I continue to marvel at the complexities of getting older. I’m grateful for my CSA education; yet still feeling like I am swimming in jello as I try to navigate things for my parents.
This past month was educational in SERVICES offered to seniors in need. I have met some wonderful service providers in the industry, referred to us to help my parents.
First, I met Sarah Weber-Ogden from Senior Helpers (pictured in yellow hat with my parents). Senior Helpers offers in-home care across a huge range of services, tailored to the needs of the senior. Their website offers more information: www.seniorhelpers.com/wa/vancouver/. Sarah is delightful and warm, and they seem to be a great option for seniors that are trying to stay in their own home, but we didn’t feel they were a good fit for my parents in Assisted Living.
Mid-April, my dad took another fall and this one resulted in a broken bone, so he’s back in the Rehab Facility (Vancouver Specialty). It was heartwarming to see the great welcome back greetings and smiles he received from the staff; he’s a popular-friendly-cheerful guy!
This time, we were advised to consider an Adult Care home in lieu of returning to assisted living. We met Rochelle Waters from Mt Hood Senior Solutions and she was incredibly helpful. No one could do this effectively on your own, you need someone like Rochelle guiding the way. Mt Hood Senior Solutions is a senior placement and referral service (vs Senior Helpers which is a caregiving service).
Rochelle arranged visits for us at several homes, she handpicked the best choices, and is familiar with the staff and owners at all of them. Here’s their website for more information: www.mthoodseniorsolutions.com.
As wonderful as Rochelle is, and as nice as the homes were (and they are!), we are reluctant to make that move at this point. I worry that it would be isolating for my parents and not offer enough stimulation, but I certainly appreciate that the level of care would be excellent for my dad.
Next, we met with a social worker and nurse from LiveWell Care Management. LiveWell is a geriatric care management company: www.livewellcm.com. They fall somewhere in between the Senior Helpers and the Senior Solutions. This is more like hiring a consultant/advocate, and when they described how they could help us, I decided it would be like hiring a sibling. What a breath of fresh air that would be!
Meantime, my actual sibling, my brother, was in town this weekend, and it was so delightful to visit as a family, reminiscing about all the crazy memories from our childhood (ie, the time I tried to convince my brother to go down the chimney when we got locked out of the house when we were 9 & 12 — I made a solid case that if fatty Santa could do it, there must be space for my skinny little brother!). My mom snapped the photo of me and my brother with my dad dozing in the sun on the patio at the Rehab place, and the four of us are pictured in the dining room after lunch.
