CT Grandmother Ages Gracefully At Home Thanks to State Program

Gigi Torres is grateful that she can personally provide the care that her husband’s grandmother, Benedicta (Benny) Martinez, age 86, needs. Gigi is actually paid to be a caregiver because Benny qualifies for the CT Adult Family Living (AFL) program. Gigi is supported by Assisted Living Services, Inc. in Cheshire, a credentialed provider of the program.

“The financial benefit has allowed me to quit my job and care for Benny full time,” explains Gigi. “My husband wanted to keep her safe and around family members rather than in a nursing home.”

Gigi notes Benny has complex health issues, including dementia, congestive heart failure, diabetes, asthma and is a lung cancer survivor. Prior to enrolling in the program, Benny lived alone and she was not doing her daily tasks as she used to. She kept forgetting day-to-day activities, such as how to season food, pay bills, take medications etc. The family kept an eye on her, but once they realized she was more forgetful, they had her tested and she was diagnosed with dementia.

Thankfully, a previous co-worker told Gigi about the AFL program as she knew how challenging it was for the family to care for Benny in her own home. Now Benny lives safely with Gigi and her husband Luis Torres in Clinton. Gigi is a certified Medical Assistant and has taken classes thru the CT Agency on Aging to help her and her husband better understand Benny’s dementia condition.
In its role as a credentialed provider of the program, ALS provides Gigi and other caregivers with the “tools” needed to be comfortable and successful at caregiving, such as:

• Provide the caregiver with orientation, education and on-going support.
• Ensure that the home is properly maintained as required by the State.
• Make sure the Caregiver is meeting the health and safety needs of the participant.
• Pay the Caregiver weekly and offer direct deposit for convenience.
• Provide respite coverage for the Caregiver for time off or vacations as needed.
• Enlist resources, such as a Certified Dementia Care Specialist, to assist in training for certain circumstances.
• Utilize the company’s unique and innovative program called CarePlus that combines caregiving and technology to help address client needs at no additional cost. “We provide products that can use sensors and alerts to let a Caregiver know that their loved-one is getting out-of-bed so that they can respond quickly to reduce the risk of falls, or door sensors that reduce the risk of wandering with someone that has Alzheimer’s, or automated medication dispensers that keep people on schedule and compliant with their medications,” said Mario D’Aquila, MBA and COO of Assisted Living Services, Inc. “Personal care supplemented with wireless devices is the perfect combination.” There is no cost for the additional technology.

In order to qualify, applicants must be a Connecticut resident, 65 years of age or older, at risk of nursing home placement, meaning, the applicant needs assistance with critical personal care such as bathing, dressing, eating, taking medications, toileting or transferring, as well as meet the program’s financial eligibility criteria.

“Most elderly people want to remain in their own home and home care is more cost-effective than an in-patient care facility,” said D’Aquila. “According to the U.S. Department of Labor, over 40 million Americans provide unpaid care to the elderly. The AFL program gives families the option to care for their loved-ones without sacrificing income.”

D’Aquila explains that a caregiver can receive a tax-free stipend of over $500 per week, depending on the complexity of care, under AFL. The program is part of the Department of Social Services’ Connecticut Home Care Program for Elders (CHCPE).

“I took over all of her daily activities that she is unable to manage anymore,” said Gigi. “She is able to live with family who takes good care of her. It also helps that she is surrounded by familiar faces especially since she has dementia. It can be tough. It means a lot to my husband as well for her to be home with us. I feel good about that.”

For almost 25 years, award-winning home care agency Assisted Living Services, Inc. in Cheshire with branch locations in Clinton and Fairfield has provided quality care to residents across Connecticut. Their unique CarePlus program blends personal care with technological safety and monitoring devices from sister company Assisted Living Technologies, Inc. Learn more by visiting www.assistedlivingct.com or calling 203.634.8668.

PHOTO: Gigi Torres is the fulltime caregiver for her husband’s grandmother, Benedicta Martinez, through Assisted Living Services Inc. in Cheshire that oversees a state program that pays relatives to care for elderly family members at home.