{"id":2896,"date":"2025-03-19T14:16:58","date_gmt":"2025-03-19T18:16:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/concordia3.wpenginepowered.com\/good-samaritan-hospice\/blog\/how-concordias-adult-day-services-make-a-difference\/"},"modified":"2025-03-19T14:16:58","modified_gmt":"2025-03-19T18:16:58","slug":"how-concordias-adult-day-services-make-a-difference","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/concordialm.org\/good-samaritan-hospice\/blog\/how-concordias-adult-day-services-make-a-difference\/","title":{"rendered":"How Concordia\u2019s Adult Day Services Make a Difference"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Concordia at Cabot\u2019s<\/a> Adult Day Services<\/a> began operations in 2000, so we\u2019re celebrating our 25th year of providing excellent care in 2025! This meaningful part of our mission benefits our clients, their caregivers and our own team in many ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Personalized Care<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Open to anyone with physical limitations or diminished reasoning skills, our Adult Day Services provide consistent or respite care during the day that can be tailored to every individual\u2019s needs and preferences.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe offer so much more than what most people expect,\u201d said Melanie Hartman, director of Adult Day Services. \u201cNot only do we offer activities, games, arts and crafts for our clients, but we make detailed care plans for everyone. This includes, but is not limited to, physical, occupational and speech therapy; special dietary plans that accommodate for medical needs and preferences; memory care programming; and hygiene and incontinence care.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The many senior activities and events that the team creates are not limited either, and they help to engage their clients.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe watch films, do exercises together, have spiritual care visits, complete simple volunteer projects, celebrate holidays together \u2013 really anything our clients are interested in doing,\u201d Melanie said. \u201cWe make a big deal out of birthdays because we love to make everyone feel special and make every minute count for all of our clients all of the time.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Related: 5 Signs Your Senior Loved One May Need Memory Care<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Adult Day Services offers flexible scheduling, with some clients attending every weekday and some only for occasional respite visits. Because of the variety of schedules, there\u2019s usually about 10 to 20 clients on any given day. The small group size allows everyone to get to know each other in a comfortable environment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A Perfect Fit<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThis adult day care has been excellent for my dad since he started going in 2021,\u201d said caregiver Michelle McNair. \u201cHe\u2019s loved it from the first day he went, and he gets so much out of it.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Michelle\u2019s father, Kenneth \u201cButch\u201d Watson, started attending the program after his wife, who had been his primary caregiver, passed away unexpectedly. Michelle and her family compared local adult day options and chose Concordia at Cabot, which is a 30-minute drive from her house.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Butch and Michelle<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIt\u2019s a little far out of the way for us, but it\u2019s worth it,\u201d Michelle said. \u201cMy sister and I are never worried that he\u2019s not being treated right or that he\u2019s bored. He can\u2019t communicate as well as he used to due to his dementia, but when he started going to Concordia, he always told us how much he enjoyed it and liked the people. We know he still does.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Related: Caring for Your Brain and the Pros to Memory Care<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

This peace of mind is one of the many benefits of adult day services for Michelle.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIf my dad didn\u2019t go to Concordia, I wouldn\u2019t be able to work,\u201d she said. \u201cIt enables me to do my job and not have to consider moving my dad to a nursing facility.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Like Family<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

Michelle and her family are also consistently impressed with the staff at Concordia.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThey\u2019re all equally great in caring for my dad,\u201d she said. \u201cThey build long-lasting bonds with all their clients.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

These bonds were on full display in 2022 when Butch broke his hip.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cHe needed skilled nursing<\/a> while it healed, and he was able to get that care at Concordia,\u201d Michelle said. \u201cI was so touched that, while he was there, every staff person from Adult Day Services came to visit him and check in. They\u2019re such a caring, hardworking group of people.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Melanie, Butch and other Adult Day Services clients at an activity<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The clients also have a meaningful impact on Melanie and her staff.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cOnce we had a client near the end of her life, and our whole team went to her home to say goodbye,\u201d Melanie said. \u201cIt\u2019s never easy, but we were happy we got to see her together. She passed shortly after we left. We learned from the family later that she had been waiting to tell her \u2018friends\u2019 goodbye, and we were so touched to learn that she referred to us as her friends. She was our friend, too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Supporting Caregivers<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

In addition to the high-quality care provided to their clients, Adult Day Services also offers caregiver support in unexpected ways.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Related: How Adult Day Services Supports Family Caregivers<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWe love to see many families getting to enjoy things that they thought they would no longer get to do while being a caregiver,\u201d Melanie said. \u201cRespite care is so beneficial in that way for everyone involved. The client is happy and engaged, and the caregiver\u2019s quality of life can also improve as they can take time for themselves. When they do that, there\u2019s less risk of caregiver burnout.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The program also holds a caregiver support group, which meets the second Tuesday of each month. Specialists on specific issues are available for consultation as well, so there is always help if a family needs additional guidance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cThe support group helps caregivers know they aren\u2019t alone,\u201d Melanie said. \u201cI\u2019ve worked in the healthcare field for over 21 years, and I\u2019ve learned that you have to get to know each client to see what works for each individual. We\u2019re a resource for support, ideas and tips for other caregivers to help them find what works for their loved ones, too.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\"\"
Michelle, Butch and Melanie<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

The support that has been offered to caregivers like Michelle over the last 25 years is priceless.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cI just can\u2019t say enough good things about Adult Day Services,\u201d Michelle said. \u201cIt\u2019s been a blessing to have these amazing people help care for my dad.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n

For 25 years, Concordia\u2019s Adult Day Services<\/a> program has been a trusted source of compassionate care, enriching the lives of seniors and providing invaluable support to their families. As we celebrate this milestone, our commitment to offering high-quality, personalized care remains stronger than ever. If you\u2019re looking for a safe, engaging and supportive environment for your loved one\u2014or if you\u2019d like to join our caregiver support group\u2014visit the Adult Day Services page<\/a> or call 724-352-1571, ext. 8271. You can also message us through our online contact form<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

\n\n\n\n

Founded in 1881, Concordia Lutheran Ministries is a faith-based, CARF-accredited Aging Services Network and recipient of the inaugural Pennsylvania Department of Aging Excellence in Quality Care Award. As one of the largest nonprofit senior care providers in the country, the organization serves 50,000 people annually through in-home care and inpatient locations.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Concordia at Cabot\u2019s Adult Day Services began operations in 2000, so we\u2019re celebrating our 25th year of providing excellent care in 2025! This meaningful part of our mission benefits our clients, their caregivers and our own team in many ways. Personalized Care Open to anyone with physical limitations or diminished reasoning skills, our Adult Day […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":2895,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"content-type":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[21],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-2896","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-location-services"],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/concordialm.org\/good-samaritan-hospice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2896","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/concordialm.org\/good-samaritan-hospice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/concordialm.org\/good-samaritan-hospice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/concordialm.org\/good-samaritan-hospice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/concordialm.org\/good-samaritan-hospice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2896"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/concordialm.org\/good-samaritan-hospice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2896\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/concordialm.org\/good-samaritan-hospice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2895"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/concordialm.org\/good-samaritan-hospice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2896"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/concordialm.org\/good-samaritan-hospice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2896"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/concordialm.org\/good-samaritan-hospice\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2896"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}