Senior Care of Alaska Inc.: working to re-establish identity after state program ends.

On July 28, 2007, Gov. Sarah Palin signed Senate Bill 4 to continue support for low-income older Alaskans through the Senior Benefits Program. While this continuation of financial resources will certainly benefit the state's senior population, perhaps no one is happier about the new program than Kevin Turkington, CSA, president of Senior Care of Alaska Inc.

The company, which provides non-medical, in-home care for seniors, has often been confused with the senior benefits program known as SeniorCare, established by former Gov. Frank Murkowski. "When I started this business five years ago, I did a name search to make sure that our company name did not conflict with any similar services located in the same locale, which was a state requirement," explained Turkington. "When Gov. Murkowski took office in 2002, he tabled the state's Longevity Bonus and replaced it with a program called SeniorCare. I called the governor's office and cried foul, because that kind of confusion wasn't good for either of us."

Despite his complaints, the government program continued under the same name, causing quite a bit of confusion. "As the program continued to grow, my phone started ringing off the hook," said Turkington. "People wanted to know how to get their checks. Then they started coming into our offices."

CONFUSION REIGNS

When the legislative session ended in May without extending the expiring SeniorCare program, the problem got even worse. "People were extremely frustrated, and because they confused us with the state program, it really placed a gray cloud over our business," said Turkington.

Now that the state's SeniorCare program has been replaced by the Senior Benefits Program, Turkington hopes that people will come to think of Senior Care of Alaska Inc. in a more positive light. "Our sole focus is on customer service," said Turkington, whose staff provides clients with assistance in areas including light housekeeping, shopping and transportation, as well as personal care, such as eating, dressing and bathing. "Our goal is to preserve the dignity of the individual while also giving relief to family members who find themselves caring for elderly parents.

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"We also work with employers to set up our service as a direct benefit to employees who need help caring for elderly family members," he added. "This benefits both the family and the employer whose business suffers when a key staff member has to take time away from work to care for an elderly parent." Most Senior Care of Alaska Inc. services are private-pay or are covered through long-term care insurance.

Finding the right caregiver eases family members' minds as well. "We get to know the clients and figure out what type of caregiver would make them the most comfortable-everything from gender to personality traits to skill levels," said Turkington. "It's quite a lengthy process. And we understand from our clients that our attention to this matching process and the details of the relationship are superior to what they've found anywhere else."

Senior Care of Alaska is also available to its clients and staff 24 hours a day. "This is a critical piece of the whole business of providing care to the elderly," said Turkington. "Life is 24 hours a day, and our clients may need help 24 hours a day. They call us--even at 3 a.m.--and we answer the phone."

For more information on Senior Care of Alaska Inc., call 677-7890 or visit www.seniorcarealaska.com.

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