LifePath, Inc.

Caregiver Grants offer caregivers and/or Grandparents Raising Grandchildren under the age of 18 an opportunity to refresh and renew away from their caregiving and grand parenting responsibilities.

Caregivers have used these grants to pay someone (a family member, friend or neighbor) to provide them with in-home respite so they can rest, take a class, visit friends or family out of town...giving them peace of mind to know their loved one is being cared for while they are away.

Similarly, grandparents have used monies through the grant to help pay for child care, camp fees, or additional household needs...giving them support during difficult times.

Grants can be used in many creative ways to meet the needs of caregivers and grandparents. Please contact the Information and Caregiver Resource Center at LifePath for more details. Grants are approved based on availability of funds.

Congregate Housing combines home care services and shared living space for elders or disabled adults. Security, companionship, support and home care services, help residents stay independent and active in the community.

Congregate housing is a great option for people who don't want to live alone.

Services available to residents may include:

Care management
Homemaking services
Transportation
Personal care
Community meals
Coordination with other service providers
Social events and activities

Congregate Housing facilities in Franklin County

There are two Congregate Housing facilities in Franklin County: Morgan-Allen House and Winslow Wentworth House.

The Dementia Caregiver's Support Group is for caregivers of people with memory disorders such as, but not limited to, Alzheimer's disease. Facilitated by Molly Chambers, the group offers participants a place to ask questions, share experiences and get answers. From time to time, the group hears from speakers and views films about dementia and caregiver concerns.

The support group meets the first and third Wednesday of each month from 5-7 p.m. in the large conference room at LifePath, 330 Montague City Road, Turners Falls, MA 01376. The building is accessible, and the group is free and open to the public.

Senior Dining Centers and Luncheon Clubs provide hot, noon meals for people age 60 and older and their spouse of any age. The meals offered are at eight area Senior Centers and eight Luncheon Clubs. Dining Centers offer the opportunity to have a well-balanced meal (600-800 calories), no salt added. Non-sugar desserts are available. Come and socialize with friends & neighbors!

When you receive services from LifePath, you will be in the good hands of someone from our Case Management team. Our case managers work to assess, advocate for, and help plan services around your medical and non-medical needs. As your needs change, your case manager will continue to work with you to adjust your services.

Everyone has the right to be safe. Sometimes elders are at risk for physical or emotional injury or are at risk due to self-neglect. The Protective Services Program can help.

Massachusetts law (MGL Ch. 19A, Sec. 14-26) defines elder abuse as acts or omissions resulting in serious physical, sexual or emotional injury or financial loss to an adult age 60 or older.

Elder abuse includes:

Physical, sexual and emotional abuse
Caretaker neglect
Financial exploitation
Self-neglect

Protective Services is for those experiencing abuse or neglect by others or for elders who may be unsafe because of an inability to care for themselves.

Anyone may report suspected cases of abuse. The identity of the reporter is confidential.

For more information or to make a report in Franklin County or the North Quabbin area (including Athol, Petersham, Phillipston or Royalston), please call LifePath’s Protective Services Program toll-free at 800-732-4636, 413-773-5555, 978-544-2259, or TDD 413-772-6566, FREE, Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

LifePath also provides Elder Protective Services in Berkshire County. Contact Berkshire Elder Protective Services at 1-855-874-3242, Monday through Friday, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.

The Elder Abuse Hotline is 1-800-922-2275. The hotline is open Monday through Friday, from 5 p.m. until 9 a.m., and all day on weekends and holidays.

More and more grandparents are being called on to give up their plans in order to look after their grandchildren as families crumble, just as the looming expenses of retirement cut into the retiree's income.

LifePath has grants to help grandparents with costs incurred by the care they provide their grandchild or grandchildren.

AARP recently released a 2011 national update on "The Growing Contributions and Costs of Family Caregiving." This study suggests that in 2009 the unpaid work provided by family caregivers was about $450 billion, or 4 times what Medicaid spent on long term supports directly. Specific numbers for Massachusetts suggest that there are 858,000 caregivers at any given time, providing 821 million hours of care per year, and the value of the care they provide is $10.9 billion a year.

The study estimates that family caregivers over the age of 50 today who leave the workforce to care for an elderly relative can expect to lose $115,000 in wages, $138,000 in Social Security benefits and $50,000 in pension benefits.

Many chronic health conditions can be prevented, treated or managed. Workshops offered by the Healthy Living program at LifePath offer you the chance to take control of your health and improve your quality of life.

Our evidence-based programs have been researched and proven to result in positive health outcomes for participants. Healthy Living workshops are free to all community members, including family members and caregivers.

Workshops offered by the Healthy Living program:

My Life, My Health — Chronic Disease Self Management
Chronic Pain Self-Managment
Diabetes Self-Management
Healthy Eating for Successful Living in Older Adults
Tai Chi for Healthy Aging
A Matter of Balance — Falls Prevention

All of our workshops are evidence-based, using curriculum shared by groups throughout the country.

When you can't manage normal daily activities, Home Care Services provides the help you need to stay in your own home or return there after a hospital or nursing home stay.

Our goal is to help you be independent at home with the support you need.

LifePath staff work with you and your family in your home to help you determine your needs and make informed decisions. A plan of care specific to your needs is developed and services are arranged with service providers you choose.

Service options include:

Homemaking
Personal Care
Home Health Aide
Adult Day Health/Supportive Home Care Aide
Meals on Wheels
Personal Emergency Response
Chore Service
Companion Program
Transportation
Care Management
Nutritional Assessments
Skilled Services (RN, PT, OT, ST)
Money Management
Adaptive Devices
Home Modifications
Supportive Home Care Aide
Respite Services for Caregivers
Consumer-Directed Care
Community Choices
Referral and authorization of payment for skilled services such as nursing, PT, OT and/or speech therapy that are not covered by an individual's insurance

The Information & Caregiver Resource Center (ICRC) can help with any issue pertaining to elders, persons with disabilities, their caregivers, and the professionals who work with them. ICRC is the first stop on the the way to your solution. Tell us your specific needs so we can help in the best way possible.

ICRC's staff of Resource Consultants answers your questions on in-home care services, pay for caregivers, caregiver grants, caregiver support & respite, legal questions, fuel assistance, caregiver respite and more. They can provide information to professionals as well as elders, caregivers and persons with disabilities.

In addition to these services, the ICRC performs Information & Referral.

To contact the Information & Caregiver Resource Center, please call 800-732-4636, 413-773-5555, 978-544-2259, or TDD 413-772-6566, FREE, Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. or send us email.

Due to high demand, appointments are required for in-person help. Please call ahead for an appointment at our main office.

A Long-Term Care Ombudsman is a volunteer who helps nursing home or rest home residents ensure quality of life and quality of care by hearing and resolving their complaints and advocating for their rights.

Residents may talk to ombudsmen about:

Loneliness and boredom
Rights and responsibilities as a resident
Loss of personal items
Conflicts with staff
Facility policies, and more…

Ombudsmen help to educate long-term care residents about their rights, endeavoring to empower residents to become more active in resolving their own concerns and complaints. Ombudsman volunteers help to reduce the isolation and loneliness experienced by many residents who have no family or friends involved in their lives.
Who does the Long-Term Care Ombudsman program serve?

Long-Term Care Ombudsmen work with nursing home or rest home residents as well as with their families and friends on behalf of the resident. Services and all conversations with ombudsmen are confidential. Ombudsmen are trained in areas like nursing facility regulations, negotiating and more. They are assigned to specific nursing homes and visit each site weekly. Services are provided free of charge to residents and their families and friends.

If you have questions about the quality of care or quality of life of an individual living in a long-term care facility outside of the Franklin County/North Quabbin area, the local program director can you provide with contact information for the Ombudsman program serving that area.

Meals on Wheels are provided short-term or long-term to homebound elders age 60 and older who are unable to prepare a nutritionally balanced noon meal for themselves and are unable to attend congregate hot lunches. Therapeutic meals are available for certain medical conditions and may be ordered by your health care provider. Frozen weekend meals are available.

Volunteers who deliver Meals on Wheels ensure daily contact and a “wellness check” for elders who are alone during the day.

Elders who have difficulty writing checks or managing basic living expenses for reasons including vision difficulties, memory difficulties, and physical disabilities can benefit from the Money Management Program.

Two types of services are available: Bill Payer Services and Representative Payee Services.

Bill Payer services provide one-on-one assistance with any of the following tasks:

Writing checks
Balancing checkbooks
Sorting bills
Developing a budget
Monitoring income and expenses
Developing a prepayment plan

Individuals receiving Bill Payer Services retain the authority to sign their own checks.

Representative Payee services are provided if an elder is unable to handle their own funds.

The Personal Care Attendant program fosters independence in individuals with disabilities who receive MassHealth by assisting them with performing their day-to-day activities in the home.

Consumers find & hire their own Personal Care Attendant and pay them with funding from MassHealth.
Consumers sometimes need help managing the employment of PCAs. These consumers have surrogates who can help hire, train, and supervise their PCAs. Surrogates can be family members, friends or volunteers.

PCA staff:

Help the individual gain approval from MassHealth for PCA service
Provide training to consumers to become employers of Personal Care Attendants
Provide ongoing support to consumer who is the employer

LGBTIQA: Socializing | Support | Resources
Offering opportunities to lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, intersex, queer, questioning, and asexual elders plus their straight and younger allies to build connections and find resources.

The Rainbow Elders (formerly LGBTIQA Elders) Steering Committee of LifePath organizes quarterly events for LGBTIQA older adults and allies. These events are free of charge, although donations are welcomed, and events are drug, alcohol, and fragrance free.

Rides for Health is the answer to a local need. In listening sessions with area elders and people with disabilities, we have heard many times that transportation is a critical, unmet need for the area. Rides for Health volunteer drivers make a difference to the individuals with whom they are matched by offering door-through-door assisted transportation for home care clients.

The SHINE Program is a State Health Insurance Program that provides free, one-on-one health insurance information, counseling and assistance to Medicare beneficiaries of all ages.

The SHINE Program can assist you if you have questions about any of the following:

Medicare
Medicare Advantage Plans (Medicare HMOs, PPOs)
Insurance Claim Forms
Medicare Supplements (“Medigap”)
Medicaid/MassHealth
Prescription Advantage
Medicare Prescription Drug Plans
One Care Plans
Health Insurance Options
Prescription Drug Options
Long-Term Care Insurance

SHINE counselors provide assistance in the 54 communities of Franklin County and parts of Hampshire, Hampden and Worcester counties. Some of the services that SHINE counselors provide include:

Reviewing your current coverage
Reviewing your eligibility for financial assistance
Providing health insurance plan comparisons
Helping prepare health benefit claim forms and applications

You can consult with a SHINE counselor by phone, meet with them at your area senior center, or request that they visit you at home. Counselors are volunteers trained through the SHINE Program.

Supportive Housing provides flexible supportive services to residents who reside in housing complexes for elders and persons with disabilities. LifePath works in collaboration with local housing authorities to assist and ensure residents can live safely and independently in their apartments.

A full-time staff person is on site to work with residents. The Massachusetts Executive Office of Elder Affairs and the Department of Housing and Community Development have approved almost 30 supportive housing sites throughout the Commonwealth.

The goal of supportive housing is to allow those who already live in elder housing to stay there and get support when and how it is needed. For example, if a person has a hospital stay, when they return home, they will have a check-in visit, and if some services or extra help are necessary to assist them while they fully recuperate, those supports can be put in place. If support is needed long-term, that can be arranged as well.
Supportive Housing Options

Elm Terrace (Greenfield, MA) 108 units
Stoughton Place (Gill, MA) 14 units
Stratton Manor (Bernardston, MA) 20 units
Highland Village (Shelburne Falls, MA) 46 units
Squakheag Village (Northfield, MA) 20 units