“Alvita has been an incredible relief for me.”

For Derek, finding the right care management services for his mother, Rita, was a complex and strenuous process. But today, Derek could not be more satisfied with the wonderful woman who looks after his mom. Having Alvita Care’s committed staff members and remarkable home caregivers is a relief for Derek and allows him to live with true peace of mind, through daytime and night, knowing that his mother is in good hands.

Rita was always a very strong and intelligent woman. She spent most of her life in New York City, earning a Ph.D. in art history and becoming a very successful art collector and private dealer. In her early eighties, Rita began to develop vascular dementia. Last August, Rita was in fragile condition and had to be hospitalized. Alvita Care stepped in during this difficult time, providing home care services for Rita to help Derek and the rest of the family cope with the complex situation and providing support throughout the entire process of hospitalization, rehabilitation, and discharge to the home with around-the-clock care.

It took a few weeks to find the perfect home caregivers for Rita, but soon after Lorraine stepped into Rita’s home, it became clear that this was the right match. Lorraine had been warned about the complexity of this case and told it would be practically impossible to connect with Rita. Nevertheless, Lorraine was fully committed to bringing a warm heart and joy into Rita’s home until Rita accepted her. Indeed, Lorraine succeeded, and once she was able to gain Rita’s trust she actually found her to be very cooperative and cheerful. Lorraine now works with Rita full-time along with Dorry, another Alvita caregiver, and they have become a remarkable team in caring for Rita. Derek describes Lorraine and Dorry as “even-tempered, good-humored, patient, and extremely caring. They are simply spectacular.” Although Rita doesn’t always remember their names, she has come to trust Lorraine and Dorry and feels comfortable with them. When asked to describe her caregiver, she always replies, “She’s just a wonderful lady.”

“Alvita Care has been with us through the most complex times for my mother and has provided the best care management services I could have asked for.”

Since Derek lives in another state, Alvita Care also provides geriatric care management services to Rita, allowing Derek to feel comfortable knowing his mother is in good hands while he is far away. Derek says that one of the best qualities of Alvita staff members is their good sense of humor, an important quality often needed to help ease the stress that comes with dealing with aging loved ones. “They are proactive, responsive, efficient, and experienced in geriatric care management and the medical field. I could not be more satisfied.”

Although Rita’s memory is not going to improve at this stage, Derek believes that her caregivers are indeed helping her remain stable and prevent her condition from worsening to the best extent possible. Dorry and Lorraine make Rita constantly exercise her mind, encouraging her to keep up with current events and continue reading the newspaper daily. They make sure to push her to think and exercise her brain as much as possible without leading her to feel anxious and uncomfortable. Derek chuckles at the great irony of seeing his Jewish mother’s new favorite past times of singing church songs along with Dorry and eating Jamaican Escovitch Fish sandwiches on a regular basis. His own dream, he states, “is to one day be taken care of by West Indian Women.”

*All the names in this newsletter have been changed for privacy reasons.