AW Home Care

AW Home Care is a private duty home care agency.  We are dedicated to serving your home care needs.  We can reduce the stress, cost and inconvenience of long-term care as we help people with the personal care and household tasks that enable them to stay home, closer to family and in greater comfort than other choices offer.

 With AW Home Care you receive the best personal care possible in your own home.  Research shows that convalescence in a familiar environment can speed recovery and reduce stress, ensuring comfort.  AW Home Care offers a more economical alternative to the rising costs of institutions providing convalescence or respite, short or long term, or assisted living facilities.  We do not discriminate based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin.

• Carefully listen to you and your goals
• Know good CSA financial planners                  
• Be able to refer a CSA tax account                 
• Refer an attorney who is CSA qualified
• Understand senior health needs
• Demystify social factors
• Help you achieve your goals
• Arrange services for:
•  Housekeeping
• Meal preparation
• Personal care
• Provide referrals when necessary

• Integrate all of these professional practices

  • Be your advocate when needed

Sharlene Justus, Administrator at AW Home Care, and a CSA, understands that no two people have the same story, the same goals, or the same needs.  She knows that there is no “cookie cutter” plan to meet everyone’s needs.  She is available to help with your home care needs or to listen closely and help you reach your goals.   

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 Employment Opportunities

AW Home Care has several employment opportunities available at this time.  Please see the "About Us" page for more information.

Staying Close, Despite The Distance

Tips For Managing Long Distance Caregiving

It wasn't that long ago that most families lived in the same community generation after generation. As loved ones grew older and needed help with the activities of daily life, younger family members could share the responsibilities.

But today, families are often spread out all over the country and beyond. Children move for their careers…parents pack up to their dream retirement spot…great-grandparents may be the only ones left in the family's hometown. Everyone stays in touch, but they do it by phone, e-mail, and occasional visits.

So, when a parent or grandparent needs care and support, or when a care crisis occurs, families may come face to face with the challenge of long distance caregiving. If this describes your situation, here are some practical suggestions for understanding your family member's needs and working with friends, relatives, and professional service providers to make sure those needs are met.

ASSESSING YOUR SITUATION
The first step is to be well informed concerning the issues and the resources available to deal with them. Talk to those who are on the scene (your loved one, as well as family and friends who live nearby, the person's healthcare providers and any others involved). Ask lots of questions. Listen to what people are telling you. Make notes you can refer back to.

Make a note of the names, phone numbers and e-mail addresses of anyone who can help keep you informed. And be sure to let them know how to contact you, if something happens that you should be aware of.

MAKING A PLAN
Once you have a feel for what the issues are, it's time to begin figuring out what your role can and should be. Here are some points to keep in mind as you do this planning:

• Make sure all the right people are involved during the planning process-other family members, professionals, and especially the person you are concerned about.
• A top goal is to support the person's maximum level of independence. His or her self-esteem, dignity, and health status are all best served by remaining an active, informed decision maker for as long as possible.
• Remember, caregiving responsibilities often call for teamwork. If other family members are on the scene and are doing more than you are able to do, find ways to acknowledge the greater role they are playing. Ask their help in finding practical ways in which you can share the responsibilities.

RESOURCES ARE AVAILABLE TO HELP
As you prepare to get more involved in care, even though from long distance, it's nice to know there is an entire network of eldercare support services out there to help. Here are three key resources you can tap:

• If your loved one is already receiving care (for example, home health care, assisted living, or a nursing home), coordinate with the care professionals. Schedule a visit to discuss your loved one's needs and plan of care.
• If community-based eldercare services are needed, contact the person's Area Agency on Aging.
• A private care manager can help family assess caregiving needs and coordinate eldercare services. Involvement can be on a one-time basis (for example, locating home care services, rehabilitative care or assisted living). Or the care manager can remain involved on an ongoing basis, as advocate and care coordinator. To find a private care manager in your area, ask your Area Agency on Aging for a referral.

KEEP IN TOUCH
Work out a communication strategy that's best for everyone. Call your loved one on a regular basis, or provide calling cards or a prepaid cell phone. And what about e-mail? Seniors are one of the fastest growing groups when it comes to computer use. Find out whether your relative has e-mail access or would be open to learning.

It's distressing to be far away when problems arise! But working with the available network of family, friends and service providers provides greater peace of mind for everyone.

(c)2008 IlluminAge Communication Partners

Need Some Extra Cash?

Do you need a little something extra? AW Home Care will pay you a referral fee for any "Private Pay" client you recommend. Here is how it works... Recommend AW Home Care to someone in our area who needs some extra help. Tell them to mention your name when we initially interview them and set up the service agreement. When we have provided 50 hours of service, you will get $50.  Please remember, this offer is good only on "Private Pay" clients.  We cannot pay a referral fee for any insurance or medicaid clients.

An Independent Living Test -

Individuals with elderly or disabled relatives know that it can be very stressful and difficult to determine when assistance is needed, and how best to locate the help that is needed. The following questions can be used to determine whether a loved one is having difficulty in performing everyday activities. Results may help reveal whether the family member can live independently or whether some type of intervention is necessary.

1. Medications
   1. Are prescriptions not being refilled, resulting in failure to take medication when scheduled?
   2. Has taking medication become difficult due to poor memory or confusion? Evidence may include pills taken together that shouldn't be, different pills mixed together in a pillbox or an oversupply or undersupply of pills.
   3. Have conditions previously under control become acute because medication is not being taken correctly?
2. Food and Groceries
   1. Based on past food habits, are the cupboards frequently empty or being filled with unusual foods?
   2. Is the food in the refrigerator often spoiled or kept long beyond the "use by" date?
3. Daily Business
   1. Is the mail being picked up and opened regularly or is it remaining uncollected and/or unopened?
   2. Are credit cards or checkbook being misused or not balanced as well as in the past?
4. Social Contact
   1. Has the amount of social contact changed dramatically, so that there are few public outings or limited social visits with close friends?
   2. Has the ability to drive deteriorated? Is there a fear of driving or a recent history of multiple minor accidents that is leading to isolation?
5. Living Habits
   1. Has there been a change in living habits such as a change in dress or appearance, or a decline in personal hygiene not related to physical disability? Is dress appropriate for the weather?
   2. Have housekeeping habits changed so that a normally neat and orderly home is now cluttered and not cleaned regularly?
   3. Are pets that were normally well cared for suddenly not being fed or cared for as they had been in the past?
6. Solicitations
   1. Is there a sudden increase in ordering unnecessary items through mail or televised advertisements?
7. Calls to Family Members or Health Care Providers
   1. Has there been a marked increase in panic calls to family or medical providers without apparent need?
   2. Have unnecessary calls been made to 911?

Once it is determined that some type of help is necessary, the next task is to determine what should to be done, when and how to handle the situation. These decisions can be stressful for individuals receiving care and caregivers alike, as they try to figure out the level of support that is needed, where the care should take place and how to pay for the care.

First and foremost let me stress that all parties should be part of the decision making process. Too often children make plans without taking their parent’s feelings into account and end up straining the relationship. Conversely, parents who assume that their children don’t want to be part of the answer are depriving them of the opportunity to nurture and serve their parents. Pride is important and fragile. The need to be independent is sometimes stronger than the need to be safe. Please feel free to contact us for information and help in determining how best to meet your loved ones needs.

How We Can Help You?

Most of us dream of spending our later years in our home, surrounded by our own furniture, pictures, and memorabilia.  We do not dream of being institutionalized just because we are  experiencing difficulties cooking, keeping a clean and organized home, or because we need help with basic activities of daily living.  Sometimes it is simply an issue of needing someone to do the grocery shopping or to provide transportation to and from medical appointments. 

Have you ever lost a night's sleep knowing that you had sick child and you were wondering who was going to have to miss work or if there was a way to properly care for the child and still complete your work responsibilities?  

Are you bringing home a new baby, or maybe several new babies, and you need help at home for a couple of weeks?  We can take care of the housework, laundry and cooking chores, help with older siblings, or help with the chores of multiple newborns.  

There are so many ways we can serve you, always with the goal of making your life better.  Our caregivers are punctual, clean, educated, careful, and have serving hearts.  Call us and we can discuss the many ways we can serve you.