Dear Elly Kleinman from Americare,

On August 15, 2013, my older sister Sophia, an Alzheimer’s patient recovering from a stroke, made a difficult transition from hospital to at-home arranged assisted living. This attempt to allow Sophia to remain living in her own home required a considerable amount of planning. The staff of the hospital where Sophia was accommodated recommended Americare* for our at-home health care and, from the very beginning, I have been very pleased with the services provided. Elly, from our initial introductory conversation, you were reassuring that your firm Americare would be able to meet the needs of my older sister Sophia and you have totally succeeded in that promise. Americare Company had met all my expectations in terms of quality of care provided, quality and continuity of health care workers, and availability of your office personnel when last minute needs arose.

Elly, you accommodated my request that I personally meet and approve of each Americare health care worker who would be taking care of Sophia. We began by your assigning three women to work day shifts and two to work evening shifts. This met my request to limit the number of different individuals who would work with my sister, so Sophia could develop continuing relationships with her Americare care givers.

Later on we were able to rely on just three women to provide my sister’s weekly care: Katherine, Melissa, Dorothy. Dorothy was responsible for showering, dressing, and getting my sister to bed at night, Melissa was taking care of her medication supervision; Katherine was cleaning the house where she was living, cooking and serving meals for her and she was also charged for driving and accompanying her to appointments as needed. I give my highest recommendations to the Americare care givers who attended to my sister and her husband during the three months of service.

Dorothy is the most compassionate, attentive, hard working and responsible care giver from Americare with whom I have ever had the pleasure of working. There are not enough words to describe Dorothy’s dedication to my sister Sophia.

My sister adored Dorothy and this relationship proved crucial in my sister’s acceptance of assisted living at home. Dorothy’s presence was so reassuring to me that I was able to leave New Island and return to my own life out-of-state with confidence that my sister’s welfare was secure. Dorothy is a wonderful ambassador for Americare’s high standards of excellence.

Katherine and Melissa are two sisters who became integral parts of my sister’s care plan. Katherine began her first day by arriving at 9am and being pulled into a crisis. Sophia had fallen badly in her bathroom and I was getting ready to transport her to the hospital emergency room for treatment. Katherine’s manner was caring and reassuring to my sister from the first sisterent she entered our home. Katherine stayed by my sister’s side in the hospital, was kind and compassionate throughout our ordeal. Over the next few months, Katherine worked nights and weekends caring for my sister and her husband. Katherine also agreed to accommodate our request for 14 hour day shifts. I had complete trust in Katherine’s ability to take care of my sister responsibly in my absence. Melissa initially came to us to cover night shifts. However, we were fortunate to have her transition to some weekend day shifts when we eliminated the night hours. Melissa was empathetic, hardworking, reliable and extremely capable in her role of caregiver. The last weekend of Americare’s employment in our home, Melissa handled an emergency with total control and complete dedication to my sister’s well-being. Melissa had worked a 14 hour day shift on Saturday and then returned on Sunday for another scheduled 14 hour day shift. My sister complained of chest pains when Melissa arrived on Sunday and while my sister’s husband did not know what to do, Melissa called 911 immediately for an ambulance to take my sister to the emergency room. She telephoned me and discussed the situation and reassured me that she would not leave my sister alone. Melissa stayed by sister’s side through the entire ordeal and kept me informed about what was happening. Arrangements were made for my brother to arrive in New Island the next day, but I did not want my sister to spend a night alone and afraid by herself in the hospital and Melissa immediately offered to remain through the night. Melissa stayed with my sister until Dorothy relieved her the next day. My brother and I were extremely pleased with the way Melissa and Dorothy watched out for our sister in our absence.

We would recommend all three of these women for future employment.

My brother joins me in thanking you and your staff, including Erica and Vanessa, for your attentive responses to all our needs.

Sincerely,

Paige

The exclusive video interview available at Elly Kleinman Vimeo Channel