Elant, the largest senior health care provider in the Hudson Valley, and Birchez Associates, an affordable senior home builder based in Ulster County, are joining forces to bring more services to the region”™s fast-growing over-55 population.
Elant, with locations in Orange, Dutchess and Westchester that serve over 1,000 people a day, and Birchez Associates, which has been several affordable housing projects for both families and seniors in Ulster, have formed a private-public partnership to help provide a wider range of services to the seniors they serve and expand their respective reach into the growing elder care marketplace.
Their first partnership, “The Nurse Is In,” was started in April 2010, facilitated by Elant”™s vice president of clinicial affairs. Three mornings a week, a registered nurse from Elant travels between The Birches at Esopus and The Birches at Chambers, providing wellness counseling, acting as a liaison between residents”™ doctors or hospitals, and assisting residents who need licensed home health services, which Elant is able to provide through its own health aide program.
For Elant, it”™s an opportunity to expand its presence in Ulster County. For Steve Aaron, founder and president of Birchez Associates in Kingston, it”™s an opportunity to work with a respected senior health care provider and to offer enhanced services to residents of his senior care complexes and to expand Birchez Associates”™ borders as well.
They co-sponsored a breakfast in Orange County on Nov.10 at Anthony”™s Pier 9 featuring Matt Thornhill, founder of The Boomer Project. Thornhill spoke of the growing trend of private-public partnerships similar to the one Elant and Birchez has embarked upon.
Elant and Birchez plan to continue their private-public partnership and are currently working to build a 55-and-over subsidized senior apartment complex on the grounds of Elant at Fishkill.
“It will be another way for us to provide continuum of care for the senior population,” said Donna Cornell, chairwoman of the board of directors for Elant. “Steve builds quality affordable senior housing. We excel in providing services for seniors. We have 6 acres of property at our Fishkill site where we would like to provide housing and also have the ability to provide services for residents as they need them through our own skilled nursing facility. We both believe that we can provide a combined service to the community and to form the private-public partnerships that are needed.”
Aaron says public-private partnerships is a growing trend that makes sense for anyone trying to meet the needs of the aging population. “No one entity can do it all alone. ”˜The Nurse is In”™ program has been a great boon to our residents at our senior complexes and I”™m looking forward to continuing to partner with Elant.”
