Combining the best of a long-term care plan, home care and senior living in a package of benefits is the sales pitch from Blakeford Senior Life as it expands its continuing care at home program to a second location.
The Nashville, TN-based senior living and care provider recently expanded its LiveWell By Blakeford CCaH program into Sweanee, TN, under the LiveWell on the Mountain moniker. Along with providing the ability for older adults to proactively plan for their futures, the provider says that the program is a cost-effective way to expand its footprint.
LiveWell allows healthy older adults to proactively create a plan to ensure long-term care coverage at home for life. LiveWell provides care coordination for participants through home safety assessments, nutritional counseling, fitness programming, patient advocacy and other services.
Blakeford CEO and President Brian Barnes told McKnight’s Senior Living that LiveWell creates a plan for older adults who want to age in place, but it also provides a financial benefit to help participants afford higher levels of care if the need arises.
LiveWell members have preferred access to Blakeford communities if they eventually decide to move into one. The benefits also are portable and can follow participants wherever they decide to call home.
“LiveWell facilitates someone’s desire to age in place in their home, but it also provides the amenities and benefits of living on a campus,” Barnes said, adding that LiveWell members have access to the Nashville campus’ wellness center, pool, gym and dining room. “It provides the best of both worlds.”
LiveWell on the Mountain is the company’s first expansion of its program, serving adults aged more than 60 years in Sewanee and Monteagle, TN. The program came to fruition after Sewanee University contacted Blakeford about offering services in the small community, which has no senior living option or supportive services available for retired professors or other older adults in the community.
LiveWell on the Mountain is collaborating with Folks at Home, a Sewanee-based nonprofit organization offering joint social and wellness programming and events. Eligibility is based on age and health status.
“It’s for people planning ahead,” Barnes said. “People who are still healthy, active and they can lock in this program; and to the extent they need it later, it’s there for them.”
LiveWell by Blakeford has 150 members, and LiveWell on the Mountain recently launched with 10 new members. Barnes said that the LiveWell on the Mountain program was a good test for the organization on expanding its services to another market, adding that the company is considering future expansions and looking at other markets.
The program also provides a cost-effective way to expand the company’s services without investing costly capital in new buildings, he said.
“One of the things our industry is trying to figure out, with more and more folks coming of age, is how to care for all of these people,” Barnes said. “A large majority of older adults don’t want to move into a senior living community; they want to stay at home. LiveWell is an example of a stay-at-home program that is more cost effective than trying to build communities. It meets the demand brick and mortar just isn’t able to meet.”
