Do you have a plan for how you will be cared for if you ever need care? According the the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 2015, 70% of people turning 65 will need some long term care in their lifetime. So the odds are that you will need some care before you die. Medical technology advances can save a person’s life, so people are living longer and longer, but the life saved is often lived with the necessary help of someone else.

So, have you shopped around? Have you compared the various forms of living with help? I will not go into all of the various options out there for help with cooking and cleaning, transportation and shopping, home maintenance and repair. But I will focus on what is available to help you manage your health care needs. If you are not able to take care of your health independently, there are two options: Adult Day Centers with Healthcare (Nursing) Services and Skilled Nursing Facilities. Of course, some families may be willing to help with healthcare needs.

Aging With Grace is licensed as an adult day healthcare center with nursing services. We are different than any other adult day center, however, because we operate as a club. Hopefully, Members will join the club while they are still healthy and do not have dementia. Members are invited to design a plan of care in case they ever do get dementia or some other illness that would compromise their ability to make decisions. Aging With Grace promises to implement that plan along with the emergency contacts listed (relative, friend, lawyer), if any. If someone does not have a trusted family member or friend or lawyer, Aging With Grace can become that trusted person for the member.

Aging With Grace is different as well because we promise to help our members live where they want to live. Members are invited and welcome and will benefit by coming to the health club to exercise, get medical tests and treatments, and keep mentally sharp, but if they want to stay home, that is okay too. We will do whatever our members want to help them to their best health and quality of life. We can help with cooking and cleaning, transportation and shopping, home maintenance and repair. And we can help members get surveillance systems and personal life alert systems in place, too.

There is safety in numbers. There is also knowledge and power. And one of my favorite sayings is so true of the club: “Joys shared are joys doubled. Sorrows shared are sorrows halved.” Come join the club and let us work to give you the best health and quality of life possible as you age.