Providing quality of life right at home

When Jerome Hanway was in college, his grandmother had both of her legs amputated because of diabetes. He and his family took charge of her daily care, so they know what it’s like to take on that responsibility.

That’s a big part of the reason he got involved with Right at Home. Hanway is the operating partner of the company that offers in-home care to seniors and adults with disabilities who want to live independently. Theirs is not a medical service, but it’s about providing quality of life and easing the burden on families.

“We’ve experienced this firsthand, my uncle passed away two years ago with dementia,” Hanway said. “You know when we look at this in our business model, we look at it from a client's point of view.”

Often the challenge of taking care of elderly family members can tear families apart. Right at Home wants to help with that. Hanway and his family opened the Las Cruces franchise about two months ago and held their official grand opening Oct. 23.

“With my grandmother, we had that story where we all tried to pitch in and take on responsibility to take care of her, and she just wanted to go back home,” Hanway said. “She didn't want to go to everybody's house and stay there. My aunt and my mother were not talking for years after my grandmother passed away because of the battles that they went through about who wasn’t helping enough. It can cause resentment in the family; it can cause a lot of turmoil.”

Right at Home wants to step in before a situation gets to that stage to be a support system.

The new business opening is a family endeavor. Hanway’s sister and cousin are co-owners, driven by their personal experiences caring for loved ones. In addition to their grandmother, they are also inspired by their grandfather, a Vietnam veteran. Because of him, the team is especially dedicated to helping veterans, understanding the importance of caring for those who have served.

Co-owner Victoria Walck, a hospice nurse, also brings a wealth of professional experience, having cared for her own aging parents. Right at Home has been around for 30 years but hasn’t had a presence in southern New Mexico until now.

“Right at Home is in-home non-medical care,” Hanway stresses. “Our focus is on activities of daily living, like getting out of bed, getting dressed, taking a shower, using the restroom, being able to clean your home, being able to cook meals, do your laundry, like just the basic things that you need to do to survive. We try to keep people in their home as long as possible so they’re not ending up in assisted living or somewhere where they need support.”

The goal of Right at Home is to improve quality of life so the people they serve can go to the library or go to a movie and do other things versus just being at home, doing laundry, doing dishes, and then they're exhausted and they go to bed.”

The service Right at Home provides is primarily one-on-one. The company does full background checks, drug tests, and provides training. For some, the service provided could be something specific to help a client with dementia or Alzheimer's, or it could be something very general like someone needing companion care and someone to talk to.

Many of their clients are private payers, but they also work with Medicare, Medicaid, and veteran’s programs to assist with funding the care. The company can train family members who want to provide the care, but Hanway knows that can be a tricky setup.

“When I talk to clients, I always tell them, it's best that your family member remains your family member,” he said. “That’s your son, that's your daughter, that's your grandchild. You don't want them to be your caregiver. I always try to push them to let us take over, let us support the family in the sense that this isn't a burden on you, this is something we take on, and then that way you can enjoy the time you have left with your loved ones.”

For more information about Right at Home, visit https://www.rightathome.net or read the Right at Home blog at https://www.rightathome.net/blog/.