Manny is an 83-year-old client with hoarding tendencies and fading short-term memory. Prior to our involvement, Manny’s relatives had become increasingly concerned about him remaining in his home. There had been talk of moving him to an assisted living facility, though he lived on his own and maintained an active lifestyle, often attending lectures at a local college.
Manny’s house cleaner came two or three times a week, with the only other frequent visitor being the weekly pool maintenance guy. After six months of neglecting to pay the bill, Manny’s water was turned off. His accountant was called in for assistance which set in motion the systems that resulted in him getting the sort of care he needed.
With the accountant running point, Manny’s team began to take shape. A referral by a local Aging Life Care Professional (ALCP) led the accountant to contact Eddy & Schein Group. We immediately put Manny’s bills on autopay to prevent a repeat of the water shut-off problem and got to work addressing the other issues we found.
A professional organizer was employed to assist with the clutter and within a few months, we were able to reduce the house cleaner’s involvement to once a week. Manny’s Eddy & Schein Group client manager began inventorying Manny’s finances. While checking his existing credit cards, she found two that Manny had forgotten about.
Initially, Manny was unwilling to have any in-home aides, but after three weeks of working with Eddy & Schein Group, Manny began to trust his client manager and she was able to convince him to hire an ALCP. He has since developed a close relationship with his ALCP, often listening to her above others.
Eddy & Schein Group helped Manny get a Personal Emergency Response System (PERS), which was once put through an inadvertent practice run at 3:00 am. Manny had rolled over in his sleep onto his PERS button, causing a sequence of alerts and phone calls that went out to the entire team. Despite being informed of the false alarm, the volunteer fire department came to check on him the next day. It was the perfect “dry run” and now everyone on the team is confident that the PERS works well.
When Manny’s pacemaker battery needed replacing, it provided the opportunity to introduce full-time caregivers. With his aides’ assistance, Manny now enjoys greater freedom, his eating habits have improved, as have his physical & emotional health. Manny and his Eddy & Schein Group client manager now schedule shorter sessions more often, as he receives more frequent visitors. Manny enthusiastically saves his non-junk mail to open with his client manager and takes advantage of her visits as a chance for enjoyable, mentally stimulating conversation.
Manny’s situation was improved by having the assets to pay for his support team, as he fully owns his house and car and has no children to support. It is worth noting that this is an ideal outcome. Unfortunately, not all teams function this smoothly. The value of open communication and clear designation of responsibilities cannot be overstated.