Business name: Home Instead Senior Care, a local independently owned and operated franchise.
Owner: Julie Williams.
Address: 12606 N.E. 95th St., Suite C110.
What the business does: Home Instead Senior Care’s mission is to enable seniors to live happy, healthy and independent lives at home — whether it be the home they have lived in for years, an independent- or assisted-living facility or even a nursing home. Services may include assistance with trips to the doctor, reminders to take the right medication at the right time, meal preparation, light housekeeping, errands, shopping and even Alzheimer’s and dementia care. Home Instead provides help from a few hours a week to comprehensive 24-hour care.
How has the economy affected your business: Williams said there will always be a need for the type of service her company provides, but she is seeing more family members providing care for their parents. Because unemployment is high and many people have lost jobs, they have more time to provide care to their family members.
Greatest challenge: Educating seniors and their families to be proactive in planning for “what if” scenarios. Often families make decisions in the midst of crisis, finding out too late how overwhelming the process can be. Home Instead has been a leader in researching the stages of senior care and creating wonderful education materials for families on topics ranging from family communication to senior nutrition to keeping seniors active.
