Elite Care

Location: 3838 Flatlands Ave. Brooklyn, NY
Years in Business: 8
Number of Employees: 50-plus

1) How do you assess if a senior needs an attendant, assistant living, companion care or nursing home?

Here at Elite Care, we send a care manager to the patients’ homes once a month to assess the patient and develop a plan of care.  Our care manager decides on what is best for our clients and talks to the families about how to proceed.

2) How are the needs of seniors evolving?

Evolution is the process of life that we are all part of whether we like it or not.  Some elderly individuals may not have any family that lives near them so they have a harder time evolving with the times.  They may require more help with cooking, cleaning, transportation, medication management, paying bills on time, and other day-to-day activities.  Seniors with a good support system, however, may not need this level of help as they age. Each senior is different. Their needs will vary depending on the support systems that they have, their level of resilience, and their desire and willingness to remain active and independent.  Those who have a good support system in place might adapt more easily than someone who has no one in their corner to help them.

3) What is the most challenging aspect of moving a senior out of his home?

Moving a senior out of his or her home is always challenging. You are moving someone out of their comfort zone, somewhere they might have lived all their life.  Some seniors are very resistant to the idea of leaving their homes and that is why the role of the home attendant is very important.

4) What’s the difference between companion care and a home attendant?

Companion care is having someone who can help you with cooking, cleaning, laundry, grocery shopping, light housekeeping and more.  A home attendant is certified and can help with activities of daily living including grooming, bathing, transferring, toileting, and feeding or cooking for the client.

5) How do you handle difficult or reluctant clients who disagree and are not compliant with your recommendations?

Clients sometimes do not agree with the recommendations given; therefore, we have the family members involved as well.  We speak to the families and discuss the situation at hand. The family can then speak to their parents or grandparents and help them better understand what’s best for them.

6) Why is now the best time to be a senior citizen?

Senior citizens are now living longer due to new equipment and medications.  Seniors are now able to get the best medical treatments possible.  We live in a time where everything can be done in the comfort of your own home.  Seniors can have groceries delivered to their homes if they are unable to make it out, and they can have doctors and dentists come to their homes if needed.  We live in a time where everything is just one phone call away. Services like these benefit the elderly more and more each year.