In This Issue
FEATURED ARTICLE: On Losing a Mother / Grandmother and Gaining Perspective
Financial Managers Gather to Hear Strategies for Agency Success
Priorities
Summer Precautions for the Elderly
The Distressing Decision to Order Hospice Care for a Person Living with Dementia
Kudos From Kelly
Providers We Love
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Photos in top banner:
GLAMOUR GIRLS: Lillian and Jessica Krumenacker; Lola and Paulo; Jeanette.

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NEW PEOPLE:

Thabile (Tabbie) Nduli
(Thanks Pinkie)

Precious Msane
(Thanks Pinkie)

Nonkululero (Ellaine) Mwezeni
(Thanks Winnie)
 


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Regina McNamara RN, MSN President   *    Kelly McNamara, Chief Operating Officer

 

Here at Always There Home Care, we are grateful you are slowing down to read our newsletter full of items that relate to home care, home health care, aging and eldercare, as well as some useful tips for daily living. Please enjoy in the spirit of community and cooperation in which this newsletter was sent.

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Featured Article:
On Losing a Mother / Grandmother and Gaining Perspective
By Regina and Kelly McNamara
In one of the final scenes of the wonderful movie One True Thing (1998, based on Anna Quindlan's novel)   Renee Zellweger plays a daughter attending the funeral of her mother, Meryl Streep, for whom she cared during her last months while she lost her battle with cancer. 

She is standing in the cemetery with her estranged (and cheating) boyfriend) and she sadly says..." I never believed I could miss some one so much."  The aforesaid boyfriend assumed she was referring to him. She walked away.

She was of course missing her recently departed mother.

Read the full article       

 

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 Financial Managers
 Gather to Hear Strategies
 for Agency Success


The day-long conference featured a panel discussion moderated by Lisa Lapin of Simione Consultants and speakers Richard Nankee of VNA healthcare, Regina McNamara of Always There Home Care, and Linda Smitas of Regional Hospice & Home Care of Western CT. ■

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 Priorities
  By: Alan Weiss
 
It is both sad and ironic that we pay so much attention to the frivolous - who wins a sports championship or what's the best binge watching on Netflix - and so little to the truly vital, such as our children's teachers' competence and treatment, and our veterans' health quality and access to medical care. Firing a school superintendent or Secretary of Veterans Affairs is a weak response and not the answer. The route to fix the problems is to create alliances of interested parties to apply the best and brightest talent to the issues. If we can stage a Super Bowl which creates millions spent on 60-second ads, or an Oscars night where a billion people watch around the world, we're certainly capable of similarly celebrating out kids' education and our veterans' well being. We have the smarts. We seem to lack the volition and the leadership.

Alan Weiss is a colleague and friend and an international business consultant. We include his interesting musings on various topics on a regular basis 
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 Summer Precautions
 for the Elderly

                      By: Caren Parnes, for The Senior's Choice


The heat of summer is here, so this is a good time to review some vital safety tips for seniors.  Elderly persons are more prone to the effects of heat and at greater risk for dehydration. Make sure you or someone you can trust is checking in on your elderly family members. 
  • Try to plan activities that require going outside during non-peak hours when it might be a little cooler.
  • Move exercise indoors.  Consider exercising at a gym, walking on a treadmill, or "mall walking" instead of outdoor walks or activities. Swimming and water aerobics are good options as well.
  • Drink plenty of fluids (non-alcoholic, caffeine-free as these ingredients have a diuretic effect). Talk with your doctor if you take medications that affect fluid intake, such as Lasix. 
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The Distressing Decision to Order Hospice Care for a Person Living with Dementia By: Marie Marley

What are the signs and symptoms that a person living with Alzheimer's disease is eligible for hospice care?

What happens when your loved one is ready for hospice care but you aren't?

I'd like to share my personal experience with this situation with you.
According to Gregg Warshaw, MD, Professor of Family Medicine at the University of Cincinnati and former President of the American Geriatric Society (personal communication), the following are some signs that a person with Alzheimer's is eligible for hospice care:
  1. Two or more episodes of pneumonia or other serious infections during the past 6 months
  2. Difficulty eating and swallowing, even with feeding help, that results in weight loss of 10 percent or more over the preceding 6 months
  3. One or more skin pressure ulcers that are not healing 

Kudos from Kelly

 

 KUDOS from Kelly 

  by Kelly McNamara

      

 
Mary Sanders: Every organization needs an extra dependable go-to person. Someone we can call on for a challenging last minute assignment knowing that the job will be done, and done well. We often need someone who possesses increasingly rare and valuable trait... The ability to apply common sense to each challenge. We often need someone who excels at orienting and mentoring other less experienced caregivers. It is far more difficult to effectively teach another than to perform tasks well yourself.

Mary is clearly a person who meets all of these criteria.

(Read more about Mary)

All caregivers mentioned in this column will receive a gift card and our sincere appreciation!  Many many thanks to all of you for once again extending yourselves to ensure that we are of course Always There...!!

leaf Providers We Love      

We are privileged to have received referrals from and be able to coordinate care with many Assisted Living facilities, rehab facilities, and Medicare Home Care and Hospice agencies. Our growth is in large part due to the trust the staff in these organizations have put in our caregivers. We are likewise impressed with them and we are committed to referring to them on a regular basis

Weatherby and Associates, PC,
Bloomfield, CT North Haven, New London, and Stamford
Specializing in comprehensive elder care services. 

The attorneys at Weatherby & Associates, PC have a unique approach that goes above and beyond what most people expect from a law firm. Their goal is to help their clients live as well as possible, as long as possible, and as much as possible where they want.  They establish long-term relationships with their clients and their clients' families so they can maximize their resources and deal with the inevitable changes in their life circumstances.
 

 About Always There Home Care


Always There Home Care provides compassionate, dependable and professional one-on-one care for seniors who need assistance in the comfort of their homes or residential care communities.  Services from highly qualified and trained caregivers range from companionship, meal preparation and incidental transportation to personal care, medication management and RN-directed case management. Available 7 days a week, services range from a few hours a day to 24-hour care.

Always There Home Care understands that every situation is unique and creates individualized care plans to help improve a client's quality of life.

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Our caregivers 

 

Our caregivers are totally committed, highly qualified and carefully selected individuals who are personally and thoroughly screened, bonded and insured. Most are Certified Nurse Assistants or Home Health Aides. Most importantly our caregivers are dependable and extraordinarily caring of others. In addition to their previous experience, our caregivers receive continuous training that includes dementia, hospice care, home safety, nutrition and other topics related to seniors. These highly qualified and trained caregivers are ready to help you and your loved ones with a variety of daily activities such as:

Personal care   /  Meal planning and preparation

Transportation to doctor appointments and other errands

Caring companionship   /  Light housekeeping

Medication reminders  /   Information and referral services   

Our personalized, nurse- supervised services are available 7 days a week and can range from a few hours a day to 24 hour and live in care.


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For more information or service needs, call 24 hours a day at: 800.348.0485 or visit www.AlwaysThereHomeCare-CT.com.


We are Always There!