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From the ALFA (Assisted Living Federation of America) website:Assisted Living brings the best of an independent home environmenttogether with high-quality services unavailable at home. In addition tothis guide, ALFA encourages you to look for a general philosophy ofcare based on 10 principles that make assisted living residents the toppriority:
These are some of the guidelines we use when evaluating the assisted living communities in Chicago and Northern Indiana that we choose to work with.
The Bethany Terrace & Oakton Community College Continuing Education for Health Professionals is hosting a seminar on the History, Status & Future of assisted living.
The presentation is THIS Wednesday, July 14th from 8:30-10AM (continental breakfast included)
It will be presented by Jean Elliott, the Director of Housing, Supportive & Assisted Living for Life Services Network.
Please RSVP to Kris Hansen of the Bethany Terrace at 847-965-8100
8425 Waukegan Road, Morton Grove, il 60053
We recently received this message from Illinois Attorney General Lisa Madigans office. I also posted an article in the Chicago Sun Times about it on our facebook page. (Photo from the Sun Times article)How does the Medicare scam work?The recent mailing of $250 rebate checks to participants in Medicare’s drug program has givenscammers a new opportunity to take advantage of seniors and other Medicare recipients. In this latestscam, Medicare recipient receive a call from a con artist claiming to be a Medicare representative. Thescammer then tells each recipient that they need to provide personal information, such as their SocialSecurity number and bank account number, in order to receive their rebate check. In reality, thescammers need this information to gain access to the recipient’s bank account and empty it.What are the rebate checks?The $250 Medicare rebate checks are part of the recently enacted health care reform package, and areintended to help close the coverage gap (or “doughnut hole”) in Medicare’s prescription drug program.The checks are mailed automatically—you do not need to provide any personal information to receivethem. The first of these tax-free checks were mailed the second week of June. Additional mailings arescheduled to go out as more recipients hit the doughnut hole, so remain alert in the months ahead!What should you do?Never give out personal information over the phone, unless you initiated the call and you know theperson with whom you are speaking. Remember—con artists will stop at nothing to steal your personalinformation, and often devise new scams to exploit the confusion surrounding changes in publicbenefits programs.If someone posing as a Medicare representative attempts to solicit your personal information, youshould report them immediately by calling 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227). TTY users should call1-877-486-2048.Also, if you believe you’ve been a victim of a Medicare scam, please contact the Illinois AttorneyGeneral’s Senior Consumer Fraud Hotline at 1-800-243-5377 or 1-800-964-3013 (TTY) to file aconsumer fraud complaint.Help spread the word! Education is the best prevention!
Join the Alzheimer's Association in raising money the easy way June 28th & June 29th at Houlihan's located in the Shops of Uptown in Park Ridge!20% of all food sales (dine in or out!!) will be donated to the Alzheimer's Association!Download Houlihans flyer for Alzherimer Assoc so they get credit!Houlihan's is located at 550 W. Touhy in Park Ridge, phone 847-692-6205
FROM ROGERS PARK COMMUNITY COUNCIL:
FREE HOME REPAIR FOR SENIORS THROUGH ROGERS PARK COMMUNITY COUNCIL
The Small Accessible Repairs for Seniors (formerly H-RAIL) program provides free home repairs including safety, security, and accessibility improvements that better assist seniors to remain in their homes.
Home repair program participants must meet income limit restrictions and must be at least 60 years of age.
Contact Carol Goldman at 773-743-1752 or cjgoldman@ameritech.net
FROM EDGEWATER COMMUNITY COUNCIL:
FREE HOME REPAIR FOR SENIORS THROUGH EDGEWATER COMMUNITY COUNCIL
The Small Accessible Repairs for Seniors (formerly H-RAIL) program provides free home repairs including safety, security, and accessibility improvements that better assist seniors to remain in their homes.
Home repair program participants must meet income limit restrictions and must be at least 60 years of age.
For additional information please contact:
Merita Mila at 773-381-1346 or merita@edgewatercommunitycouncil.org.
Mark your calender for next Tuesday night. Willow Falls senior living community is hosting a panel discussion and presentation on caring for seniors.The expert panel will include:
The topics to be discussed:
WHEN: Tuesday, June 15th at 6PMWHERE: Willow Falls Senior Living Community, 1691 Willow Circle Drive, Crest Hill, ILRSVP: 815-725-5868
WASHINGTON—On Tuesday morning, June 8, President Barack Obama willparticipate in a national tele-town hall meeting at the Holiday ParkMultipurpose Senior Center in Wheaton, Maryland with senior citizens todiscuss the Affordable Care Act and efforts to combat senior scams andfraud in advance of the first mailing of the $250 “donut hole” rebatechecks. In addition to attendees at the Senior Center, seniors acrossthe country will be able to participate in the town hall meeting byphone. The President will be joined at the town hall meeting by HHSSecretary Kathleen Sebelius and representatives of the followingorganizations:
AARPAFL-CIOAFSCME RetireesAlliance for Retired AmericansAmerican Association of Homes and Services for the AgingAmerican Federation of Teachers Program on Retirement and RetireesAmerican Postal Workers Union Retirees DepartmentB’nai B’rith InternationalCenter for Medicare Advocacy, Inc.Communications Workers of American Retiree DivisionEaster SealsFamilies USAInternational Union of Painters & Allied Trades – IUPATMedicare Rights CenterNational Academy of Elder Law AttorneysNational Association of Area Agencies on AgingNational Association of State Units on AgingNational Association of Nutrition and Aging Services ProgramsNational Association of State Long Term Care Ombudsman ProgramsThe National Caucus and Center on Black AgedNational Committee to Preserve Social Security and MedicareNational Council on AgingNCCNHR – The National Consumer Voice for Quality Long-Term CareNational Gay and Lesbian Task ForceOWL- The Voice of Midlife and Older WomenSEIUService and Advocacy for GLBT EldersWorkers United
These organizations – which together represent over 40 millionseniors across the country -- will be organizing satellite town hallmeetings across the country to dial in and participate in thePresident’s event, which will be broadcast live on C-SPAN.Tuesday, June 8 from 11:15 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. (eastern time zone) Please note the slightly earlier start time: HHS Secretary Kathleen Sebelius will take questions from the audience until the President arrives closer to 11:30 a.m.Individuals interested in asking a question of President Obama or Secretary Sebelius can call in during Tuesday's town hall at 1-800-837-1935, pass code: 80272058.Website to View Town Hall: https://www.whitehouse.gov/live
Today's informative post comes from a guest blogger, Rick Rodgers, Certified Retirement Counselor who just published a new book about planning smart for your retirement. His contact information is below the post, enjoy!Caregiving for elderly parents can quickly expand to financial management. There are some important steps to take before you find yourself in this situation to ease the transition. Some people are uncomfortable talking about finances - especially the World War II generation. However, being prepared is always a prudent step in the matter of finances. Here are a few steps to take while your parents are still involved:Take Inventory –Where are the bank records? Brokerage statements? Insurance policies? Etc. I would recommend downloading one of the free financial organizers available on the internet and helping your parents fill it out. You can find several of them at Today’s Seniors website (www.todaysseniors.com/pages/Organizers.html). You will want to keep one copy for yourself at your own home. Make sure it is updated at annually and verify that all of the documents are still kept in the same place. A more extensive checklist can be found in a book by Dan Taylor, "The Parent Care Solution".Verify all Legal Documents are in Order –Your parents should have a Will and a Durable Power of Attorney (POA). The POA allows you to step in to handle their financial affairs without the need to have your name on the accounts. You will want several original POAs. Some financial institutions will only accept an original. It would be a good idea to get the POA to the financial institution ahead of time and obtain their acknowledgement that everything is in order. In some circumstances it may be better to have a living trust set up for your parents and have all assets held by the trust. You handle their affairs in this way by serving as a trustee. You should consult an attorney specializing in estate planning or elder law to determine if this is applicable to your parent’s situation.Healthcare -The Privacy Rule in the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) of 1996 took effect on April 14, 2003. The HIPAA Privacy Rule regulates the use and disclosure of information from health care providers, employer health plans, health insurers, and other medical service providers. You will need a medical POA that complies with HIPAA regulations to have access to your parent’s medical information. This could be a separate document or the language could be included in your durable POA. An Advance Healthcare Directive is yet another form (also known as living wills, advance directives, or advance decisions) that provides instructions specifying what actions should be taken for their health in the event that they are no longer able to make decisions due to illness or incapacity This document names a surrogate to make care and treatment decisions on their behalf, and give instructions about their health care wishes. Your attorney may include this language in the medical POA.Talk to your Siblings –Keep you siblings informed with of your progress. I have seen many families split over financial issues involving their parents. Ask for their input and provide periodic updates. Rather then allow financial matters to come between you, use them to bring the family together.Finally, don’t hesitate to get professional help if you need it. It would be a good idea to have an attorney review the will and POA to make sure everything is in order. Especially if the documents are more than five years old. You may want to bring in a financial planner to review their investment holdings. Consider keeping them on retainer if you are uncomfortable managing investment accounts on an ongoing basis. You can find a fee-only planner through the National Association of Personal Financial Advisors website at www.napfa.org.Rick Rodgers, CFP®, is President of Rodgers & Associates in Lancaster, PA and author of “The New Three-Legged Stool™ A Tax Efficient Approach To Retirement”. He can be reached at rick(at)rodgers-associates.com.
Have you or someone you know experienced what it is like to be unable to recall things which were once so simple to remember? An estimated 5.3 million people in the United States have Alzheimer’s, and every 70 seconds another person develops this disease!On behalf of the Alzheimer’s Disease Cooperative Study (ADCS), we encourage otherwise healthy adults with early complaints of memory problems to participate in the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative Grand Opportunity (ADNI GO). ADNI GO will build on the unprecedented momentum and success of the Alzheimer’s Disease Neuroimaging Initiative (ADNI), a landmark study to find more sensitive and accurate methods to detect AD at earlier stages and track its progress through biomarkers.By being able to recognize changes in the brain, scientists hope to treat memory loss and other symptoms of AD before they appear, but the only way to recognize what these changes are and learn more about who is at risk is through the participation of volunteers. “We cannot end this terrible disease unless we know more about it,” says Dr. Paul Aisen, M.D., director of the Alzheimer’s Disease Cooperative Study (ADCS). “That is where the amazing volunteers, their friends and their families can make the difference in our success.”Dr. Maya Angelou - the eminent poet, author, educator, historian and professor at Wake Forest University - is working with researchers to ask volunteers like you to be part of the ADNI GO study that may help bring us one step closer to finding a cure. Click here to hear from Dr. Maya Angelou.If you are between the ages of 55 and 90 years old and experiencing early signs of memory loss, you may be eligible to participate in this groundbreaking ADNI GO study. Please visit https://adcs.org/Studies/ImagineADNI.aspx or call the Alzheimer’s Disease Education and Referral Center at 1-800-438-4380 for more information on study sites in your area.
Please join Belmont Village Assisted Living at Geneva Road&Elderlife Financial Services for a presentation on "Solving the Financial Puzzle"Worried about finances? Not wanting to tap into your assets? Waiting for VA benefits to kick in? Waiting for your home to sell? These are common scenarios that we come across every day with the families we work with. They need assisted living and want to move, but have to wait until the sell the house because the assets from the home is going to pay for assisted living... this is just one example....Bridgette Duber, PhD from Elderlife Financial Services is going to talk about a special "senior living" line of credit for families looking for a short-term solution to bridge a financial gap.Hors d'oeuvres and beverages will be served.WHEN: Thursday June 10 - 5:00 PM - 7:00 PMWHERE: Belmont Assisted Living at Geneva Road, 545 Belmont Lane ( on Geneva Rd, 1 block east of Schmale) Carol Stream IL 60188RSVP: (or for more info) call Kerri Carney 6630-510-2521
The Chicago Department of Family and Support Services- Senior Services offers free one-on-one counseling, support groups and family mediation for Individuals Caring for their older loved ones. Caregivers are eligible for up to 9 sessions of one-on-one assistance and unlimited support groups.
FREE RESPITE is available to have someone come care for their loved one while they attend counseling or support group.
FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE CONTACT CDFSS-Senior Services I&A at 312/744-4016
This past month we added a new member to our team. We are so happy to have Marla Gibson working with us. She brings a wealth of experience and knowledge about assisted living and skilled nursing to our team and she will be aiding families looking for assistance in the southern suburbs of Chicago and Northwest Indiana.
From early on, Marla’s life evolved around seniors. With her mother’s love of the elderly,to a very special bond she shared with her grandmother, these specialrelationships would forever transform her life and future.
Marla graduated from Illinois State University with a degreein Social Work. Specializing ingeriatrics, she has worked in the healthcare industry for over 13 years. She has experience in skilled nursing,rehabilitation, Medicare, Medicaid, assisted living, independent living, memorysupport, home health, hospice, private duty, advanced directives and more.
For the last few years, Marla has been able to become moreinvolved with local communities help out and being a part of such organizationssuch as S.A.L.T (Seniors and Law Enforcement), Meals on Wheels, Will CountyTriad, South Suburban Region Continuity of Care and many local seniorgroups.
Marla has been educating seniors and their families abouthealthcare options as they face life-changing decisions. Sharing the same passion and beliefsfor seniors as the rest of the team at Senior Living Experts, she feltcompelled to be a part of something inspiring and life changing and joined ourteam in April of 2010.
If you are in that area and need help, feel free to contact her directly at 708-577-3211 or marla(at)seniorlivingexperts.com
(Photo of Marla Gibson on left and Kerry Quirin on right)
Enjoy great people, food and music on the beautiful, newly-opened garden terrace at Greenview Place Supportive Living in Chicago.Take a tour and explore what Supportive Living has to offer for Chicago's seniors, 65+ who may need some help with the activities of daily living.Thursday, May 27th, 2-6 PM1501 W. Melrose St, Chicago IL 60657773-525-1501
On Friday April 30th, Chicago resident, Minnie Glanton, will celebrate her 100th birthday with family and friends. To mark the momentous occasion, Minnie’s home, Barton Senior Residences Chicago, located at 1245 S. Wood, is hosting a party, complete with birthday cake. This Windy City south-sider was born in 1910 in Carlton, Georgia.Minnie joins an elite group of centenarians in the U.S., with only 1 in 3,300 Americans predicted to reach the 100-year mark, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.All of us at Senior Living Experts want to wish her a very very happy birthday!
The Northbrook office of The American Association for Wartime Veterans holds weekly seminars on the Aid & Attendance Benefit for wartime veterans and/or their surviving spouses.Wartime Veterans may qualify for up to $1,644 monthly and Surviving Spouses may receive up to $1,056 monthly.* Understand VA benefits & the application process.* Learn how to become eligible even if you exceed the limits.* Find out what benefits you are entitled to for residing at an assisted living communitySeating is limited. For reservations call: 800-850-5504Upcoming 2010 Dates4/27, 5/4, 5/11, 5/24(Monday), 6/1All seminars are at the Northbrook, IL office and start at 6:30pm sharp!707 Skokie Boulevard, Suite 100Northbrook, il 60062
The Memory Ensemble™: An Improvisational Theater Experience for Persons with Memory Loss is a pilot research program that offers individuals with memory loss a unique and enriching experience through the exploration of improvisational theatre.
As you may know, improvisational theater is a form of acting in which actors use techniques to perform spontaneously. No acting or performance experience is required!
We have worked with actors from the Lookingglass Theater to create this program. Focusing on the Lookingglass Theatre Company’s core values of invention, transformation, and collaboration, members of The Memory Ensemble will learn to use their instincts, creativity and spontaneity as they work together to explore and create improvisational theater. Workshops are led by Lookingglass Ensemble members and CNADC staff.
Please contact Mary O'hara, MA, LCSW at 312.503.0604 or m-ohara@northwestern.edu if you know of anyone who might be interested in joining this program. Interviews are required. There is a cost to participate and scholarships are available.
In March of 2010 the National Office of the Alzheimer’s Association released a sobering report on Alzheimer’s disease and those touched by its devastating affects. Incidents of Alzheimer’s disease are continuing to rise at drastic rates and will skyrocket once the baby boomers enter the age for greatest risk of development - age 65 and older. Today there are 5.3 million Americans living with the disease, including 210,000 living in Illinois alone. Illinois will see a 14% increase in the number of people who have Alzheimer’s disease by 2025. In addition Alzheimer’s disease remains the seventh leading cause of death nationally and the fifth leading cause of death in Illinois for those age 65 and older. “Alzheimer’s is a significant threat not only for the nation - but also for the people of Illinois,” said Erna Colborn, president and CEO of the Alzheimer’s Association – Greater Illinois Chapter. “With family members providing care at home for about 70 percent of people with Alzheimer’s disease, the ripple effects of Alzheimer’s disease can be felt throughout the affected person’s entire family.” According to Facts and Figures, in 2009, nearly 11 million Alzheimer caregivers in the U.S. provided 12.5 billion hours of unpaid care valued at $144 billion. In Illinois alone, 386,207 caregivers, provided 439,812,201 hours of unpaid care for a loved one with Alzheimer’s or another dementia valued at $5,057,840,312. The new report also reveals that more than 40 percent of family and other unpaid Alzheimer and dementia caregivers rate the emotional stress of caregiving as high or very high, compared with 28 percent of caregivers of other older people. The 2010 report also featured a special report on Race, Ethnicity and Alzheimer’s disease:
via www.alzheimers-illinois.org
WASHINGTON (AP) - It turns out grandma was right: Listen to your elders. New research indicates they are indeed wise - in knowing how to deal with conflicts and accepting life's uncertainties and change.
via m.apnews.com
The Alzheimer’s Association – Greater Illinois Chapter applauds the Social Security Administration’s (SSA) landmark decision to add Young-Onset Alzheimer’s to the Compassionate Care Initiative. The initiative identifies debilitating diseases and medical conditions that meet the SSA’s disability standards for Social Security Disability Income (SSDI) or Supplemental Security Income (SSI). Inclusion in the initiative allows for faster payment of Social Security benefits to individuals with Alzheimer’s disease. Social Security Commissioner Michael Astrue and the SSA are to be highly praised for understanding that the cognitive impairment caused by Alzheimer’s disease leaves individuals unable to maintain gainful employment and deserving of an expedited disability determination.
The July 2009 Compassionate Allowance Hearing on Early-Onset Alzheimer’s Disease and Related Dementias, held in Chicago, included testimony from Harry Johns, President and CEO of the National Alzheimer’s Association, and several of the nation’s top Alzheimer researchers, and caregivers and individuals with early-onset Alzheimer’s who discussed the challenges they faced during the disability application process. During the day-long hearing, SSA officials heard about the terminal nature of Alzheimer’s, the disabilities that often prohibit work in even the earliest stages of the disease, and the lack of effective treatments to modify or halt the progression of Alzheimer’s. Advocates from Illinois were paramount in getting young-onset Alzheimer’s disease added to the initiative.
“Until the SSA’s decision, individuals with early-onset (younger-onset) Alzheimer’s disease faced a number of challenges when applying for SSDI or SSI, include a long decision process, initial denials and multiple appeals,” said Nicole Batsch, director of early stage and support services for the Greater Illinois Chapter. “So many of our clients will benefit from this decision. Due to their early-onset diagnosis, no longer being able to work has an overwhelming impact on their family’s financial situation.
“ In addition to participation in the hearing, as many as 600 people with Alzheimer’s and other dementias and their caregivers responded to the Association’s request to submit written comments to SSA about their experiences applying for disability benefits. A sample of these comments are posted on SSA’s Compassionate Allowances website.
Click here to learn more about this exciting development.
via www.alzheimers-illinois.org
Berghammer ConstructionCorporation and Eppstein Uhen Architects are set to host a Senior Livingseminar, “Senior Living at a Crossroad: A Bold Look Into the Next Decade” to beheld on Tuesday, April 13, 2010 at the Country Springs Hotel in Waukesha.
The day-long seminar begins at 9:00a.m.,concludes around 3:30p.m., and features a panel of knowledgeable industryleaders from around the country, including internationally recognized authorand speaker, Jim Moore. This is an excellent opportunity for anyone involvedwith the Senior Living industry; the seminar provides practical and strategicideas for operations of a senior living facility.
The Senior Living Seminarwill feature a keynote speech from Jim Moore titled, “High Cost-Benefit GrowthStrategies in 2010 and Beyond,” and a wrap-up visionary session called,“Thinking Outside the Box for the Next Generation of Senior Care.” It will also include several otherexpert presentations.
Registration and payment canbe done via phone at (262) 790-8135 or visit their website above for details. Earlybird registration ends Monday March 22.
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Your expert advisor will accumulate information necessary for proper placement, such as your needs, location, and budget.
We provide numerous recommendations based on the details provided. Our goal is to combine your needs with our knowledge of senior communities.
Your advisor will accompany you on tours so your search can be as thorough as possible. We want what’s best for your loved ones just as much as you do.
After a choice has been made and your loved one has moved into their new home, we will continuously check in to make sure everything is going well.
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Together, let’s begin the journey to finding the home that will enhance the life of your family.
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