Many new caregivers will be needed
By 2025, 31 percent of the Methow Valley’s residents will be 65 or older, and as many as 80% of them will want to remain living independently at home, according to SASH — the Senior Assessment for Support and Housing steering committee.
SASH was formed in February to explore issues surrounding the valley’s growing senior population, the services they need and whether those services are available in the area. The group announced in late September that it had completed the first phase of its efforts, in which it researched those issues in depth with the help of Jody Corona, of consulting firm Health Facilities Planning and Development, and released recommendations for the future.
“We spent several months with our consultant … she crunched a lot of numbers for us relative to the valley’s demographics, relative to our Medicare and Medicaid population and what kind of services they are using,” said SASH chair Joan Wellman.
Four subcommittees made a number of recommendations as part of the conclusion of SASH’s research phase. Among others, those include building senior independent-living units (a step below assisted living), building more affordable housing geared toward seniors, expanding Jamie’s Place by 20 beds, increasing the number of professional caregivers in the area and funding a grant-writer position to help find monetary support for the projects.
The groups also recommended formalized support for seniors who choose to stay in their homes but who need extra help — whether with medical issues or with keeping their yard or property maintained.
SASH believes that by 2025, 200 valley residents will need a home-based caregiver at least part time.
“We have a crisis of our caregiving workforce in the valley,” Wellman said. “Probably of all the findings, this was the most significant finding.”
That means the valley will also need affordable housing for those additional caregivers — as many as 40 or 50 more people, Wellman estimated.
While many seniors want to age in place at home, it’s not an option for all of them. That’s why the subcommittees also recommended expanding Jamie’s Place.
Jamie’s Place is the valley’s only residential long-term care facility for seniors and has room for 12 residents. The idea for SASH first started at a Jamie’s Place board retreat. SASH found that the Methow Valley currently is 28 beds short for residential long-term housing for seniors and recommended expanding Jamie’s place by 20 beds.
“If we want people to be able to stay in the valley when they need care, we’re going to have to activate the community around this large goal,” said Wellman, also a Jamie’s Place board member. She said the facility would have to expand its existing buildings and build two more houses to reach that goal.
Other organizations involved with SASH include Methow At Home, Methow Housing Trust, Room One, the Methow Valley Senior Center, Lookout Coalition, Confluence Clinic, Family Health Centers, TwispWorks, Aero Methow Rescue Service, Frontier Health and other community members.
The next phase of the project will be to identify funding sources and matching organizations with recommendations from SASH. SASH is a committee, rather than a stand-alone entity, Wellman explained, so organizations like Jamie’s Place, Methow at Home, or others in the area will have to take ownership of the projects SASH has recommended if they’re going to get done.
“We’re also already hard at work applying for grants that are a really good fit for some of the recommendations,” Wellman said.
Phase three will involve implementation of the recommendations.
SASH intended to finish its first phase over the summer but was delayed both by wildfires and the resurgence of COVID-19.
