“We are there to help our seniors, and working with each of them fulfills many of my own needs. I really and truly enjoy what I do.”
Physical Therapy Assistant Kim Paulson is talking about the rich experience of her 18-year-long (and counting) tenure with InnovAge, working through its programs dedicated to supporting and caring for the senior population, and her company’s focus on preserving the comfort and familiarity of home while fostering a sense of community and dignity.
With that, it is a great time for all of its staff and their affiliates to be proud, as InnovAge, the United States’ largest provider of the Program of All-inclusive Care for the Elderly (PACE), based on participants served, is celebrating 35 years of empowering seniors to age independently in their homes and communities.
“We want to continue to be at the forefront of expanding access to the nation’s many underserved, eligible seniors through this comprehensive PACE model of care,” says InnovAge CEO Patrick Blair in a statement dedicated to its 35th anniversary milestone. “This aligns with our mission to help seniors across the country live longer healthier lives with dignity and autonomy — and that care disparities and inequities be eliminated.”
Since InnovAge’s founding in 1989, the multifaceted PACE program designed to help qualified residents, age 55 and up, has been the company’s focal point. As PACE grew, so grew InnovAge, growing from a single pilot location to 20 locations throughout six states. As of Sept. 30, 2024, InnovAge has served approximately 7,210 participants, and throughout its history, served 24,440 enrolled seniors.
Serving as such means aiding seniors through clinical and operational transformations, including up-to-date technologies in enhancing patient care, PACE-customized electronic medical records, in-house dental work and behavioral health care services, Medicaid enrollment assistance, 24/7 in-home support, after-hours nursing care, and much more.
Debra Bassett, an InnovAge rehabilitation aide for 18 years knows that her company’s care services are working as she hears as much from her patients.
“It’s good to get feedback from families saying things like, ‘I really appreciate you helping my mom and my dad,” and “I don’t know where I would be if you guys weren’t here,” says Bassett. “We help to give them some of that life back that they had before.”
With such focused service and empowering mission statements at their core, and 35-years under its belt, InnovAge PACE continues to offer a compassionate alternative to nursing homes and long-term care facilities.
Compassion is something that radiates from so many of InnovAge’s workers throughout the U.S. during this, its 35th anniversary year.
Cecilia Flores, a driver with InnovAge for 17 years, laughs when she says, “I’m going to write a book called ‘Seniors Say the Darndest Things.’ You get to know each of the seniors intimately, especially on the weekend when some of them live at home. For some of our seniors, we will be the last one they see dropping off and the first one they’ll see for the whole weekend and that just saddens me. I used to pick up some of the ladies on my off hours and drive them to gatherings at each other’s homes. It wasn’t part of my job, but I just love helping them spend even more time together. It’s an honor for me because they bring so much to me, to my life.”
Another veteran employee with InnovAge, Sofie Perales, calls what she does with her senior crew, “driving around precious cargo.”
“Our seniors are special,” says Perales. “I want to make sure that they are well taken care of and treated with respect because they deserve that. I think everybody does. I honestly love my job. I feel like I’m making a difference, and they are making a difference for me. And one of these days I’m going to be there – their age – and I hope I get great people like we have here now at InnovAge.”
Charlene Oberc, a Clinic RN who has been with InnovAge for 24 of its 35 year existence, puts it best when she shows how valuable her company has been to her patients and to her family.
“I really do love my job,” says Oberc. “I retired at one point but came back. My husband said, ‘Why do you go to work every day?’ I’ve told him that he has no idea how much we benefit from being here. It’s entertaining. It’s fun. It’s beneficial. It makes you feel fulfilled. When I’m working at InnovAge, I get to see some of the progress that we do here, daily. We can see how we touch peoples’ lives.”
Sponsored content produced in partnership with InnovAge
