A year and a half ago, Gerald Bryan, of Brooksville, began having trouble attending meetings. He and other members of Healthy Peninsula were working with Washington Hancock Community Agency (WHCA) and the Eastern Agency on Aging to create a support group for caregivers, but he couldn’t leave his wife, Jacqueline, who suffered from Alzheimer’s.
He mentioned the difficulty of scheduling Jackie’s caregivers to WHCA executive director Tim King. “If there were an adult day center,” he told him, “I could bring her to the center and have time to do what I need to do.” Three weeks later, King approached Bryan with a business plan for such a center.
The downside of increased life spans — age-related medical problems — has led to an increased need for adult day service centers. According to a 2002 study by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, the most prevalent conditions for those being served are dementia (52 percent) and frail elderly without dementia (41 percent). Twenty-four percent have mental retardation or developmental disabilities; 23 percent are physically disabled, but cognitively intact; 14 percent have chronic mental illness. Forty three percent need toilet assistance, 37 percent need help walking, and 24 percent need help eating.
Maine has only 44 adult day service centers, each averaging 38 participants, and not all are active. Hancock County has Deer Isle’s Island Nursing Home, which is licensed for six adult day participants, but only takes two at a time, and charges $10/hr., and Robert and Mary’s Place in Ellsworth, which charges $7.50/hr., and is almost at its capacity of 20. WHCA’s center plans a capacity of 40 and will charge $9/hr. But that’s just the beginning.
In addition to serving adults with significant disabilities and the frail elderly, WHCA also plans to include two unusual and important services to help the caregiver: transportation and respite care. “Early on in the project,” King said, “WHCA recognized that transportation would be a crucial element.” WHCA will transport participants, even islanders. There will be a charge, but it will be based on the client’s ability to pay. The second service will be a Caregiver Resource and Respite Center for caregivers. “From my own caregiving experience,” King said, “I realized how difficult it was to find out the services that were available. The caregiver Resource Center will address that need.”
Bryan, who is studying existing services, said that although adult day centers try to provide some respite care, because of the rural nature of the East Penobscot Bay peninsula, “We are trying to do a more complete job of helping caregivers get organized to do the at-home part of caregiving. It will be a new model for adult day service.”
With encouragement from its board of directors and after a year of research and planning, this past June WHCA launched its fundraising campaign.
“We had $400,000 by October,” reported WHCA’s Resource Developer J. Martin. That $400,000 paid for an attractively restored and extended house on Route 172 in Blue Hill purchased Nov. 9 from Robert Marville, who also made a significant contribution to the campaign and suggested naming the center Friendship Cottage.
“Caring for people with dementia is demanding,” Gerry Bryan said. “You have to be paying attention; you can’t be reading a book. It requires constant reading of the situation and mood, making adjustments to keep things upbeat and to head off trouble before it starts. It’s a little like teaching school,” he said, recalling his former occupation. “Teaching fifth grade was the best preparation I can think of for managing this kind of care.”
Jackie Bryan’s memory started slipping nine years ago, at 51. She was diagnosed in 2000. Along with that diagnosis came a need for constant care. Gerry put together a group of caregivers he called his dream team, which worked until Jackie developed a number of medical problems that led to her hospitalization. She spent her last eight months in a nursing home. She died in August. Today Bryan works full-time at making Friendship Cottage succeed.
Friendship Cottage will serve ten communities and several islands. Martin said Friendship Cottage would welcome all who feel that they can benefit from its services. It will operate Monday through Friday from 8 to 5.
But bringing Friendship Cottage to the point of opening its doors will take a lot more work and a lot more money. “That milestone, raising enough money to purchase the property, was huge,” said campaign manager Joseph Perkins, “but we all understand the second half [of the campaign] is a challenge. We need another $400,000 to make extensive renovations, to hire the staff, and for start-up costs. The campaign has been a wonderful experience so far,” he said, adding, “We’ve met so many gracious and caring people who want to help serve this need.”
For further information contact Joe Perkins at 664-2424, ext. 4480. To donate, make checks payable to Friendship Cottage c/o WHCA, P. O. Box 299, Ellsworth, ME 04605.