Heritage House Museum at Cedar Community Hosts an

Old-Fashioned Christmas

Cedar Community is pleased to introduce a new service for seniors and their families as they navigate the many resources available today to maintain independence. Cedar Community Pathfinders is a geriatric care management service, part of Cedar Community Home Health & Hospice’s Supportive Care division.

 

Cedar Community social worker Christa Pretzl, Care Manager Certified and member of the National Geriatric Care Managers, will head the new service. Care managers assist seniors and their loved ones in a variety of ways, from accompanying them to medical appointments, summarizing information, advocating on their behalf, to creating a plan of medical care and support services and helping research and arrange care providers or moves to appropriate housing. “The resources we offer and advice we give is as varied as the challenges many seniors face,” said Pretzl. “Our mission is to listen and understand their needs, then help guide them along the best path to wellness and maintaining independence.”

 

Cedar Community Pathfinder service is available to all Cedar Community residents, families, staff, volunteers and the community at large. For details, call Christa at 262.306.2691.

The open enrollment period for Medicare D is November 15 to December 31, 2008. Medicare D is the federally subsidized program covering medication for Medicare-eligible seniors. Medicare D plans are offered by private insurance companies who meet a set of standards set by Medicare. Medicare supplements the insurance company’s costs to allow them to offer lower prices for premiums and medication costs. Seniors enrolled in a Medicare D plan are encouraged to review the plan’s coverage every year. Medicare D plans can change the cost of monthly premiums

and the medications that are covered.

 

“Seniors who do not wish to change plans do not have to do anything – coverage will automatically continue,” said Christa Pretzl, CSW, MA, CMC, a professional care manager with Cedar Community’s Cedar Care Pathfinders. Cedar Care Pathfinders is a new professional geriatric care management service offered by Cedar Community Supportive Care. The best way to determine which plan is best is to visit Medicare’s website: www.medicare.gov. Seniors should have their Medicare card and a list of medications ready when they log in. The site will compare plan costs and medication coverage, allowing seniors to make the best decision for their specific situation. Assistance in using the website is available through most county aging services departments.

 

Christa Pretzl will also be presenting “The Basics of Medicare D: Prescription Drug Coverage for Medicare-Eligible Seniors” on Monday, Nov. 10 at 3 p.m. at The Gables in Germantown, Himmel House, Community Room,

N109W17075 Ava Circle, Germantown. The Gables in Germantown is a retirement community with independent homes and apartments and an assisted living.

 

To learn more about Cedar Community’s Pathfinders’ care management benefits and rates, call Pretzl at 262.306.2691. Cedar Community is a not-for-profit, church-affiliated leader in creating relationships, services and environments to enhance the well-being of seniors and their families. Its facilities are located on five campuses in Washington and Sheboygan counties. Cedar Community is proud to provide a continuum of care including independent and assisted living, skilled nursing care, rehabilitation, hospice, memory loss services, subacute and home care. For more information visit their website at www.cedarcommunity.org.

Facts about Hospice Everyone Should Know - Hospice isn’t a place. It’s a type of care that focuses on living; living as fully as possible, up until the end of life.

 

November is National Hospice Month. In communities like ours across the country, hospices are honoring patients and families coping with life-limiting illness. Hospices are recognizing the professionals and volunteers who provide high quality care to those who need it most. National Hospice Month also provides an opportunity to promote important discussions with our loved ones and our health care providers about the care we would want at the end of life.

Hospice offers the services and support that Americans want when coping with life-limiting illness. Considered to be the model for high-quality, compassionate care at the end of life, hospices have a team of care providers that includes expert medical care, pain-and-symptom management, and emotional and spiritual support. All care is tailored to the patient’s needs and wishes.

 

The goal of hospice is to treat the person instead of the disease, and support the family caregivers as well as the individual.  The focus is on quality of life, not the length of time left to live.

 

The National Hospice and Palliative Care Organization reports:

·         Hospice usage in the U.S. is growing. More than 1.4 million Americans with life-limiting illness were served by the nation’s hospices last year.

 

·         The median length of time people receive hospice is 20.6 days (half of patients receive care for more days, half of patients receive care for fewer days). Yet most patients would benefit from hospice earlier -- in fact, the most frequent comment from families is “why didn’t we get hospice sooner?”

 

·         Less than half of hospice patients have cancer, which surprises many people who mistakenly think hospice only serves cancer patients. The five other leading diagnoses are: heart disease, debility, dementia (this includes Alzheimer’s disease), lung disease, and stroke.

 

·         Hospice is paid for by Medicare, Medicaid, most private insurance plans, HMOs and other managed care organizations.  Hospices also care for people who don’t have insurance and can’t afford to pay for the services.

 

·         An estimated 400,000 trained volunteers provide 5.1 percent of patient and family-related services to patients.  Volunteers also assist with fundraising, community outreach and administrative work.

 

·         Research shows that 8 out of 10 Americans would want to stay in their homes surrounded by family and loved ones if they were faced with a life-limiting illness. Hospice makes this happen for millions of patients each year.  

 

For more information, contact Cedar Community Home Health and Hospice at 262.306.2691 or visit www.cedarcommunity.org. Cedar Community is a not-for-profit, church-affiliated leader in creating relationships, services and environments to enhance the well-being of seniors and their families. Its facilities are located on five campuses in Washington and Sheboygan counties. Cedar Community is proud to provide a continuum of care including independent and assisted living, skilled nursing care, rehabilitation, hospice, memory loss services, subacute and home care.

Cedar Community is seeking older adult volunteers to participate in its popular Ye Olde School intergenerational program. Ye Olde School is a lovingly restored one-room schoolhouse, circa 1917, visited by more than 3,500 elementary school students each year. Students enjoy a day-long field trip, hosted by a full-time schoolmarm who immerses them in the experience of attending school as it was in the early 1900s. They learn how to use dip pens and inkwells, help fetch water and wood, ring the schoolbell and participate in authentic lessons taught during the era.

 

A vital part of the program is a visit from older adult volunteers who share stories of their own school days. Volunteers need not to have gone to a one-room schoolhouse – just be willing to share their memories and perhaps pass on stories told by their parents or grandparents. The time commitment and hours worked are flexible. Some volunteers stay the entire day, but others just stop by for an hour or so to share their stories. We can work around your schedule. The children, parents and teachers really enjoy this time so please consider donating your memories. You are welcome to observe another volunteer to see what it is all about. Ye Olde School is located on the Cedar Community main campus at 5595 County Road Z in West Bend. If interested, please call Bonnie Amerling, Cedar Community volunteer coordinator, at 262.306.4218.

 

Cedar Community is a not-for-profit, church affiliated leader in providing superior health care, education, rehabilitation and senior housing to over 1,000 residents. Its facilities are located on five campuses in Washington and Sheboygan counties. Cedar Community is proud to provide a continuum of care including independent and assisted living, skilled nursing care, rehabilitation, hospice, memory loss services, subacute and home care. For more information visit their website at www.cedarcommunity.org.

Cedar Community’s Board of Directors approved today the construction of a 27-apartment assisted living facility on the organization’s senior living campus, Cedar Landing at Elkhart Lake. The $3.7 million dollar licensed Residential Care Apartment Complex will be known as Cedar Bay at Elkhart Lake and feature one studio, seven two-bedroom and 19 one-bedroom apartments, ranging in size from 365 to 754 sq. ft. General construction contractor Quasius, Inc., of Sheboygan will begin construction in the next several weeks with completion slated for summer of 2008.

 

Cedar Bay at Elkhart Lake is the fourth assisted living facility operated by Cedar Community. It joins Cedar Bay West, Cedar Bay East and Friendship House, all in West Bend, combining for a total of 183 assisted apartments. “Cedar Bay at Elkhart Lake represents an important expansion of Cedar Community’s unique programs for older adults in the Elkhart Lake area,” said Steve Jaberg, Cedar Community executive director and CEO. “It’s a valuable option for those who want to retain autonomy and independence but whose health requires a more secure and supportive environment.”

 

Cedar Landing also provides 40 homes arranged as 20 duplexes framing a four-acre park for active independent seniors aged 62 or better. Also in construction planning is a ‘clubhouse’ that will be available on-site for independent Cedar Landing residents and will be made available gratis as a Senior Center to Village of Elkhart Lake residents.

 

Cedar Community is a not-for-profit, church affiliated leader in providing superior health care, education, rehabilitation and senior housing to over 1,000 residents. Its facilities are located on five campuses in Washington and Sheboygan counties. Cedar Community is proud to provide a continuum of care including independent and assisted living, skilled nursing care, rehabilitation, hospice, memory loss services, subacute and home care. For more information visit their website at www.cedarcommunity.org.