Post Office Box 5084                                                                                                                                             (925)  933-3357 (Office)

Walnut Creek, California  94596                                                                                                            charmedinc@wplaca.com  (Email)

www.wplaca.com                                                                                                                                      www.heavenshelpinghands.org

THE GOOD THING .... WE HAVEN’T LOST A CASE IN THIRTY-TWO YEARS

ADOPT A SNF  (“SNIFF)

Tragically, whether or not we want to accept it, we will probably end up in a skilled nursing facility -- some by the age of 65, some later.  In the medical profession these facilities are more commonly referred to as a “SNF.”  Whether it is because we didn’t set aside an adequate amount of financial resources to employ healthcare workers to take care of us in our homes, or the circumstances surrounding the health malady that we may be confronted makes living at home impossible, the fact remains, your chances of being in a skilled nursing facility at one point in your life are considerable.  If you believe that will never happen to you, then sit down and “crunch the numbers.”  The average cost of having round-the-lock care is approximately $4,500.00;  and as every year goes by that costs is rising.  However, If you end up relying on an agency to handle everything for you, that cost can escalate to over $9,000.00 a month.  And I can assure you that no matter what form of health insurance you have, it won’t cover these costs.  What is also surprising is that every single healthcare professional will tell you that the quality of your teeth and your dental hygiene also has a significant impact on your health.  However, at any age, health insurance doesn’t cover these the bulk of these costs.  Therefore, many patients find that the only dental care covered by health insurance when you reach 65 is that which only allows cleanings and/or extractions.  Anything in between is not covered.  That is why so many elderly patients have dentures; and many don’t have any teeth at all.  Yet this aspect of healthcare is not even addressed.  Notwithstanding, if you closely examine the benefits that will be available to you once you reach age 65, you will suddenly discover very little if anything is covered -- it is the “bare bones” policy.

Too, so many residents of skilled nursing facilities are alone;  in most instances the family doesn’t even live nearby or, if they do live nearby, they rarely visit because there isn’t enough time in their schedules to visit mom or dad or both at the nursing home.  Tragically, as I have been caring for a very dear friend over the last twelve years, I have forged relationships with a great many residents, and it appears that once they were placed in the facility they were just forgotten.  I try to visit my friend (as well as other residents) almost every day.  I grant you this adds an additional two or three hours to my schedule, but can I just ignore him?  Is there really anything else in my life that is much more important?  Sure, maybe I don’t get to go home and watch my favorite television programs;  but isn’t a friend, a mother, a father or a friend worth the effort?

Regardless, the issue is (for example) one young man (just in his early forties) suddenly found himself paralyzed from the waist down.  Now he doesn’t even have enough money to buy himself any clothes.  The rule of thumb is that any money he may receive from social security or any other sources must be turned over to the nursing facility;  leaving him only $35.00 a month to live on.  Could you live on $35.00 a month?

Though this is not an isolated incident;  as I visit the skilled nursing facility each and every day, I am learning that a great many residents have needs that are not being met and it is not the fault of the nursing facility.  Yet who is responsible?   Well we can argue that point for the next two or three generations and then again, we still might not come up with an answer.  However, what we can do now is to work together to provide whatever items these patients need so that they can live out what remains of their lives with dignity.  That is the least we can do -- isn’t it?  One thing I do on a weekly basis is take a bag of candy bars to one patient whose family lives only about an hour away, but hasn’t visited in years.  This simple act of kindness just lights up this woman’s life and I love doing it for her.

Therefore, we are asking for your help.  Before contributing items to other organizations to be sold to the public, contact our office and see if we have a patient who might need that item more.  For instance, a woman who just turned 87 desperately needs a small chest of drawers to keep her personal belongings;  the one she currently has is falling apart and the facility just doesn’t have the resources to replace it.  So if you have a small chest of drawers that is in fairly good condition, please contact us and let us know and we’ll discuss it further with you.  The young man we referred to earlier also needs pants, shirts and other articles of clothing.  So if you have clothing your about to “give away,” contact us first to see if they could be the right size.

AND, most importantly, if you would like to help adopt a SNF, thereby helping us to meet the needs of even more residents and with other facilities, please contact us.  If we could organize a group of at least five or six people to oversee the needs of each and every skilled nursing facility, that would be incredible.  With the help of the SNF’s, we could actually really help these patients and improve the quality of their lives.  So please think about it.  Please?

Feel free to contact us either at “antoniodi@wplaca.com,” or at (925)  933-3357.  Too, all donations are tax deductible. So, if you would prefer to make a financial contribution instead, remember, you can also deduct it from your taxes.  Just remember to make a note in the “memorandum” section of your check that it is for the ADOPT A SNF program.  That way those resources will be used solely for those purposes and none other.

Thank you.

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