Santa For A Senior

Home Instead Senior Care is teaming up with Meals on Wheels, Pogacha and The Gardens at Town Square in Bellevue to be a "Santa for a Senior" this holiday season. Giving trees will be going up soon to help make the holiday season brighter for some needy seniors in our area.

Gifts will be wrapped at Brierwood and dropped off by Meals on Wheels in mid December. Please call our office at 425-454-9744 for more information. Happy Holidays!!!

Bellevue Network on Aging

The Bellevue Network on Aging is going to be at the Bellevue Arts and Crafts Fair in late July. Stop by the booth and say "hi".

Bellevue Farmers Market

Don't forget to support our local farmers and take a senior to The Bellevue Farmers Market this week!!!

LEADING SENIOR CARE EXPERT TO HOST FREE
PUBLIC DISCUSSION IN SEATTLE ON MAY 6TH
–Recent Poll Shows Planning For Senior Care Out Of Sight And Mind For Most Adults–

Seattle, WA (MAY 2010) -- Paul Hogan, CEO of Home Instead Senior Care, the largest provider of non-medical in-home senior care services in the world, will offer a free public talk on planning for senior care on Thursday, May 6, 2010 from 4pm-6pm at The Hilton Bellevue, 300 112th Avenue SE, Bellevue, WA.

Hogan, a leading expert on senior care, will discuss the many care options available today, financial planning for senior care, being a caregiver to an elderly parent, insurance options, and the state of senior care in America. The talks are free and open to the public.

Says Hogan, “With more than 78 million Baby Boomers on the verge of retirement, America is facing monumental social and economic challenges in the ways in which we care for our seniors. With healthcare concerns at the forefront, and with time and money management a major factor for American families in the 21st century, how adult children and seniors can best prepare and plan for their futures have evolved into a complex process that often involves misinformation and injects unwanted stress into our most important relationships.”

A recent study conducted for Home Instead Senior Care found that planning for care is out of sight and out of mind for half of U.S. seniors ages 65 to 75 who have not thought about their own future care needs. Adult children were uninformed as well: nearly three-fourths (71 percent) of 35- to 64-year-olds, when unaided in the survey, could identify no more than two of eight options available to seniors who can no longer live independently. Even more concerning: both seniors and adult children have the notion that Social Security and Medicare will pay for senior care, and survey participants also underestimated the costs of nursing homes and overestimated the price of such popular options as Assisted Living Facilities.

"Senior care options have expanded almost beyond recognition in the last 20 years, yet most Americans are still only familiar with nursing homes or family care at home," adds Hogan. “With tens of millions of Boomers starting to retire, it’s critical that people start thinking about this.”

Hogan is providing the free lectures in conjunction with the release of a new book, “Stages of Senior Care: Your Step-by-Step Guide to Making the Best Decisions” (November 2009/McGraw-Hill/$18.95). The book serves as a comprehensive guide for the ever-expanding world of senior care, breaking down the process by addressing the shared concerns of seniors and their family members. Featuring more than 30 sources from the most credible major healthcare organizations, universities and nonprofit organizations, the book thoroughly explains each and every aspect of senior care, including the array of available care choices, being a caregiver, planning for your own future, aging in place, family and professional care options, how to chose an option and what to look for, financing care, insurance, legal matters, dealing with stress, communication and family relations.

WHAT PEOPLE ARE SAYING:
“Informative. Complete. And practical. This book will guide family caregivers through the surprisingly complex world of senior care.” MEHMET OZ, M.D.

For more information on the public talks, please contact Christi Mahon at 425-785-3154.

# # #
For Interviews Contact:
Stacey Kaspin
DRC Public Relations
(212) 966-4600
Stacey@drcpublicrelations.com

Home Instead Senior Care has always looked for ways to benefit others. They established the Home Instead Senior Care Foundation in 2003 to provide financial assistance to non-profit organizations specializing in projects and programming that improve the quality of life for seniors. As of 2009, The Home Instead Senior Care Foundation had awarded 81 grants totaling more than $800,000.

The Home Instead Senior Care Disaster Relief Foundation’s (DRF) was founded in 2005 and it’s primary purpose was to provide disaster relief payments to Home Instead Senior Care franchise owners that are victims of overwhelming disasters that devastate the community in which they are located. Through 2009, it has awarded eight grants totaling $78,000.

Recently, the DRF Board of Directors adopted a resolution to allow for distributions to tax-exempt organizations responding to devastating disasters such as the Haitian earthquake. The Haitian Earthquake Relief fund has been established by the DRF as a collaborative effort of Home Instead Senior Care franchise owners, staff members and Home Office personnel who wish to donate to this philanthropic opportunity. So far they have collected a total $9,135.00 to be distributed as follows:

Nazarene Compassionate Ministries $3,136.66

Partners in Health $3,061.66

US Fund for UNICEF $2,936.68

Home Instead Senior Care, not your ordinary home care agency

National Cancer Control Month

April is the American Cancer Society's National Cancer Control Month in the U.S. Although progress has been made in reducing incidence and mortality rates and improvign survivial, cancer is still the leading cause of death in the world, according to the World Health Organization (WHO).

A total of 1,479,350 new cancer cases and 562,340 deaths from cancer were projected to occur in the United States in 2009, according to the American Cancer Society. "Healthy personal habits can reduce the risk of cancer, " wrote President Barack Obama in last year's monthly proclamation. "Smoking accounts for thousands of cancer deaths every year, and quitting - even after many years - can greatly reduce the risk of cancer."

There is much that you can do to lead a healthy life including learning to eat healthy and stay active. For more information, log on to http://www.cancer.org/.

Get Mom Moving

Lack of activity can lead to a downward spiral of poor health resulting in frailty, a condition that threatens the mind, body and social life of older adults, according to senior care experts. That's why staying active is viewed by so many as vital to healthy aging.

This problem is what prompted Home Instead Senior Care to develop the Get Mom Moving Activity Cards and Web site at http://www.getmommoving.com/, both designed to help keep seniors engaged and fit. These resources provide the tools by which seniors can fight frailty.

Family and caregivers who can encourage and integrate physical, mental and social activities in seniors' lives are helping them ward off frailty and stay healthy. And that addresses seniors' biggest fear of losing their independence.

MetLife Study Looks at Differences among Baby Boomers

American Baby Boomers should, perhaps, be classified as separate demographic groups, according to a recent study. MetLife Mature Market Institute says that the Young, Middle and Older Boomers grew up during separate disparate eras and are now at different stages in their lives.

Facts are emerging about how distinct these segments are in both a series of Demographic Profiles and the MetLife Study of Boomers in the Middle.

“The Middle Boomers, now 52 to 58 years old and 29 million strong, are very much a generation of the 60s,” said Sandra Timmermann, Ed.D., director of the MetLife Mature Market Institute. “They identify with the Vietnam War, the Kennedy assassination and the women’s movement, identifying the war as the event that most influenced them in their youth. They are distinguished most by a change in culture through political and social activism. But, like the proverbial often neglected ‘middle child,’ they have rarely been noted as having an identity of their own, although they are different in many ways from the Oldest and Youngest Boomers.”

According to the report, Middle Boomers are looking forward to retirement (setting their sights on age 65), have a high net worth ($100,000 or more, excluding their home value) and are currently in their peak earning years. However, more than half say they are behind on their retirement savings goals, and many who have delayed retirement have been affected by the economy. A majority own their own homes, which are worth an average of $273,000 and have an average of six financial products.

Other highlights:

· Turning 50 was no big deal for the majority of the Middle Boomers, and they will not consider themselves “old” until age 75.

· Like the Oldest and Youngest Boomers, the middle group report that they are healthy, with more than half saying their health is very good to excellent.

· Two-thirds of the Middle Boomers report having at least one parent still living, and half still have children living at home. About half also have grandchildren. Fourteen percent are providing care to older parents.

For more information, go to: http://www.metlife.com/mmi/research/boomers-in-the-middle-study.html#findings

Taking Care of Mom & Dad

Taking Care of Mom & Dad, a KIRO 7 Family Connection Special Presentation, explores the emotional, psychological, practical and financial issues of this growing challenge. Hosted by KIRO 7 Eyewitness News Anchors Steve Raible and Angela Russell, the documentary airs on Thursday, March 25, at 10 p.m. on KIRO 7 and Comcast 107.

What do we need to know? Where do we go for answers? How do we know what’s best for them? What if our parents don’t agree with our choices? Why didn’t they prepare for all the possibilities? Taking Care of Mom & Dad gives valuable advice about elder care through the eyes and stories of four adult children who are taking different approaches to their parents’ care.

For more information, go to: http://www.kirotv.com/station/22893062/detail.html

Home Instead Senior Care takes Best of 2010

Home Instead Senior Care, an international organization that provides services to seniors so they can age in place, took Federal Way's Best of Adult In-Home Care for 2010. The award ceremony took place at The Commons Mall. Caroline Etienne, the owner, and David Romero, their marketer, were presented the award on Mar 16.

Home Instead Senior Care is the leader in providing private in home care for seniors and educating the public to an issue that is usually addressed only after a crisis has arisen. Licensed as a home care agency but always requiring more than even the state does, you can rely on Home Instead to be the peace of mind you need for your loved ones.

Family Caregivers

A recent AARP study calculated that the unpaid services family caregivers provided in the US have an estimated economic value of $375 billion annually. It is estimated that 44 million family caregivers provided care to older adults with some form of limitations in performing daily activities. In 2008 Washington State had over 540,000 caregivers that provided 502,000,000 hours of caregiving with an economical value of $4 billion dollars. Half of those family caregivers reported that the economic downturn has increased their stress about being able to continue to care for their loved ones.

Washington State WASP's Receive Award

On March 11th, 11 Washington Sate women received the Congressional Gold Metal. Another 16 received them posthumously. Our Washington State WASP's (Women Air Force Service Pilots) joined 200 other recipients in Washington, DC in a ceremony on Capital Hill.

25,000 women signed up to become WASP's and only !,074 received training and 38 died in service for their country. They all did it because their country needed them. The WASPs were disbanded after WW II with little fanfare. Most had to pay for their own way home.

The Congressional Gold Metal is a well overdue honor for the WASPS . The Congressional Gold Metal was also awarded in 2000 to the Navajo Code Talkers and in 2006 to the Tuskegee Airmen. Only 150 people have received the Congressional Gold Metal since 1776. For more information please follow the link below:

www.washingtontimes.com/news/2010/mar/11/wwii-female-pilots-win-belated-recognition/

Bellevue Seniors

In Bellevue, WA seniors currently make up over 14% of the population. The Bellevue Network on Aging meets monthly at city hall to discuss the transportation, housing and safety needs of seniors.

The network is currently working with our Bellevue legislators to keep senior funding intact for 2010 state budget . Call your local house and senate representatives today and encourage them not to cut funding for senior services.

Keeping Senior Care Affordable

The Washington State Legislature needs to do a better job keeping Employment Security Taxes and Workman's Compensation costs from skyrocketing. Washington State has some of the highest rates in the country!!! These higher costs eventually will need to be passed on to Seniors. Please call your elected officials and tell them to do the things necessary to keep Senior care affordable.