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Supportive Housing and the Family Circle — a housing update
By Robert P. Dean, Executive Director
One of the great challenges facing many elders in Massachusetts is the need for affordable housing with services. As we proceed with our renovation of the Lee Central School into 38 units of affordable senior housing with enriched services (see related article on page 9), we remain encouraged by the ongoing success of our Supportive Housing Program at Providence Court in Pittsfield.
This program, which began in September 2000 and is a collaborative effort between Elder Services and the Pittsfield Housing Authority, provides the residents of Providence Court with on-site services that enable them to live safe, independent, and enjoyable lives in their own apartments by tailoring services to each resident’s individual needs. An Elder Services Residential Coordinator is located on site to help residents obtain the services and community benefits they need, while a personal care attendant is available 24 hours a day to assist with unforeseen and unplanned personal care needs. A noontime meal is served Monday through Friday in the community room and a continental breakfast is available on the weekend. Each apartment is equipped with a Personal Emergency Response System at no additional cost to the resident, allowing the resident to summon help in case of an emergency, even if he or she is unable to reach a telephone.
Once the renovation of the Lee Central School is complete and the building is occupied, we plan to offer the residents similarly tailored services so that they can age in place and live with dignity and independence. Unfortunately, these types of housing models are few and far between. Massachusetts elders could certainly benefit from additional housing options with services.
Recently a new statewide “housing with services” initiative has been proposed that would enable elders to continue to live in the community and to receive the services they need by paying family caregivers — excluding spouses — to provide services in their own homes to their elder relatives. According to Mass Home Care, this model of “relative foster care homes” has been utilized by the state of Oregon since the 1980s, allowing individuals including relatives to be licensed to provide care to a specific elder or person with disabilities. The licensed relative is paid for taking the elder or disabled person into their home and providing services. When the specified care recipient is no longer receiving care, the caregiver’s license is revoked. Mass Home Care has proposed that a “Family Circle” program similar to the Oregon model be added to Massachusetts’ existing home and community based waiver program, so that family members - with the exception of spouses — can be compensated as elder caregivers. Such a program would help many disabled elders at risk of losing their ability to continue to live in the community, and would save the commonwealth money while honoring the preference of elders to remain living in a home-like environment. If this type of initiative can succeed in Oregon, why not here in Massachusetts?