Caregiver service provider speaks to Kiwanis Club

ALBANY — Ten years ago, Eshonda Blue’s and Jessica Wright’s grandmother became unable to walk and to look after herself and needed personal care. But she did not want to go to a nursing home.

The sisters answered her need for assistance, and that was the genesis of the company they now lead.

“She became our first patient,” Blue told the Kiwanis Club of Dougherty County on Monday.

From a single desk and computer in a business incubator in Americus, Innovative Senior Solutions has now grown to three locations in Americus, Albany and Cordele, with a fourth scheduled to open in Tifton in July. Originally serving only Sumter County, the company now boasts a 27-county service area across Southwest Georgia, employing more than 100 caregivers.

The sisters estimate they have provided to date more than 500,000 total hours of caregiving.

Innovative Senior Solutions provides a range of services, according to their company brochure, “to help serve senior loved ones at all stages of aging,” focusing on four areas:

— In-home care: personal care; assistance with bathing and dressing; help using the bathroom and incontinence care; companion/sitter care; ambulation assistance; meal planning, preparation and dining assistance; light housekeeping; home organization; transportation and accompaniment to appointments; shopping and running errands; medication reminders; medication set-ups by nurses or nurse-trained caregivers; watchful supervision and oversight; respite care; in-home safety assessments; constant companionship, care and support, and other services.

— Adult Day Health Centers: personal care services, meals and assistance with eating; daily activities; field trips to local destinations/activities; physical therapy; nursing services such as administering medication, blood sugar testing; blood pressure monitoring, and more.

— Small, eight-bed personal care homes (Albany and Americus; the Albany location is on Gillionville Road across from Mark’s Country Store): personal care, including bathing, dressing, grooming, etc,; private and semi-private suites; 24-hour supervision; three meals daily; laundry services; daily activities; field trips to local destinations/activities; weekly housekeeping; respite care, and transportation.

— Transportation: carefully screened professional drivers transport clients to and from facilities like the adult day center, as well as to appointments and other requested destinations for in-home care clients.

According to Blue and Wright, the company’s services are covered by long-term care insurance, Medicaid, Veterans’ Aid and Attendance, as well as private pay.

Their presentation provided some relevant statistics: The senior population in the U.S. is approximately 46.2 million; the senior population is expected to double to more than 96 million by 2060; in 2033 the population ages 65 and older will outnumber people younger than 18 in the U.S.; and a “fun fact,” if all the U.S. seniors held hands, the line would wrap around the world twice.

Also, according to former First Lady Rosalyn Carter, “There are only four kinds of people in the world: Those who have been caregivers, those who are currently caregivers, those who will be caregivers, and those who will need caregivers.”

Innovative Senior Solutions’ founders state, “We believe that everyone has a unique calling in life. We’ve been blessed to find ours in caring for older adults and providing families and the community with innovative home and community-based care solutions.”