Special Care Results
In Special Friendship
LOU ANN GOOD
Lancaster Fanning Staff
EPHRATA (Lancaster Co.)
When Dorothy Dennis broke her
ankle, she was distressed at the
thought of being hospitalized. Her
husband, who has some physical
problems, was not well enough to
care for her.
But a service called Special
Care had a solution. They sent a
caregive to the Dennis home to
help with personal care, fix meals,
run errands and do light
housekeeping.
White Mrs. Dennis was skepti
cal that a live-in housekeeper
might make things a bit uncom
fortable, she was pleasantly
surprised.
“Chemistry happened between
us. We sat and talked the day and
night away,** Mrs. Dennis said.
It’s that chemistry between
Training For Child Care Providers
LANCASTER (Lancaster Co.)
—The Lancaster County office of
Penn Slate Cooperative Extension
is offering a “Better Kid Care”
training for Child care providers in
Lancaster County to be held on
Saturday, October 1, 1994 from
8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m. at the Farm
and Home Center.
The training is open to all child
care providers, especially fiimily
day care providers, to strengthen
their caregiving skills through par
ticipation in four workshops. Top
ics iaclude, “Fitness for Young
Children,” “Handling Emergen
cies Until Help Arrives,” “Effec
caregiver and client that Special
Care strives to provide, said Scott
Knoll, who directs the program.
Special care places highly
screened and caregiv
ers with those who need help to
remain independent.
“It’s a low-cost alternative to the
more expensive choice of nursing
home care,** Knoll said.
Care can be arranged from four
to 24 hours per day and from one to
seven days per week.
Services are also available in
special circumstances such as a
family vacation, respite care or an
illness in the family.
Knoll said that Special Care was
founded in 1982 by Jean Griswold,
the wife of a Presbyterian minister.
Griswold is confined to a wheel
chair because of multiple sclerosis.
The concept of Special Care
evolved frpm a tragedy in her hus-
tive Discipline,” and “Nutritional
Needs of Young Children.”
Cost of the training is $25 and
includes lunch. Providers will
earn six (6) credit hours of training
towards their state requirement for
attending the training. Providers
will also receive full reimburse
ment of their registration fee fol-
lowing their attendance through
the Pennsylvania Department of
Public Welfare, KURC-HBC
Directed Training Program.
To register or for more informa
tion, contact Debra Naumann at
the Cooperative Extension office,
(717) 394-6851.
band’s congregation. An elderly
widow died in her home from kid
ney failure after being unable to
find someone to care for her at
night
Griswold comjfiled a list of peo
ple who would work as compan
ions to the elderly. That first week,
she received 20 calls fbr assis
tance. The demand resulted in the
company opening 37 offices
nationwide within the past 12
yean. Unlike visiting nurse ser
vices that send licensed profes
sionals who generally only stay a
few hours, Special Care dispatches
nurse’s aides who aren't licensed
but who take care of helping
clients bathe, grocery shopping,
meal preparation, and housekeep
ing duties.
According to Knoll, fees are
generally $4 to $6 lower than most
home care companies because the
philosophy of Special Care is to
proved high quality care at an
affordable rate.
u lt is often more desirable for an
individual to receive care at home
rather than being uprooted to an
institutional setting,’’ Knoll said.
“Home-based service allows the
client to control his or her own
care. By living at home, the client
has easier access to family, friends,
community, and church.”
Knoll said that the tevice fol
lows up with care to make sure that
the client feels comfortable with
the caregiver. If not, they will
replace the person.
For more information about
Special Care services, call (717)
394-5111.
'WWkWWmiAi
“Chemistry happens,” said Mrs. Dennis of the'llve-ln ser
vice that Rose Murphy provided. “We sat and talked the day
and night away." '