Gail Goglia is the administrator of the Blaine Manor senior citizens' center in Hailey.
By GAIL GOGLIA
Blaine Manor was created in 1982 by a vote of the community supporting a general obligation bond to build a skilled nursing facility in Blaine County. With the surge of baby boomers over the next three decades, starting now, Blaine Manor will be inadequate in size, design and amenities to provide care to those in need.
The baby boomers are more affluent and better educated than prior generations. They will live longer and will require more health care services, delivered over a continuum of care, in a variety of settings. The American Hospital Association projects that by 2030 disability rates will rise, driven by the following health issues:
- Six out of every 10 boomers will be managing more than one chronic condition.
- More than one out of three will be considered obese.
- One out of four will be living with diabetes.
- Nearly half of all boomers will be living with arthritis.
The implications for care providers are enormous, i.e. how to provide access to quality care in an economically sustainable manner. Continuing care retirement communities (CCRCs) can provide the quality of housing, care and amenities that residents of the Wood River Valley have come to expect. The various options for living and care create a financial model that supports itself by spreading out the fixed costs.
CCRCs provide three options: 1) independent living, 2) assisted living, and 3) skilled nursing. The independent and assisted living help to financially support the skilled nursing, which is the most intensive, expensive and regulated level of care. Those living independently or in assisted living are guaranteed a higher level of care as the need arises.
The vision of the Blaine Manor board of trustees and the Croy Canyon Ranch Foundation (formerly the Blaine Manor Foundation) is to create a new community, Croy Canyon Ranch, where individuals can continue to live in Blaine County (age in place) in a setting that is conducive and responsive to their needs and desires for a full, meaningful life regardless of their health care status.
People age differently and their needs may change over a period of time. The independent living will allow individuals to carry on as usual, with added support, safety features and amenities of their choice. Those in assisted living will have assistance and support for activities of daily living as needed. Residents in skilled nursing will have 24-hour nursing care to meet their clinical, emotional and spiritual needs. Married couples can remain together in the same community even if their needs are different.
We would all like to believe that we can live and receive care in our homes forever, but the reality is that in many cases it is neither feasible nor healthful. Caregivers are difficult to find and often the individual becomes so isolated in the home, that mind, body and spirit begin to decline because of loneliness, helplessness and boredom.
Please support the Croy Canyon Ranch. In the words of former Sun Valley Mayor Ruth Lieder, "Those of us in the valley are older than we think we are." We came here for the quality of life and we want to remain here as long as possible. In a community that has supported the building of a new hospital, new schools, the YMCA, a performing arts pavilion, bike paths and many other amenities, we would hope that all citizens understand the importance of keeping the community whole by providing for its elders. The proposed continuing care community will provide a vibrant, vigorous, healthy and healing environment, characterized by optimism, trust, generosity and people of all ages working together.
