PCA administers dom care program
for three decades
By Marcia Z. Siegal
When her first husband died, Bessie Williams was lonely and wondered what she could do.
On a friend’s suggestion, she found a way to fill that emptiness — “to find someone to talk to and share things with,” she says. In the process, she also found a new calling as a domiciliary care (dom care) provider. Under the auspices of this state program, administered here by Philadelphia Corporation for Aging (PCA), Williams has shared her home with those who are in need of a supportive community-based living situation.
Now remarried, Williams, with the enthusiastic support of her husband, James, continues this work. Their household includes ‘Tim,’ a 40-year-old with Down’s Syndrome, and ‘Julia,’ a 50-year-old with bipolar disorder.
Dom Care 30 years old
PCA’s Domiciliary Care program is marking its 30th anniversary. PCA matches adults who are elderly and/or who may have physical or mental disabilities, with providers willing to share their home and provide meals, housekeeping and laundry assistance, arrange transportation to medical appointments, administer medications and assist with personal hygiene as needed.
Most of all, they provide attention and support to people who might otherwise be living in an institutional setting, according to Jean Janik, PCA director of Community Living Options. There are nearly 200 providers in the program, she said, and approximately 100 openings are currently available for those needing the help.
Consumers pay providers a monthly fee, set by the Pennsylvania Department of Aging. PCA arranges the “consumer-provider” matches. Providers must pass background checks, meet home safety requirements and participate in ongoing training. Once a living arrangement is established, a PCA care manager remains involved to monitor the situation and provide support. PCA providers are allowed to care for up to two people at a time.
A pleasant routine
Williams, who has also cared for seniors through the Dom Care program, says her life with ‘Tim’ and ‘Julia’ has evolved into a pleasant routine. In the morning, she wakes them, makes sure they are dressed, serves them breakfast, then sees them off to their separate day programs. When they return home, “I make sure they have dinner. We go for a walk, watch TV and then it’s time to get ready for bed.”
Most important are the talks they have. James Williams, who works the night shift at a hospital, also is available to help out during his off-hours.
‘Tim’ and ‘Julia’ often see their family members on weekends, go on outings or enjoy other relaxing activities.
“We take great care in arranging the best possible provider-consumer matches,” Janik explained, adding that “There are providers who have been with the program all of its 30 years and people who have been with a particular provider 20-plus years.”
Bessie Williams knows what makes it work for her: “You have to have a love of people and to want to share in their lives on a daily basis. When I was younger, I had four kids of my own. They grew up and moved out. I’m a homebody. I enjoy being home — this is my own little world… ‘Tim’ and ‘Julia’ love living here. They enjoy the companionship. They like my cooking. We’re bonded, so we really are family.”
For information about becoming a domiciliary care provider: 215-765-9000, ext. 4437. For domiciliary care consumer inquiries: PCA Helpline at 215-765-9040.
By Joe Clark
Her name was Elyse — a shy, brown-haired 8-year-old with cerebral palsy.
She also was “scared to death to touch a horse.”
But she saddled up with Kitty Burns-Eisenberg, who has what she calls a “gift to make people do things they never thought they could, to reach heights they never thought they could reach.”
Burns-Eisenberg got Elyse to reach so high she became a first-class equestrienne and a riding champion in the Handicapped Riders Division of the renowned Devon Horse Show.
The pair met 14 years ago at Pegasus Riding Academy, in Northeast Philadelphia, a therapeutic riding program for people of all ages with disabilities, ranging from autism, to multiple sclerosis, to stroke and heart attack victims. Incorporated in 1982, Pegasus is the city’s only fully certified, medically approved riding therapy program.
Some of the friendships Burns-Eisenberg has made at Pegasus go beyond the saddle. Last year, she attended Elyse’s wedding.
Burns-Eisenberg, who is “well over 60,” has been a volunteer instructor at Pegasus for 21 years.
She’s been riding since she was 9. Not a day goes by — weather permitting — that she doesn’t climb aboard “Captain Daft,” a retired race horse, and go for a gallop through Wissahickon Park.
In addition to being an accomplished equestrienne, Burns-Eisenberg, who retired four years ago from a 40-year career in advertising sales and management, is a whiz in the water. In the summer, she’s a lifeguard at a condominium in the suburbs.
“I’m probably the oldest active lifeguard in the country,” she says.
She also conducts swimming classes for fellow residents and seniors at the Park Plaza Condominium, on Ford Road near City Avenue.
Over the years, Burns-Eisenberg, a widow, has made her share of rescues — of all types. This summer, while lifeguarding at a condo complex, she rescued a chipmunk “that fell into the pool and couldn’t get out” and a bird that flew into the pool, “got its wings wet and couldn’t fly away.”
Burns-Eisenberg’s love for horses is exceeded only by her dedication to helping others. It’s kind of hereditary. The youngest of five, she feels she
inherited her caring attitude from her father, a surgeon, who went to the old Philadelphia General Hospital once a week and operated gratis on veterans.
“I consider it a privilege to give my time to others,” says Burns-Eisenberg. “I feel it’s important to give back. What good is it if God gave you a gift, a talent, and you don’t pass it on?”
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