Delegation from China learns about senior care services in southeastern Connecticut

Dec. 14--WATERFORD -- Faced with a growing population of senior citizens in their country without family to care for them, a 13-member delegation from the Shandong Province in China spent Monday morning learning about the elderly care system in this country.

Hosted by the Eastern Connecticut Chamber of Commerce, the group began at the Visiting Nurse Association of Southeastern Connecticut, hearing from VNA President Mary Lenzini and Betsy Ritter, commissioner of the state Department on Aging, about the complexities of the federal, state, local and private funding and donations that pay for the nursing care provided in seniors' homes.

Xiang Linshuang, consultant with the Shandong Provincial Foreign Affairs Department, translated during the presentation, enabling a lively question-and-answer exchange that covered everything from laws protecting the elderly to the need in both nations for more doctors trained in geriatrics.

"Our elderly population is growing, and they're very old," Lenzini said. "The people 85 years old and older is the fastest growing group. And our elderly are living longer, because of good medical care, getting new knees, new hips, new shoulders, new hearts."

She explained that about 60 percent of the VNA's 2,500 patients have their care paid for through Medicare, 20 percent by Medicaid and the rest from a hodgepodge of private insurance, municipal funds, grants and donations.

Ritter added that because of "a lot of work" over the last 20 years, more of the state's elderly are staying in their own homes rather than in nursing homes -- which are more expensive -- making the services of visiting nurses increasingly important.

"About 15 percent of our population in Connecticut is 65 or older, and by 2020, they will be 21 percent of our population," she said, before explaining the term "baby boom" to Linshuang.

Tony Sheridan, president and chief executive officer of the chamber, said the visit was organized after he traveled with a federal Department of Commerce-sponsored trip to China two months ago. The purpose of that trip, he said, was mainly to promote tourism, but in the course of the trip he made contacts that led to this delegation's visit. The group, he explained, actually has a twofold purpose -- to learn about care for the elderly in this country, and to explore economic development opportunities in southeastern Connecticut.

Connecticut, he added, has had a relationship with the Shandong Province, on China's northeast coast, for 30 years, since former Gov. William A. O'Neill signed a cooperative agreement. On Tuesday, after touring Greentree Manor Nursing and Rehabilitation Center in Waterford, the group is scheduled to meet Gov. Dannel P. Malloy, Sheridan said.

Because of China's one-child policies and gender imbalances of five boys to one girl, Sheridan said, that nation is facing a crisis in caring for its elderly.

"The traditional family units have broken down, so they have to develop other institutions," he said.

In addition to the VNA and Greentree Manor, he also took the group to Atria at Crossroads in Waterford, and arranged for an expert in the Title XIX Medicaid program for the elderly that provides care for low-income seniors.

"We're trying to present at very balanced picture of care for people who have money and those who don't," Sheridan said.

At Atria, Kathleen Hallett, life guidance director, and Jennifer Tillinghast, community sales director, led the group through the Memory Care Unit, where residents with dementia live in apartments and eat meals in a common dining room.

"The whole concept of this is that it's their home," Hallett told the group as they gathered in a large common area furnished with living room sofas and chairs. "This is a safe, secure environment, so people can live here comfortably and freely and preserve their dignity."

Nearby, groups of residents gathered for a sing-along and gentle exercise. As the group headed down the hall to tour one of the apartments, several stopped to photograph a large calendar showing a full schedule of activities for the residents.

After walking through the tidy two-room apartment of one of the residents, one of the delegates asked Linshuang to inquire about the cost.

"It's $6,500 per month," Tillinghast replied. "That includes everything."

After the Memory Care Unit, she and Hallett let the group to the assisted living area.

"This is where people live very independently, with kitchens in their apartments," Hallett said.

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