The second location will help serve those on the waiting list.
The sounds of off-key singing, clapping hands and people playing games fill the interior of Eldercare inside MU’s Clark Hall on a typical weekday afternoon.
It’s a popular way for elderly people who need day-care services to spend their time from 7:30 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays. The problem is, there are more people who want to participate than the facility can handle.
That’s why Eldercare is opening another facility to accommodate the growing number of people seeking its services. The new site, partially funded by the United Way, will open at the Intersection at Garth Avenue and Sexton Road. The Intersection is an after-school program for children in at-risk neighborhoods, so its facilities are available earlier in the day.
Eldercare director Tish Thomas said the Intersection is an excellent location. Staff, she said, has already been hired.
“There are 28 people on our wait list right now,” Thomas said. “The new facility will help us serve our waiting list and more adults in the First Ward area.”
The new Eldercare site facility is slated to open in mid-May, and a grand opening celebration is planned for early June.
Eldercare is a state-licensed division of the MU School of Health Professions and is supported by the United Way and the city. Thomas said she has requested funding from the city through the Boone County Community Services Commission for the new facility, and she will present a formal proposal to the commission in June.
The Boone County Council on Aging, which works within the senior network community in Columbia and interacts with many Eldercare patients, supports the new facility being added in the community.
“There are a lot of seniors looking to get out of the house, and it’s nice to have a place like Eldercare,” said Melanie Stapelton, a spokeswoman for the organization. “The new facility is going to be a good thing. Transportation for residents (in the First Ward) won’t be as much of an issue, and seniors can meet people they know and establish friendships and connections.”
About 74 percent of Eldercare participants have dementia or related disorders, and Thomas expects that number to grow because more people in the baby boomer generation are being diagnosed with the disease, she said.
Eldercare is a private-care facility that costs an average of $56 per day, and it serves several Medicaid patients. Participants engage in a variety of activities, exercise and play games. They also get lunch and an afternoon snack. Thomas said Eldercare can ease the demands on people who care for their elderly loved ones at home and is a viable alternative to private nursing home care.
Don Ginsburg took his dad, Larry Ginsburg, who had started to show signs of dementia, to Eldercare for more activity outside the nursing home facility he lived in with his wife, Mary Ginsburg. Larry has since passed away, but Don and his wife, Sharon Ginsburg, said he enjoyed his time at the day care.
“He went four times a week and loved it, Sharon Ginsburg said. “The nursing home had activities, but it was very limited. The staff was doing all they could, but it wasn’t enough, and we saw him decline. We agreed Eldercare was a great place. It was a very comfortable place to be, and they are very respectful of where a person is on that specific day.”
“Some people have said we have saved their lives,” Thomas said. “Nursing homes are not the only option, and people are realizing that now. There is a need for more adult day-care programs across the state.”
Thomas said Eldercare is already considering plans for a third site.