisory Council Meeting and AOA Grants Seek to Improve Care for Those with Alzheimer’s

The Administration on Aging (AOA) awarded 12.8 million dollars in grants, aimed at improving access to services for individuals with Alzheimer’s, while the first meeting of the Alzheimer’s Advisory Council assessed current programs that address Alzheimer’s disease.

The grants, which have been awarded to Ohio, New York, Georgia and Minnesota, will help states improve current systems in order to provide individuals with Alzheimer’s disease or dementia and their caregivers with access to needed services, such as caregiver training and home care. The grants will also be aimed at improving access to information about state sponsored programs and streamlining current processes. The awarded states will work collaboratively with Area Agencies on Aging, Centers for Independent Living, Alzheimer’s associations, health departments, and community-based organizations in increasing access to caregiver support programs, as well as health and prevention programs. AOA also requires these grant recipients to promote community living and ensure services and supports foster choice and independence for older adults.

The AOA also participated in the first meeting of the Advisory Council on Alzheimer’s Research, Care, and Services, which was created by the National Alzheimer’s Project Act (NAPA) and charged with creating a national strategy for combating Alzheimer’s disease. At the initial meeting, various federal agencies described current programs and initiatives, highlighting current opportunities at a state and federal level for addressing the disease. The 22-member council also discussed impediments to effectively fighting Alzheimer’s, such as lack of participation in clinical trials and gaps in Alzheimer’s research, and methods of overcoming these problems. The Advisory Council charged the Secretary of Health and Human Services with drafting a national plan by December and planned to meet again in January to discuss the initial draft.

Read more about the Advisory Council on Alzheimer’s Research, Care, and Services and review the complete press release describing AOA’s recently awarded grants.

article:: Assisted Living Federation of America

A Walk to End Alzheimer’s

Today, as many as 5.4 million Americans are living with Alzheimer’s. In addition, 10 million baby boomers are aging, increasing their risk for developing this fatal disease. Now is the time to end this epidemic!

But there is something we can do to stop this devastating disease. We can walk together to end this disease. That’s why we are participating in the Alzheimer’s Association Walk to End Alzheimer’s™.

The Alzheimer’s Association^®, the leading voluntary organization in Alzheimer research, care and support, is dedicated to finding prevention methods, treatments and an eventual cure for the disease.

This year, two of our communities are participating in area events.  The Legends at Heritage Place team will be participating in their event on September 24th, along Lake George in St. Cloud, MN.  The Thomas Landing team will participate in the Rice Lake, WI event on September 10th starting at the Moose Lake Lodge.

We know we can do this with your support. Would you please consider making a donation? Visit either communities online fundraising headquarters for Thomas Landing or The Legends at Heritage Place to learn more and make a donation.

Walk to End Alzheimer’s™ “The You Factor”

Thank you in advance for your time, generosity and for supporting our team members as they support this cause.

Fighting Ageism in America

ALFA Short Film Competition winner - "Mind the Gap"

We recently returned from the Assisted Living Federation of America conference and there was a common theme we would like to share.

In today’s society, there seems to be a lot of “ageism” out there.  Ageism is defined as discrimination against people on the grounds of age; specifically, discrimination against the elderly.  This year, ALFA held a film competition that could help fight ageism in America.  If you click here, you can watch the short film that won the competition.

Then just yesterday, I came across this awesome story on MSNBC.com of a gentleman, who dreamed at a younger age, of crossing the Atlantic ocean in a raft.  At 85 years old, he set out with three of his friends to build the raft and set sail on the 2,800 mile journey.

Aging Parents: 5 warning signs of health problems

Recently, I had a chance meeting with one of our families outside of the work environment and we got to talking about a variety of things.  One of the points of conversation that was most interesting is the process that families go through when looking for a senior living community for their parent(s).  More times than people realize, decisions to make a move in to an assisted living community are based out of necessity.  We all talk a lot about services and amentities or features of our properties that seperate us from everyone else, but that isn’t what’s really important, and something they probably won’t remember when they get home to make their decision.

As providers, we have to remember that when someone reaches out to our communities, that we take in to consideration all of the emotions that this family member is going through.  Many times, as family members, we go out to visit our parents over the weekend and realize that something isn’t quite right and begin our search/fact finding mission.  This is very difficult time for families.  Imagine for a moment that you are out for a normal visit to your parents and realize that my parents are getting older.  Sometimes it can feel as though it happened overnight.  In those instances, families that are coming to visit us are in an emotional state.  It’s incredibly important to realize the stress they are going through.  They have called your community, or walked in the door to have us help them solutions and answers.

U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging Moderates Assisted Living Discussion

On March 16, the U.S. Senate Aging Committee held a roundtable discussion entitled, “Assisted Living at the Dawn of America’s ‘Age Wave’: What Have States Achieved and How is the Federal Role Evolving?” The discussion included a wide range of stakeholder representatives from state and federal agencies, providers, and advocates, who examined various issues relating to assisted living. Officials from several states described the regulations they have in place to protect the interests of assisted living residents, and there was no consensus on any greater federal regulatory role. Much of the discussion focused on the use of Medicaid waivers and a variety of sources of capital to create affordable assisted living.

New wheels for the residents of Thomas Landing Senior Living!

Residents taking their first ride moments after the bus arrived.

Last week, we had the great pleasure of delivering a “late” holiday present to the residents of Thomas Landing Senior Living Community in Rice Lake, Wisconsin.

The picture of the smiles on the resident’s faces will be a lasting memory for me.  I talked to each one of them as they boarded for their first ride on the bus and they just couldn’t believe it.  One even mentioned that it seemed like a dream!

The possibilities are endless

Our activity program is called “A Part of You”.  The program is based around things that the residents like to do, not what our staff are accustomed to doing.  By having a bus, this gives the staff the ability to plan a variety of events.  “Everything from a simple run to the grocery store, or to the doctor, or on special excursions, the possibilities are really endless.” states Dean Bloemke, President of Welcome Home Management. 

As we left the community that day, the residents were still beaming, it had us thinking that maybe, this day couldn’t have gotten any better.

Congratulations to the residents and staff at Thomas Landing Senior Living community.  We sure hope you enjoy your new wheels!

Roman Bloemke, Director of Operations at Welcome Home Management