Business helps families balance work, give care

Naegler, owner of Senior Recruiters, sought the Dalys’ help when he decided to launch a new business division, Assisting Aging Parents, in November 2005. As it turned out, the company’s services were just what the Dalys needed.

At one point, the couple had one parent at the Veterans Administration medical facility in Mount Vernon and two in the same Springfield emergency room.

A social worker determined that Marilyn Daly’s parents couldn’t stay at home on their own, which increased the need for the Dalys to offer assistance.

“It got kind of interesting for a while,” Marilyn Daly said. “We couldn’t be up night and day and run a business.”

The Dalys enlisted the help of Assisting Aging Parents for Marilyn Daly’s folks until just recently, when they had to move to an assisted-living facility. Daly said they were pleased with the services while they used them.

“They would drive my dad’s car, if need be, and take him to the grocery store,” Daly said. Other services included cooking, cleaning, laundry and yard care.

“They really did try to abide by (my father’s) requests,” she added.

The Dalys, however, are not alone in having to find a way to strike a balance between operating their business and providing care.

A study released in July by the MetLife Mature Market Institute found that U.S. businesses incur as much as $33.6 billion in lost productivity each year when employees miss work to care for family members, primarily aging parents.

“To stem the losses, employers should consider implementing eldercare programs for employees, with a focus on individualized care planning and flexible work arrangements,” said Sandra Timmerman, director of the MetLife MMI in a news release.

Assisting Aging Parents provides services along the lines of basic, everyday needs on a full- or part-time basis for $12 an hour. The company does not, however, provide medical care, though employees can help clients arrange for medical services through licensed health providers.

“The bulk of care that people need to stay in their own home is not medical. It’s cooking and cleaning and transportation; it’s making sure the heat’s running, making sure they don’t fall,” Naegler said.[[In-content Ad]]