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The Meeting Place Receives State Approval
Adult Day Service now Eligible for Medicaid
NEWPORT – Northeast Kingdom Homecare, Inc. (“NEKHC”) announces its approval as Vermont’s fourteenth certified Adult Day Service. The Certificate from the State of Vermont was received on March 1st. The approval means that Vermont seniors who are eligible under the Medicaid “Choices for Care” program can receive services at The Meeting Place.
The Meeting Place is an adult day program operated in what was once the First Baptist Church, on Second Street in Newport. NEKHC did extensive renovations to restore historic character, adapt the facility for wheelchair access, and create a warm, non-institutional feeling for participants. Furnishings include antique sofas, rockers and recliners
“We are excited to be able to serve those clients who fall under the Choices for Care program,” says Debra Hunt, Administrator of The Meeting Place. “We believe we offer a real choice for those whose alternative is to be in a Nursing Home program.”
The Meeting Place uses a series of interconnected rooms to create various activity centers. Clients can move about from area to area, working on projects in the art room, watching television, socializing in the sitting room, and eating or playing games in the dining room. Even the kitchen is considered an activity center where clients may participate in making cookies or brownies.
“Many of our clients suffer from basic mobility limitations or other problems such as Alzheimer’s,” says Pam Newell, President of NEKHC. “Our day program provides relief to family caregivers, and we can watch over the clients, provide nutritious meals, and engage them in a variety of activities that stimulate them and keep them active.”
Meeting the State requirements required formalizing many processes and ensuring nursing oversight to the center’s programs. While stepping up to the formal requirements set forth by state standards, the staff promises that it will be able to keep the feeling of informality which many clients want and need.
“We want this to be a place that our clients come to and feel part of a community,” says Debra Hunt. “And we also want them to participate in ways that they are giving back to each other, restoring a sense of meaning and self-worth that so often is lost.”
The monthly activity calendar includes show-and-tell day, painting birdhouses and arranging flowers, and even entertaining visitors from the animal shelter. Movie day will include an afternoon video, and other days will include music. On Tuesdays, the center serves a senior lunch and invites outside guests on a space-available basis.
Practical needs such as bathing can be met with the center’s wheelchair accessible shower. A sick-room in The Meeting Place provides space for quiet and rest. The staff monitors each client’s medication schedule to see that prescriptions are followed.
Clients and families are invited to visit the Center and see just how different this kind of program can be. For more information, call 802-334-7604.