Case #5

The Background

Alice was a seventy-two year old woman with multiple chronic health conditions including Congestive Heart Failure and Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease (COPD). These conditions required close monitoring and regular medical attention. Alice had no children and her husband had passed away less than a year ago. Her extended family, which was very involved in her care, wanted to help her move into a nearby nursing home facility. Alice was adamant that she wanted to stay in her home and her husband had left her with a nest egg that could continue to fund a long term home healthcare assistant and see to her ongoing needs.

The Challenges

Alice had some other mobility issues that were making daily living more difficult. She lived in a two story home and hadn’t been able to get up her stairs since her husband passed away earlier in the year. She had turned her formal dining room into a makeshift bedroom. Her downstairs half bathroom was small and cramped making it very difficult to use. Her extended family had explored having some substantial home modifications done to add a full bathroom down stairs with an accessible shower, to add a first floor laundry/utility room, and to “formally” turn the dining room into a bedroom with closet space and an added door that could be closed for privacy.

The Obstacles:

• Because Alice lived alone, her extended family feared adding a stair lift that she would have to operate while she was alone.
• With COPD, the dust and dirt that a traditional remodel would create and the long term effect of it getting into her homes air ducts was a serious concern for her health.
• Alice would have to live in the home during any changes so minimizing the time to complete any home modifications or a remodeling project was imperative.
• There wasn’t enough space on the first floor of her current home to contain the bathroom she desperately needed along with the sleeping space and privacy she desired.

The Family Alternative Care Solution™ (FACS)

Alice’s nephew called Better Living Express and talked to a FACS Advisor. The FACS Advisor arranged a call between himself, Alice’s home health care assistant, and her nephew. After the initial call, the FACS Advisor worked with Alice’s home health care assistant to complete a plan for a first floor addition that included a bathroom that was accessible for Alice and also included a bedroom with closet space and privacy. Alice and her nephew reviewed the plan and looked forward to the following benefits:

• Alice’s lived in a very nice home and the addition could be made to blend in as part of the home.
• Because the addition was built in modules off-site, dust and dirt would be minimized eliminating the concerns of aggravating Alice’s COPD.
• With the current home’s floor plan, the addition could be placed on the back of the home and would only require a foundation and the replacement of an existing window with a door.
• Alice would be able to regain the use of her formal dining room and once again showcase her favorite plate collection in her antique hutch.

After the plan was agreed upon with Alice and her nephew, the order was placed and the addition was delivered to her home site about 5 weeks later. However, with the addition built offsite, the entire onsite portion of the completed addition took less than 2 weeks – start to finish!

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