Cheryl called AngeliCare because she was looking for respite care
for her father. Three years before that call, she moved back to
Fresno in order to take care of her beloved father. All these years
she had absolutely no help. It wasn't that she didn't need or
want help; the problem was her father's desire for privacy. He
didn't want to be a burden on his friends and he didn't want
"strangers" in his house.
The situation has changed the day Cheryl decided to leave her
home for three days in order to visit an ill friend she hasn't seen
for years. Since she couldn't leave her father alone, she contacted
AngeliCare and arranged an in-home assessment. Understanding
Cheryl father's feelings regarding outside assistance and privacy
restrictions, the AngeliCare team did its best to stress the benefits
of our care system, mainly for her father's specific concerns.
Cheryl's father listened carefully to our explanations. Once he
realized that each and every AngeliCare care provider is qualified,
bonded, insured and that all client information is privileged and
confidential, he agreed to take advantage of his daughter's
temporary absence and "test us". Well, we are proud to say that
the test was successful and we continue to provide intermittent
care for the father these very days. Our professional and reliable
services enabled Cheryl to regain some of her own live back, while
giving her father a new sense of independence by not having to
relay solely on his daughter's assistance. Most important, our care
services actually improved their relationships by providing them
with unburdened time to relax and enjoy the quality time they
spend together.
An elderly couple had just renovated their home. The renovation
was meant to ease the conditions for the wife who took care of
her husband, who had Parkinson's disease. The renovation process
was arduous, affecting the wife's health. The family worried that
the stress involved in taking care of the father's physical needs was
just too much for their mother, so they've decided to call AngeliCare.
Together with the family we scheduled caregiver support 2-3 times
a week.
The supplemental care AngeliCare provided for the elderly couple
proved to be highly efficient, freeing more time for the woman to
get the medical attention for her Osteoarthritis. They both realized
the benefits of our in-home care services and even expressed their
gratitude by telling us that it was "the best spend" of money,
enabling a healthier, more joyful lifestyle for them and their family.
We were contacted by a woman named Diane, who requested
homecare services for her uncle Richard. He was in his late 80's,
lived alone and was just fine until he fell and broke his hip. He
went through rehab and made it back home, but was struggling to
care for himself. Richard wouldn't ask for, nor accepted any kind of
help from anyone. Diane kept feeling that since the incident
Richard just wasn't himself anymore. Before he felled he was very
active, kept his house clean and enjoyed having company over to
visit.
Weeks went by and Diane tried several times to setup an
assessment meeting with Richard, but he absolutely refused to
meet with us. Finally, desperate to find a solution, Diane asked if
we would be willing to accompany her and pay a visit without any
preliminary invitation. Normally we don't accept this method, but
Diane was desperate. She felt her uncle's physical and mental
condition was worsening by the day and that eventually she would
have to put him in a facility, which she said "would just kill him."
Before we visited Richard we had a conference with Diane
regarding Richard's life and medical history, occupation, hobbies,
likes/dislikes etc… with the intent of finding subject matters and
commonalities to help smooth the drop-in as much as possible.
We found out that he was a retired utilities worker, was fiercely
independent, an avid hunter and enjoyed wood working. In talking
with Diane, it became apparent that while Richard didn't seem to
connect well with young people, he used to enjoy a good
conversation with other seniors that were, as described by Diane
- "strong willed, independent thinkers."
With this essential information in mind we asked Marie, one of our
experienced caregivers, to accompany us on the meeting. Being
with us for several years, we believed that her strong personality
would be a good fit to Richard's temper. The assessment started
as we expected - with minimum collaboration from Richard. He
listed just about every objection we usually hear from people who
are not ready for in-home assistance: he didn't need help, couldn't
afford the care, didn't want strangers in his house, etc…
However, as evidenced by his physical appearance, demeanor and
the condition of his house, Richard did need help.
As we continued on the topic of home care, Marie commented on
Richard's collection of stuffed animals adorning the wall and that
started a good lengthy conversation between the two of them. It
was obvious that besides needing assistance with personal and
homemaker care, Richard needed companionship as well. We let
Richard and Marie keep talking, while we cleaned up the house.
After a while, we finally convinced Richard to give it a try. His only
absolute condition was that Marie would be the one helping him.
Well, we passed the test and within 3 weeks Diane noted that
Richard was his old self again. Eventually Richard accepted other
caregivers as well, though Marie remained his primary caregiver.
Diane observed firsthand how our services helped Richard and she
saw the joy and satisfaction that Marie and the other caregivers
experienced in helping seniors live a better life.
