Suddenly a Caregiver

Kurt Kazanowski, right, was the guest speaker at the April 4 luncheon meeting of Grosse Pointe Rotary. He was introduced by George R. McMullen Jr, left, of the Program Committee, with President Fred Ollison III. Kazanowski is a speaker and author on the topic of home health care and the owner of Homewatch Caregivers, located on Jefferson in Grosse Pointe Park.

 

Kazanowski’s father needed home and nursing home care for years and his mother, who was living with his brother, fell when left alone. Even though he works in the medical field, these instances made him realize how unprepared he was to provide the proper care. A service offered by his company is to provide a geriatric case manager to help create a plan and to be proactive before these situations arise. It also offers home safety assessments.

 

Kazanowski doesn’t believe that the caregiver should exclusively be a loved one because this leads to burnout — especially with cases of dementia. It’s very important to ask for help to have the opportunity to take breaks and take care of one’s self.

There are typically four different ways to pay for personal care: 1) out of pocket; 2) long-term care insurance; 3) a reverse mortgage; and 4) through VA benefits. VA benefits are extremely underutilized.  For our area, contact the VA Benefits Support Center at (734) 453-9300 and ask for Aid & Attendance.  

 

Our speaker would be happy to help and can be reached at (734) 658-6162.

 

Prior to the guest presentation, Roving Reporters Lisa Gandelot and the Rev. Richard Yeager-Stiver teamed up to deliver the news!

 

Photo by George R. McMuillen Jr.