Lend A Hand Launches Blog On Company Website

peter — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 16:26:14 +0000

Cromwell, CT, January 29, 2012 – Lend A Hand announced today they have added a blog feature to the company website.

“We felt adding a blog was an important feature to add to our company website”, said Ken Paster, director of corporate communications for Lend A Hand. “We pride ourselves on having regular contact with the families of all of our patients. Adding this feature to our website will enable family members to open up to us at their leisure. It will also enable them to speak with other families and form a support group of sorts.”

Visitors to the Lend A Hand website will find the Blog as a dropdown box under the About Us tab.

Acceptance or Denial: Your Initial Reactions About Homecare?

peter — Sun, 29 Jan 2012 16:23:06 +0000

As we age we all hope to remain healthy and independent in our own homes. But that doesn’t always happen, and when you or a family member starts to notice that loved one, perhaps mom or dad, starts to notice signs that they may need a little help for what was once routine, getting complete “buy in” from all involved is not always as simple and easy as it should be.

It’s a completely natural reaction because homecare is a highly emotional topic.
We have found that many people feel a little overwhelmed in the beginning. Homecare marks the beginning when many things we take for granted, like mobility, independence, and control begin to change. It also marks the beginning of a new stage when we have to accept the presence of new people, perhaps a companion or a home health aide, into our lives.

We’d appreciate learning about your initial experiences about homecare. We believe that sharing these experiences – anonymously if you’d like — can serve as a form of a support group. You’ll meet others who have similar feelings that you do and share solutions that you might want to try out.

Plan Ahead For The Next Natural Disaster

peter — Sun, 22 Jan 2012 17:09:27 +0000

Cromwell, CT, January 19, 2012 In light of the recent devastation and destruction caused by Hurricane Irene, Lend A Hand felt it important to provide our clients with an emergency “Go Kit” list in case they are ever forced to leave their home. This is the time to plan ahead for what you may need to stay safe, healthy, informed, mobile, and independent during a disaster.

Depending on your needs, items for your “Go Kit” list may include:

Extra eyeglasses, hearing aids if you have them, or have coverage for them.

Battery charger and extra batteries for hearing aids, motorized wheelchairs, or other battery-operated medical devices.

Copies of medical prescriptions, doctor’s orders, and the style and serial numbers of the support devices you use.

Medical alert tags or bracelets or written descriptions of your disability and support needs.

Medical insurance cards, Medicare/Medicaid cards, physician contact information, list of your allergies and health history.

A list of the local non-profit or community-based organizations that know you or assist people with needs similar to yours.

A list of personal contacts – family and friends – that you may need to contact in an emergency.

If possible, extra medicine, oxygen, insulin, catheters, or other medical supplies you use regularly.

If you use a motorized wheelchair, have a light weight manual chair available for emergencies. Know the size and weight of your wheelchair, in addition to whether or not it is collapsible, in case it has to be transported.

Another important thing to keep in mind is to plan to maintain your independence before an emergency strikes. This includes:

Create a support network to help you plan for an emergency. Consider family, neighbors, friends, people who provide services to you, faith-based and community groups. Tell these people where you keep your emergency supplies.

Contact your city or county government’s emergency information management office and work with theme to use their emergency planning resources.

If your receive dialysis or other life sustaining medical treatment, identify the location and availability of more than one facility and work with your provider to develop your emergency plan.

Show others how to operate your wheelchair or other assistive devices.

Keep contact information for local independent living centers and other disability service organizations in a safe and easy-to-access place. If you provide any organization with information about your functions needs and what you may require in an emergency, keep that data up to date.

If you use in-home support services, Meals-on-Wheels, Life Alert or other support services, work with them to personalize emergency preparedness plans to meet your needs so you can keep in touch with them during and after an emergency.

Work with local transportation and disability services to plan ahead for accessible transportation if you need that for evacuation or other reasons during a disaster.

Develop back-up plans for personal assistance services, hospice, or other forms of in-home help.

No Match For Dedicated Lend A Hand Home Health Aides

peter — Sun, 13 Nov 2011 19:41:30 +0000

Cromwell, CT, November 10, 2011 – Just two months after Hurricane Irene hit Connecticut residents hard, the Halloween Nor’Easter wreaked havoc on area residents. The freak storm was no match for Lend A Hand’s home health aides who once again rose to the challenge to make sure their patients were well cared for; they remained unfazed by blocked roads, bad weather and widespread power outages in order to be their for their clients during and after the storm.

On Saturday, October 30, Alma Colon, a Lend A Hand caregiver for Mary Arnstein in Hamden was scheduled to work her usual 12 hour shift from 8:00 a.m. – 8:00 p.m. The heavy snow and slick roads made it impossible for the caregiver scheduled for the overnight shift to get to Mrs. Arnstein. Alma stayed the night, cancelled her Sunday morning plans without complaint and waited until relief could get to the Arnstein’s residence once the storm cleared.

Helen Gibbons, a caregiver for Judith Quinn, a resident of Middletown, usually works a twelve hour shift at the Quinn’s home. Normally, the Quinn’s don’t have overnight care for Mrs. Quinn, but on this stormy night, Mr. Quinn asked if Helen would be able to stay the night to make sure the couple weathered the storm well. Helen stayed and was relieved the following morning by Patricia Willis who arrived on time at 8:00 a.m. despite having to travel 20 exits on I-91in treacherous travel conditions. The drive usually takes 20 minutes, but on the morning after the storm, it took nearly an hour.

Another patient, Sharon Barbara, a resident of Crowmell, also made a last minute request for her aide, Crystal Wiggins from Hartford, to put in an extra seven hour shift to get Sharon through the storm. Crystal, like her Lend A Hand colleagues, was happy to help out and she made the trip to Sharon’s home despite the bad weather.

All the Lend A Hand patients were so grateful to have the extra help when they needed it most.

“We’ve had two catastrophic storms in a row and two opportunities for our home health aides to demonstrate their amazing commitment and care for our clients. We are so grateful to our dedicated team and their tireless efforts to go above and beyond the call of duty to ensure the comfort and well-being of Lend A Hand clients,” said Kim Nystrom, president of Lend A Hand’s parent company, New England Home Care.

About Lend A Hand

Lend A Hand, an affiliate of New England Home Care, is one of the leading licensed homecare organizations in the state of Connecticut. What makes Lend A Hand different from other homecare companies is the awareness that there are many issues that need to be addressed when a loved one is making the transition from natural independence to assisted independence. Families not only require practical and physical help in this time of transition, they also need assistance in managing the complex web of emotions that come up in times like these. With every client, Lend A Hand applies 16 years of experience (12 years in homecare as part of New England Home Care and four years operating as an independent home care agency) helping more than 350 people and their families find solutions that facilitate best possible outcomes and quality of life for all involved. Robust training, a dedicated staff devoted to offering continuity of care, and a wide range of services available to manage changing health care needs lays a solid foundation that offers homecare help, hope, comfort and consistency. For more information, visit www.calllendahand.com or call 800.960-1004 and ask for Derek Carroll, Director of Lend A Hand.

Lend A Hand Offering Public Service Presentation

admin — Fri, 09 Sep 2011 06:11:34 +0000

Lend A Hand Offering Public Service Presentation On Making a Smooth Transition from Natural Independence to Assisted Independence at the Partnership Center for Adult Day Care in Hamden on September 20th

Derek Carroll, a director at Lend A Hand, states the impetus to create this public service presentation comes from years of watching families struggle to determine what they need to do to help a loved one make the transition from a long life of independence and self-sufficiency to a new reality that comes with aging and requires some assistance.

“We’ve found that, when left unaddressed, emotions that surround homecare are the one thing that can truly impede a family from making sound decisions for a loved one during this challenging time of transition in life,” explains Carroll. “Over the years, we’ve had so many requests for answers to these emotional questions, we finally decided to put a program together to fill in this informational void.”

The presentation and workbook will walk people through the evaluation and decision-making process, identify issues that are likely to come up and offer real-world advice about how to work through it so all involved benefit.