The Esplanade in Palisades is an example of an independent living facility, the first type of place to think of if you find your home too difficult to maintain, are no longer comfortable driving, and are still in good health but in need of some assistance. Dowling Gardens in Sparkill and Sunrise at New City are other nearby independent living facilities.

Joyce Rogers, Director of Marketing at the Esplanade, was kind enough to attend our meeting. She gave us useful information about costs and services and invited anyone interested to come visit the Esplanade. One can rent a studio apartment at the Esplanade for $3500 a month and this fee includes three meals a day, housekeeping, transportation to shops and doctor appointments, utilities and cable television, as well as daily recreational and cultural activities. There is a home care agency on the premises which charges extra for its services.

Assisted living is the next level of care, generally defined as being for elders who don’t need to go to a nursing home but who may need help with dressing, bathing, medication and other activities. There are some limitations: if you have diabetes, you need to be able to inject yourself. You can use a wheelchair, but must be able to transfer to a bed or commode from the wheelchair by yourself. There are nine assisted living facilities in Rockland County including the Promenade at Blue Hill, the Esplanade at Chestnut Ridge, Sunrise at New City and Hearthstone, a special facility for those with Alzheimer’s or dementia, at the Esplanade in Palisades. Assisted living costs are higher: a studio apartment at Sunrise in Cresskill, New Jersey runs to about $5000 a month.

If you are no longer mobile or need skilled nursing care your only choice is a skilled nursing facility. There are ten in Rockland County; they include Nyack Manor in Valley Cottage, Summit Park in Pomona, Ramapo Manor in Suffern, and Northern Manor in Nanuet. These facilities, often called “nursing homes,” can be depressing. Usually you share a room, have meals at fixed times, and are taken care of by aides who may or may not be pleasant, helpful people. If you have an accident — for example fall and break your hip — you will usually be sent to a skilled nursing facility to recuperate for a while before returning home. Costs here are higher, about $6000 a month. Medicare will pay for the first twenty days of your stay if you come from a hospital, but after that contributes nothing. Once you have spent all your savings, you can go on Medicaid, which will pay all costs. Some nursing homes take Medicaid patients and some do not — it’s important to find out before you go to one. If possible, ask around or visit some of these facilities to find out which are the best.

An alternative to all of the above is a Continuing Care Retirement Community, a residential community for the remainder of one’s life, with a choice of services and living situations. Seniors can move between Independent Living, Assisted Living, and Nursing Home Care based on changing needs at each point in time.

Continuing Care Retirement Communities (CCRCs) allow seniors to “age in place,” with flexible accommodations that are designed to meet their health and housing needs as these needs change over time. Residents entering Continuing Care Retirement Communities sign a long-term contract that provides for housing, services and nursing care, usually all in one location, enabling seniors to remain in a familiar setting as they grow older. These CCRCs are the most expensive long-termcare solution available to seniors.

The closest CCRCs are Kendall on Hudson, across the river in Sleepy Hollow, Glen Arden in Goshen NY and Cabrini in Dobbs Ferry.

At Kendall you can buy an apartment — the cheapest studio costs about $121,000 this year for one person — and pay a monthly fee of about $3000 plus a one-time payment of $70,000 for lifetime care. Fees go up according to apartment size. A two bedroom apartment with a large den costs $750,000 and the monthly fee for one person for this apartment would be $5500. For this you get one meal a day, activities, transportation, a parking garage, medical care (with some restrictions) and membership in the CCRC community for the rest of your life. Fifty percent of the cost of your apartment is refundable to your heirs or to you if you leave. The waiting list at Kendall is between six months and a year at the moment.

Carol Elevitch reported on the Volunteer Counseling Service, located in New City, which offers services to seniors. Ellie Jacobsen (634-5729) is the director. Among the services offered are individual counseling and consulting — a counselor will come to your house, assess your situation and help you decide what services you need to improve your quality of life.

Eileen Burge, one of the counselors, (359-4536) is the daughter of Palisades resident Doris Burge. She suggested that anyone who calls the Volunteer Counseling Service use her name. There are some fees involved but on a sliding scale.

Palis-Agers Meet Again on May 7

The May meeting of the Palis-Agers will offer suggestions on ways to improve one's mental and physical health. Norman Galinsky will demonstrate Tai Chi and there will also be information about yoga classes, different kinds of recreational activities, and a representative from the Thorpe Senior Center in Sparkill, who will describe the activities offered there. The meeting will take place at 2:00 PM in the Community Room of the Palisades Presbyterian Church on Washington Spring Road. Refreshments will be served.

For information please call Alice Gerard, 359- 4338.