Governor Rell Signs Innovative Legislation Initiated by Seabury - Enabling Seniors to Stay At Home

Seabury plans to establish a "Continuing Care Retirement Community (CCRC) Without Walls", to provide a comprehensive package of coordinated long-term-care services for seniors who would prefer to stay in their own homes as they age. As part of Seabury’s mission, the development of Seabury At Home will also offer a more affordable option to area seniors, who may not be able to afford to move into a life-care community.

The Continuing-Care-At-Home concept is not new, nor does it vary in any significant way from a traditional CCRC. Like a traditional CCRC, the at-home program offers a continuum of services and housing, which are centrally planned and administered. Members pay a membership fee (entrance fee) as well as a fixed monthly fee, depending on the particular plan they select. In exchange, they receive geriatric care coordination in their home, transportation and meal services, emergency response systems, and home safety checks. Members have access to the activities on Seabury’s Bloomfield campus. Home health care and companion services are also available. If the need for facility-based health care services arises, members are provided these services at little or no additional cost to them, again depending on the plan they select. If Members leave the program or die, a portion of the membership fee may be refunded, also based on the plan selected. They continue to pay the same monthly fee regardless of the level of services required. The at-home program is virtually identical to Seabury’s existing CCRC, except that services begin while members are still in their own home.

Seabury hired Third Age, Inc., a consulting firm, to assist with the comprehensive market feasibility study that included a telephone survey and focus groups with 145 participants. The positive results of the preliminary and primary research support the development of a continuing care at-home program by Seabury. Seabury recognizes a strong need and interest in a CCRC-Without-Walls program in Connecticut and has demonstrated its extensive experience in health-care management and delivery. Seabury is confident that this program will be successful and will benefit the State by keeping people off Medicaid.

Seabury At Home supports the Mission of Church Home of Hartford/Seabury to utilize resources and expertise of the organization to serve older people in Connecticut in affiliation with the Episcopal Diocese of Connecticut. Seabury At Home is designed to bring affordable health care to the people it serves.

Seabury initiated legislation enabling CCRCs to provide a comprehensive program of coordinated long-term care services for seniors who prefer to stay in their homes as they age. We are delighted that the Connecticut General Assembly has passed Bill 665, an Act Concerning Continuing Care Facilities and Continuing Care at Home. This new legislation is effective October 1, 2008.

Collage - The Art and Science of Aging

As of June 1, 2007, Seabury entered into a contract with the Collage Consortium. Collage is a provider-led initiative of organizations and nationally recognized health services practitioners working with researchers from the Institute for Aging Research at Hebrew Senior Life and Kendal Outreach, LLC, in a joint venture.

As a provider organization of this Consortium, Seabury affirms its commitment to advancing well-being and improved quality of life for older adults in all residential settings.

Collage is a scientifically tested health and wellness assessment tool, which benefits the individual resident by providing ways to promote healthy lifestyles and facilitate improved individualized service plans. It also allows Seabury to manage wellness programs and services for better outcomes, quality of life, and independence.

The intent of Collage is to assure that Seabury provides its residents the range, quality, and depth of services to advance individual and community well-being. It provides guidance in our programming that ultimately enriches the life of our residents for successful aging. Collage complements Seabury’s commitment to its Circle of Wellness, which includes physical, intellectual, social, emotional, vocational, and spiritual dimensions.

Following is a quote from a resident who participated in the Collage conversation:
“I found Collage to be much more creative and holistic than the wellness tools our community has used in the past. The Collage approach is interested in me –what’s important to me, what I’m feeling and doing – and in helping me plan for the future. Collage has raised my awareness.”

Seabury is excited about our future with Collage, which gives us in depth knowledge of what our residents interests are, their needs and preferences. With this insight, we will be better able to address our residents’ concerns. By being part of a national consortium, we will have access to a database on senior issues of health and wellness-related information. This will make us better informed than the average senior community.

For more information, go to www.collageaging.org.

Celebrating 15 Years of Excellence!

In celebration of Seabury’s 15th Anniversary, a Fitness and Wellness Day will be held on June 4, 2008, for adults 55 and over.

In addition to lectures, there will be a variety or workshops and fitness classes offered throughout the day.

FITNESS AND WELLNESS DAY AT SEABURY

8:30-9:30 – REGISTRATION –
Sign up for your classes and Tours of Seabury
Class sizes limited – sign up early

9:30-10:15 – SESSION A –
"Wine and Cheese Are Not The Only Things That Age Well" – Speaker: Patrick Coll, M.D., Medical Director, Seabury, Associate Director Center on Aging, UCONN Health Center

AquaDANCE: This high energy class provides a great cardiovascular routine as well as flexibility and toning exercises using aquatic dumbbells, kickboards and/or noodles or just your body! You will learn a series of moves that by the end of class will have you dancing in the water.

Steppin’ Out (And Up!): This class provides the participant with a challenging cardiovascular dance routine using a four inch high platform. Agility, strength, and coordination (important components in maintaining balance) are the main focus. All this is done to the beat of your favorite "Golden Oldies".

and more . . .click here for the full pdf schedule and event information

UCONN Adult Learning Program (ALP)

Seabury is the host site for ALP- an affiliate of Elderhostel and a network of more than 200 similar Lifelong Learning Institutes. ALP is sponsored by the University of Connecticut and is open to older adults interested in academic learning. Click on www.uconnalp.org for more information.

Evidence-Based Fitness & Wellness Programming At Seabury Proves Program's Success

Over 80% of the Seabury community is actively involved in the Fitness & Wellness Center (FWC). Due to this success, we have implemented a new database to track and enhance our Fitness and Wellness culture. This evidence-based program allows us to create visual feedback to use with residents for their own personal goals, as well as develop charts/reports to ensure that our programs remain at the highest standard and continue to grow.

In the last three years, the FWC has performed over 900 functional-based assessments and lifestyle reviews to enhance the quality of life among the Seabury Community. This process has resulted in a 54% decrease in the risk of residents losing their functional mobility. Furthermore, it allows residents to live a healthy and more active lifestyle.

As a result of the resident input and data from the evidence-based programming, the FWC classes have expanded and now offers over 35 fitness classes a week with a diverse schedule that includes Pilates, Yoga, Chi-Balance (integration of Tai-Chi movements with balance training), Dancercise, Step, Yoqua, Aqualibrium (balance exercises performed in the water), Beautiful Bones (osteoporosis program), Stability Ball and more. There is also a Weight Winners support group that has doubled in participation and is going on their 3rd Year Anniversary!

The fitness classes complement numerous activities on the Balanced Life Calendar, such as Exercise Your Mind, Adult Learning Program, Laughter Yoga and many more. The Balanced Life Calendar has been developed to reflect Seabury's Circle of Wellness that includes six dimensions (physical, social, emotional, vocational, intellectual, and spiritual).

The following are some examples of the exciting changes that have occurred over the year in the Fitness & Wellness Center:

• An easy to use Log-in/out scanning system that provides a screen with your name, picture, and personalized daily message
• Functional assessments and lifestyle reviews computerized for visual feedbacks and to ensure program quality and growth
• A comprehensive report for participants with visuals and individualized recommendations to create more self-awareness and concrete goals
• A professional comprehensive report for other health professionals to enhance person-centered care and improve communication
• A restructured and efficient annual FWC registration process with quarterly updates, class registration, and lifestyle reviews
• Enhanced personal training, nutritional counseling, and healing arts selection and opportunity
• Advanced training opportunity for staff to help them meet the needs and goals of the diverse community

“Our evidenced-based programming at Seabury makes us stand out from other communities, because it ensures that we are able to meet our high expectations of quality and improvement that are beyond the standard. It has gone from ‘good to great’ by being able to provide tangible data that reflects the progress and changes residents are making in their everyday lives. By using evidence-based results, we are able to understand and grow with these changes in order to live longer, healthier lives.”

Brandy Page,B.S., ACPT, CPO
Director of Fitness & Wellness Development

Circle of Wellness: Your Brain on Exercise

By Gabrielle deGroot Redford/Janet Kinosian

How breaking a sweat and doing yoga can make you smarter.

We all know that exercise is good for the body. Now, scientists are discovering it’s good for the brain as well. In recent years researchers have found that exercise improves memory, concentration, and abstract reasoning among older adults, and may even delay the onset of Alzheimer’s. It works like this: aerobic exercise increases blood flow to the brain, which nourishes brain cells and allows them to function more effectively—“kind of like making sure your engine is all tuned up,” says Waneen Spirduso, Ed.D., a professor at the University of Texas at Austin and the author of Exercise and Its Mediating Effects on Cognition (Human Kinetics, 2007).

A recent study showed that exercise actually promotes the growth of new neurons (brain cells) in the hippocampus—the part of the brain that controls memory and learning. Scientists previously believed that once brain cells died, they were not replaced.

“You can get cognitive benefits with activity that is fairly simple, like walking for 20 minutes a day,” says Spirduso.—Gabrielle deGroot Redford

Source: aarpmagazine.org

"Exercise Your Mind" Courses Held at Seabury

Memory retention strategies

Presenter: Barbara S. Klau, MS

Goals of the course:

1. To educate participants about:
   • changes in the aging brain
   • factors that affect memory
   • memory retention techniques
2. To decrease the level of anxiety about memory changes
3. To give participants a greater sense of control and empowerment
4. To introduce a wide variety of mentally stimulating activities

Announcing New Villas on Seabury's Campus

The Town of Bloomfield Planning & Zoning Committee approved construction of five new Villas on the Seabury Campus. Kemper Associates Architects LLC. has designed these residences as one single and two-duplex, two-story structures with gas fireplaces, stone counters, body spas and a two-car garage. The living space of each dwelling is approximately 2,400 SQ. FT. Construction is scheduled to start in May 2008, with a late fall completion date.

For more information, please contact reneebernasconi@seaburyretirement.com.

Did you know that Seabury offers rental Assisted Living In The Views and The Meadows ?

For more information, please contact bethlomasky@Seaburyretirement.com.

Powerful Aging At Seabury

An exercise program for adults age 50 and older developed at the UCONN Center on Aging. It is especially beneficial for those who have controlled artery disease and other monitored medical conditions. For more information, please contact brandypage@seaburyretirement.com.

Save the Date! Charitable Golf Tournament set for September 16th

Round up your golfing buddies and get in plenty of practice this summer because the 5th Annual Seabury Charitable Foundation Golf Tournament is set for Tuesday, Sept. 16th at Wintonbury Hills Golf Course in Bloomfield, CT. The tournament entry fee is $175 per golfer and covers greens fees, beverages, prizes, goodies bag, lunch and dinner. Non-golfing guests can enjoy dinner only at a cost of $40. There will be a silent auction and chance drawing at the end of play.

We are actively seeking tee and prize sponsors, as well as items for the silent auction and chance drawings. If you would like to play, be a sponsor or donate an item to the auction, please contact tournament coordinator Kaila Larivee at (860) 243-6041 or by email at KailaLarivee@seaburyretirement.com.

Gift Annuities - Smart money in a tight economy, but you have to hurry to get the best rates!

The American Council of Gift Annuities is adjusting rates DOWN on July 1, 2008!

Seabury charitable gift annuities are a smart idea in this tight economy for many reasons. Leading the way is the fact that Seabury’s annuities pay interest rates that beat just about any investment you could make in the market at this time. Second, when you purchase a gift annuity with Seabury, you will realize a substantial charitable tax-deduction for your gift. Gift annuity charitable deductions can be taken on your taxes at a rate of 50% of your adjusted gross income and can be rolled over for as many as five years in order to realize the full deduction. Third, a Seabury Charitable Gift Annuity will provide you with an income stream for the rest of your life! And last, but certainly not least, you will be supporting the important mission of Seabury Charitable Foundation and the projects it supports such as therapeutic technology and benevolent support.

If you would like more information about Seabury Charitable Gift Annuities or would like to review a personal, no-obligation proposal, please contact Pegeen Sullivan, Vice President of Community Life at Seabury, (860) 243-6026 or by email at pegeensullivan@seaburyretirement.com.

Employment Opportunities at http://www.seaburyretirement.com/employment/index.cfm.

Seabury’s Web Site at http://www.seaburyretirement.com/index.cfm.