Seniors who want to age in place have the support of Ohman Family Living

By Mary Malik

We often describe places that make us feel safe, secure and loved as homelike. It’s a feeling everyone craves, especially in times of uncertainty. Kurt Ingersoll, VP of Operations at Ohman Family Living at Home, and his staff have made it their aim to help seniors remain at home while receiving the support and care they need to thrive.

“For the seniors, home isn’t always the safest place to be,” says Kurt. “At Ohman Family Living at Home, our clients’ goals are our goals, staying healthy, staying safe—and staying home.”

Covid-19 has made keeping our elderly population healthy a challenge.

“For aging older adults, maintaining their wellbeing during this pandemic can be a challenge,” says Kurt. “With Covid-19 it’s overwhelming.”

Kurt began his career in the home healthcare industry with Ohman Family Living, learning every aspect of the senior living business.

“This gave me perspective on the business, but also on the emotional needs of everyone involved at every level of care,” says Kurt. “We guide your family with our core values of striving for excellence, valuing one’s home, a supremacy of love, and celebrating life at the forefront of everything we do.”

Ohman Family Living at Home strives to keep clients safe and healthy at home as long as possible.

George Gabanic was a rehabilitation patient at Ohman Family Living at Holly in Newbury. The staff there transitioned George back home to be with his wife of 65 years, Rosemary.

“Ohman helped us arrange home healthcare for them,” says their daughter, Lynn Baioni. “Our caregiver is like another sister to us. She has a critical care background so she’s able to talk to doctors and ask the right questions. The peace of mind she has provided our entire family is invaluable. Ohman knew what my parents wanted and they were able to make it happen.”

“If home becomes unsafe, we can work on a transition to one of our senior living communities,” says Kurt. “This may be short term, often for rehab, and residents can transition back home or to a lower level of care within our communities.”

The Ohman family is dedicated to guiding your family through this journey because they’ve been through it themselves.

“My wife’s grandfather wanted to care for his brother who was diagnosed with MS in 1965,” says Kurt. “The care they wanted wasn’t available, so they created it themselves, renovating a small house and providing nursing and full-time care for seven residents. It grew from there to today’s three communities in Middlefield, Huntsburg and Newbury. Home healthcare was added more recently and is a natural extension of the care the Ohman Family Living communities already provide. All services were born out of one family’s desire to care for its own.”

Kurt says that most home healthcare requests come from family members who, like the Ohmans, are concerned about a loved one.

“We assess the situation and guide the family through the process of getting nurses, therapists and other professionals involved while staying within budget,” says Kurt. “Covid-19 has led to the relaxing of some of the restrictions of Medicare and Medicaid coverage regarding home healthcare.”

Kurt says Covid-19 has also caused a greater deterioration in elderly people who hesitate to allow help into their homes.

“The precautionary measures our home healthcare providers take to ensure the safety of everyone are extraordinary,” says Kurt. “Caregivers are masked, screened daily, take temperatures, all before coming in direct contact with a client and are trained to identify red flags.”

Red flags like weight loss or changes in routine are often missed by family trying to care for a loved one living alone, until an emergency arises.

“We attempt to intervene before an emergency occurs,” says Kurt. “A nurse or therapist comes to the home, performs a thorough evaluation at no cost to determine the safety of the environment, advises on modifications to the home and helps locate needed services.”

Ohman staff helps implement those changes to everyone’s satisfaction and within budget.

“We are not the cheapest providers, but we pay our caregivers well,” says Kurt. “The clinical excellence, professionalism and compassion of our medical staff and caregivers provides your loved one with the highest quality of all-around care right in their own home.”

Kurt takes hiring the right people personally. The process involves extensive interviewing, background checks, and, beyond that, a cultural fit.

“There is not a person who works here that I haven’t interviewed,” says Kurt. “We always look for quality personnel who share our core values. I strive for the right fit when connecting a caregiver with a client so everyone is comfortable. This relationship has to be right. We look at personalities and backgrounds, talk with clients and families, then match people based on the highest probability of success and it’s that attention to detail.”

It’s tied back to these details that three generations of Ohmans have relied on for more than 55 years to guide them in the business of caring for others, no matter where that might be.

For more information about Ohman Family Living at Home, call 440-338-8220 or visit OhmanFamilyLiving.com.