Claris Healthcare Announces Claris One™-an Affordable Solution to Connect Adults and Their Aging Parents

All-in-one device providing independence for older seniors and peace of mind for families

SOURCE: MARKETWIRED
VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA–(Marketwired – June 17, 2014) –

Claris Healthcare today introduced Claris One™, an easy-to-use countertop device that offers family members the ability to connect with their aging parents and share the responsibility of caregiving. Claris One™ is an affordable solution for busy adults wanting to provide the conveniences of online communication to their older parents without having to worry about unfamiliar technology.

“Most families rely on technology to stay connected, whether it’s through email, text, or online services,” said Geof Auchinleck, co-founder and CEO of Claris Healthcare. “Unfortunately many older seniors are left out of these conversations. We believe every senior deserves to be connected online with their family and home care providers.”

The natural bamboo frame is specifically designed to appeal to older, more reluctant seniors. The device offers a 10-inch high-definition screen with 10-point multi-touch navigation, dual internal speakers, and a front facing camera that allows for video calling. User monthly subscription includes unlimited family and caregiver access to Claris Healthcare’s website, allowing Claris One™ to be configured remotely, any time, anywhere. Each device essentially creates a secure social care network around seniors and includes a private email address and text message number, with unlimited text messaging, video and photo sharing capacities. Older seniors wary of technology will find comfort in spam, scam and privacy protection, as well as customer care available 365 days a year.

“Whether or not they’re in the neighbourhood or across the country, families want to know their elderly family members are being taken care of,” said Paul Sharman, co-founder and COO of Claris Healthcare. “Our goal in developing Claris One™ was to connect multiple generations by stripping away the barriers associated with modern technology. After enabling more than 170,000 online interactions with the successful launch of Claris Companion™, we’re looking forward to helping more 86-year-old grandmothers stay in touch with their grandkids with Claris One™.”

As easy to use as a telephone, Claris One™ is ready to display messages and notifications at all times without the need to launch applications or login, and large buttons and text make interaction easy. Further, Claris One™ only allows invited contacts to send email or photos and does not deliver advertising or any other unsolicited content, making it safe and secure for all users.

For more information visit: www.clarisone.com

About Claris Healthcare: Claris Healthcare was founded with the goal of enabling seniors to increase connectivity with loved ones while limiting unnecessary hospital admissions. In order to achieve this goal, Claris Healthcare designs technology that shifts the typical care pathway for seniors living on their own from an ambulance ride destined for an emergency room to a preventative and interactive healthcare approach centered on overall patient wellbeing. After extensive consultation with health care workers, home care providers, retirement home operators, hospital physicians, community physicians, seniors and family members to discover what could be done to ensure seniors are able to live independently, we developed Claris Companion™ and Claris One™, innovative communications systems that help promote self-managed care for seniors in their homes and enable a more appropriate escalation of care including visual consultations via video conferencing to ensure they are not unnecessarily admitted to hospital.

Contact Information:

Paul Sharman, Co-Founder
Claris Companion
P: 1-866-284-4939
E: support@clariscompanion.com

World Elder Abuse Day

British Columbia recognizes June 15th as World Elder Abuse Awareness Day. Every year an estimated 5 million older people are victims of elder abuse, neglect, or exploitation. And that’s only part of the picture: Experts believe that for every case of elder abuse or neglect reported, as many as 23 cases go unreported.

Elder abuse in any form is wrong. Unfortunately, some seniors suffer from abuse and neglect, sometimes from caregivers or family members. Abuse can take many forms, such as physical, sexual, emotional, financial, or spiritual.

Neglect and self-neglect are also forms of abuse. Self-neglect happens when a senior lives in a way that puts his or her own health, safety, or well-being at risk.

Many victims are reluctant to report abuse because:

• They feel ashamed and embarrassed, particularly if the abuser is a family member
• Are afraid that the abuser will get in trouble
• Worry that they will be forced to live in a nursing home
• Feel guilty or somehow to blame
• Be in denial that the abuse is occurring or be

RED FLAGS OF ABUSE

Neglect

• Lack of basic hygiene, adequate food,or clean and appropriate clothing
• Lack of medical aids (glasses, walker, teeth, hearing aid, and medications)
• Person with dementia left unsupervised
• Person confined to bed is left without care
• Home cluttered, filthy, in disrepair, or having fire and safety hazards

Financial abuse/exploitation

• Lack of amenities victim could afford
• Vulnerable adult “voluntarily” giving uncharacteristically excessive financial reimbursement/gifts for care and companionship
• Caregiver has control of elder’s money but is failing to provide for elder’s needs

Psychological/emotional abuse

• Unexplained or uncharacteristic changes in behavior, such as withdrawal from normal activities, changes in alertness, othe
• Caregiver isolates elder (doesn’t let anyone into the home or speak to the elder).  Caregiver is verbally aggressive or demeaning, controlling, overly concerned about spending money, or uncaring

Physical/sexual abuse

• Inadequately explained fractures, bruises, welts, cuts, sores or burns
• Unexplained sexually transmitted diseases

If you know of someone who is in immediate danger, dial 9-1-1 or call the emergency number listed in the front of your phone book.

In non-emergency situations, call VictimLink BC – a confidential telephone service available 24 hours a day, seven days a week. Toll-free: 1-800-563-0808

Heather Martin, CDP
Comfort Keepers
Helping you stay Happier, Healthier & At Home
Serving Vancouver, Burnaby, New Westminster, Delta, White Rock and Surrey South of Fraser Hwy
14-1480 Foster Street
White Rock, BC V4B 3X7
Tel: (604) 689-8609/(604)541-8653
Cell: (778) 997-5685
Email: heathermartin@comfortkeepers.ca

The Importance of a Will

You might be surprised to learn how many people do not have a will. In March, 2012 a poll conducted by Harris/Decima revealed that 31 per cent of Canadians between the ages of 45 and 64 don’t have a will. Many people would be concerned with that statistic, but others would say, ‘Who cares, I’m not going to be here anyway’. Well, here’s a few things you might want to consider.

Having a will gives you control. Control over who gets what. Control over who becomes the guardian of your kids. Control over who manages your estate. Control over whether family heirlooms get sold or handed down to younger generations. In short, you get to make all of the decisions.

I know many people who hate government involvement of any kind. Well, guess who controls your estate if you have no will (ie. die intestate)? That’s right, provincial legislation controls how your estate will be divided, and the government gets to decide who will raise your kids.

I know someone who is widowed, has 2 estranged kids, no will, is worth $1M, and hates giving money to the government. Since he hasn’t spoken with his kids in ages and likely doesn’t know where they are (and vice versa), if he dies his kids will likely never even be informed. Since he has no other family, if his kids are not located, his wealth will eventually go the government… exactly what he would not want. And that’s after the Public Trustee gets paid to settle his estate, since there may be no one else to step in as Administrator. Even if you have no family to leave your estate to, you could still leave your wealth to one or more charities… if you have a will. No will, no control.

Many wills that I read are quite simple: the estate is split amongst a handful of beneficiaries, family members most often. Perfectly fine. Other wills are more detailed, leaving items of sentimental value to certain friends and family. Again, perfectly fine. At least there’s a will… control.

People often assume that it’s more difficult to settle an estate when there’s no will and, for the most part, that’s an accurate assumption. Due to privacy laws, third parties, like banks, will provide no information, sometimes refusing to even acknowledge if a bank account exists, let alone tell you the balance. This makes it hard to generate a list of assets & liabilities when applying for Letters of Administration, and the person applying may even need to post a bond. But, there’s a bright side (no, I’m not being facetious). When there’s no will everything gets sold, and there’s no question about who gets what… everything is clearly spelled out in the Estate Administration Act. It really is that clear cut. But, getting back to the guy with $1M and 2 estranged kids, since the Administrator will have no access to the deceased’s bank account, I wonder how much of his own money he’ll have to spend trying to find the kids.

Gregg Medwid is the owner and president of Executor Support, a firm based in Coquitlam, British Columbia, with expertise assisting executors and administrators in settling estates. The project management expertise and customer service focus Medwid brings to Executor Support ensures questions are answered and help is given when it is most needed.

This article is in no way intended to substitute for competent legal advice.

(Source for statistics: CNW Canada Newswire, May 9, 2012, “CIBC Poll: Nearly one third of Baby Boomers don’t have a will”)

Gregg Medwid, Owner
Executor Support
gregg@executorsupport.ca
604-999-2106
http://www.ExecutorSupport.ca

Is your retirement at risk from illness?

You’ve spent years saving, doing the right thing and taking care to think about the long-term.

And yet … what would happen if you were to get sick?

Would you dip into your retirement savings to cover costs or unplanned medical expenses? Would you have to work longer once you were back on your feet to make up for those lost savings?

If you answered yes, you’re not alone. In a recent survey, Ipsos Reid  found that 52 per cent of respondents indicated they would dip into their retirement savings if faced with a major illness.

But, dipping into your retirement savings may be costing you more than you think. Here’s one scenario that may get you to re-think your RRSP dipping strategy.

• John is a 38-year-old male with an annual income of $90,000.
• If John were to save consistently and remain healthy until his retirement at age 65, he could retire with more than $673,000 in his RRSP.
• But John suffers a life-threatening cancer at age 52. He needs money to cover costs not covered through his provincial healthcare plan so he withdraws $200,000 from his RRSP.
• John is now back working and to maintain his goal of retiring at age 65 with his original nest egg, John would need to triple his retirement savings.

If tripling your savings to achieve your retirement plans isn’t something you want to contemplate, what choice do you have? Critical Illness Insurance. It’s tailored for you and, once issued, it’s guaranteed. You can even add a return-of-premium rider that means, if you remain healthy, the insurance company will give you all your premiums back.

So if your current strategy is to dip into your RRSP for unplanned medical expenses, perhaps it’s time to re-think that plan. Call me today to talk about the best way to insure yourself and protect your retirement lifestyle. I’m fairly certain you’ll be glad you did.

Lynn Williams
Professional Financial Architect
President & CEO of The Lifestyle Protector
E: Lynn@lifestyleprotector.ca
P: (+1)604 833 0348
1322 – 1111 W Georgia St
Vancouver, BC, Canada

 

Generating a List of Assets for the Estate

When someone dies they are deemed to have sold all of their assets at fair market value immediately before death. So, the big question is, what did they own, and what are the values? Answering this question is one of the first big tasks in settling an estate… generating a list of assets and liabilities, as of the date of death (ie. Balance Sheet). The contents of the balance sheet will be used by the person preparing the probate forms, either the executor or their lawyer.

Generating a list of assets can be very easy in many estates, but very complex and frustrating in other estates. Firstly, is there a will? If there is, then the bank will likely share information with you, such as account numbers and balances. But if there’s no will then most companies will refuse to provide any information due to privacy concerns. Write letters to any banks, financial institutions, insurance companies, service providers, pension offices… everyone who the deceased did business with. Ask them for account numbers, values and any other details you can think of, with respect to the assets (possibly) owned and debts owing.

Most people are helpful, but sometimes you’ll hit a dead end, in which case you’ll have to dig deeper. Search through the deceased’s home. Look in filing cabinets, desks, closets, boxes, drawers. Speak with their lawyer, accountant, financial planner, relatives, friends. Contact any and all companies whose documents you find. And if you ask yourself, “Should I bother contacting this company?”, my answer would be, “For the price of a stamp, why wouldn’t you”.

Seek whatever help you may need to establish market values, such as professional appraisals for jewellery, antiques, real estate and companies. Calculate interest earned up to the date of death on financial investments such as bonds and GIC’s. Research those stock certificates you found in the safety deposit box. The company may have changed its name or been sold.

The CPP Death Benefit as well as the final pension cheques need to be shown as assets, even if they haven’t arrived yet. And then there’s the assets that can easily get overlooked, such as the damage deposit from the apartment rental, or the trust/comfort account at the care home. The condo or timeshare in Florida needs to be shown. Insurance policies where there is no named beneficiary must also be included, because the estate will be the beneficiary.

You do not need to include joint bank accounts where there’s a right of survivorship, or real estate owned in joint tenancy, because the surviving owner simply continues to own them.

Now that you have your list of assets & liabilities, what’s next? In most cases, filing for probate.

Gregg Medwid is the owner and president of Executor Support, a firm based in Coquitlam, British Columbia, with expertise assisting executors and administrators in settling estates. The project management expertise and customer service focus Medwid brings to Executor Support ensures questions are answered and help is given when it is most needed.

This article is in no way intended to substitute for competent legal advice.

Gregg Medwid, Owner
Executor Support
gregg@executorsupport.ca
604-999-2106
http://www.ExecutorSupport.ca

Park it or Drive it

You have been an exemplary driver for 50 years time comes to consider letting someone else do the driving for you; an encouraging exercise would be to examine the dollars and cents.

It costs a lot to operate a car in Vancouver. You own a late model sedan. You buy annual auto insurance policy. There gas, repairs, tolls and parking. You will need a new set of snow tires this winter! Break it down-

Car value approx $3000 (Based on 2000 Toyota Corolla)

Annual insurance $1800 (Full 43% discount)

Fuel $ 500 (12 fill ups annually @ $1.30/liter)

Parking and Tolls $ 100

Maintenance $ 600 (Seasonal oil changes/belts and hoses)

$6000

If you were to use those funds to purchase personalized private accompaniment services you would have a budget of $500/month in the first year. Plus you could have a safe, comfortable and reliable way to get around town, how does a dedicated driver sound?

There are private options available. If you or a family member is interested in exploring the alternatives, have them call Home James Service for Seniors – where we are Opening Doors for Seniors. Personalized private accompaniment services like Home James can ensure that new non drivers can get out of the house and attend to errands, appointments and social events.

Mike Oakley
Owner/Director of Home James Service for Seniors
Phone: 604 928 7789
Email: mike@homejamesforseniors.ca
Web: www.homejamesforseniors.ca

The Number One Secret to Managing Millenials

If you are a Boomer or Gen X leader tasked with managing a team of Millenial employees, there is really only one thing you need to know – they aren’t that different from you.

Much ado has been made in the media about the differences between generations, but there is also ample research on their similarities. One such study, conducted by Ben Rosen, a PhD. and Professor of Organizational Behaviour at the University of North Carolina, reveals that the top motivators for all four generations are:

· To work on challenging projects.

· To receive competitive compensation.

· To have opportunities for advancement and chances to learn and grow in their jobs.

· To be treated fairly.

· To maintain a work-life balance.

The main difference between Millenials and their older colleagues – especially their managers – is that Millenial’s ideals regarding what work can and should be are still intact. They have not bought into the “work is a necessary evil” mindset and still – possibly naively – expect that work should be about more than a paycheque. Rather than seeing this as a sense of entitlement, managers and colleagues would do well to welcome their youthful enthusiasm and learn to provide the necessary guidance to channel it without squashing it all together.

Instead of investing time and energy in courses and books on how to manage Millenials, look at what all workers want across the board and put those foundations in place first. The philosophy of managing younger workers effectively is the same as the skills and knowledge required to engage the performance, potential and commitment of workers of all ages.

To be sure, there are some needs and interests that will differ as people move through their lives. Boomers, for example, value a manageable workload because they might be dealing with aging parents, being grandparents, and addressing their own health issues. Millenials value work-life balance so that they can pursue hobbies, start their own business ventures, and have an active social life. Gen X ers want the extra time available to spend it with their young families. Regardless of why balance is important to them, the best leaders understand that bringing out the best in people is about respecting and valuing differences, understanding their personal strengths, cultivating their career aspirations, and aligning all of these with the interests of the company.

At the end of the day, we are all busy. If you are a leader with limited time to develop your skills and knowledge, I would suggest that investing your time in studying more widely beneficial topics like employee engagement, effective communication, conflict resolution, systems design, and time and energy management techniques would give you far more “bang for your buck” than focusing too heavily on Millenials.

Andrea Jacques and The Kyosei Team
Suite 502, 2045 Barclay St.
Vancouver, BC, Canada
V6G 1L6
P: (604) 558-0909

Alzheimer And Personality Changes

Since Alzheimer’s disease is a degenerative brain disease, it affects all aspects of a person’s mental ability. A person’s thinking, reasoning, and memory are affected, and also their personality.

What does it mean to have a changed personality? Well, for as many different personality traits a person could have and does have, before the disease, there’s potential for some or all of these to be affected and altered as the brain degenerates. For example, a person who is known to be on an even keel and calm could change into a frazzled and frightened person. Another who may have been extremely shy and reserved might become expressive and over the top outgoing. A person who could have been easily angered and irritable before the disease could become as gentle as a baby.  There can be slight to extreme changes in anyone with Alzheimer’s disease.

Change in personality, due to having Alzheimer’s disease, is simply because the person’s brain function is deteriorating. A person’s personality is instinctual behaviour as well as learned actions – it’s based on a person’s way of thinking, learning, understanding, and emotions. This disease makes a person unlearn what he or she knows, understands and remembers; this can include forgetting learned and even instinctual mannerisms.

Change in personality can be a key factor in diagnosing Alzheimer’s disease. The earlier we recognize personality change, the more prepared one can be to deal with the disease when diagnosed. You can learn more about dementia in chapter 3 of my book, “Cracking the Dementia Code – Creative Solutions to Cope with Changed Behaviours”.

If you notice a very distinct change in someone’s behaviour, it might be a good idea to have him or her assessed by a specialist, in case Alzheimer’s disease is the cause.

Karen 🙂

Karen Tyrell, CDP, CPCA
Personalized Dementia Solutions

www.DementiaSolutions.ca

What Is A Funeral Director?

People know that a funeral home and its funeral directors assist families with preparing and providing final services, whether they are in the form of a funeral, memorial service, graveside service or direct cremation. But they do not know what a funeral director is and who they are as individual people.

A funeral director is a very special person; there can be no doubt about it. Who else deals with the subject of death, and ONLY the subject of death every single day? Most individuals and families in our society today are anxious about the subject of death. They will avoid the topic, and are unfortunately often completely uninformed on the topic. This is only made worse when a death occurs in their family. They don’t know who to call and have no idea of the steps involved in making the final arrangements.

The funeral director is a professional who is trained, not only to provide a service to the family, but who is also able to help guide the family; provide them with various options available, and walk with them throughout the decision making process. Imagine if you had to deal with death every single day of your life! It takes a special individual, filled with knowledge, professionally trained and certified, completely empathetic for the family, and with ultimate respect for the deceased.

The funeral director is your family’s professional ally to help guide you through the maze at such a very difficult time for the family. At Alternatives Funeral & Cremation Services, our funeral directors will come to see you in your own home to help you understand the options available and guide you to make the decision that best suits your family. It is not just a more convenient approach, in that you don’t have to go to the funeral home. What is really means is that when you need to make such difficult decisions, you are in your own home, sitting around your kitchen table, under your own roof. It’s in your home that you are most comfortable and emotionally safe. Plus by being in your home, you remain in charge.

At Alternatives we pride ourselves on establishing this business model when we opened our doors in 1992. Virtually every family has and continues to tell us that being in their own home has made all the difference for their comfort, security and satisfaction. They have also told us they would not have anticipated how much of a difference it was for them by not having to go to a funeral home to make the arrangements.

There is a lot to know and we offer an educational presentation that is NOT a sales pitch. You learn about the procedures that must be followed when a death occurs in a hospital, care facility or a private residence. You also become familiar with the law with regard to who has the legal right to make decisions on behalf of the deceased. You’ll be informed regarding the options available for services; the important role the doctor has in the process; the difference between a death benefit and survivor’s benefit; and much more.

This one hour presentation is available at no charge for your organization, seniors residence, church, library or recreation centre, as well as for professional allies such as social workers and hospices.

If you are interested in either attending or hosting this very helpful and informative education presentation, please contact Michael Godin, Director Community Relations, at Alternatives Funeral & Cremation Services at 604 857 5779.

Michael Godin
Director Community Relations
Alternatives Funeral & Cremation Services
P: 604 857 5779

Assets That Do Not Form Part of the Estate

When somebody die, they are deemed to have sold all of their assets just before death. Of course, in reality, nothing has been sold yet, and it will be up to the executor to sell or bequeath the assets of the estate, following the terms of the will. However, in many estates there are assets which are not owned by the estate. But how can that be? How can the assets be owned by the deceased while he was alive, but not owned by his estate after death? If the estate doesn’t own those assets, who does?

Some assets are owned jointly, with each owner having the right of survivorship. For example, a joint bank account. Each of the two owners owns the entire bank account, and when one of them passes away, the name of the deceased is removed from the account, leaving the survivor as the only owner. The estate is not the owner of that bank account, but rather the survivor is the owner. Another common example is the family home, which is often times owned by a couple in joint tenancy. When one of the two owners dies, the name of the deceased is removed from title, leaving the survivor’s name on title. Once again, the house does not form part of the estate.

There are other common examples, too, such as insurance policies and retirement savings. Most insurance policies and retirement savings accounts have one or more named beneficiaries, so the proceeds of the policy will go directly to the named beneficiaries, meaning the policy and RRSP/RRIF do not form part of the estate.

If you need to file for probate, only those assets owned by the estate will get included, meaning you will not have to pay probate fees for those other assets. So why then are insurance policies sometimes included in the probate application? If the policy owner never named a beneficiary, or if the beneficiary died, then the estate becomes the beneficiary, meaning the value of the policy needs to be included in the list of assets, on which probate fees are calculated.

By now some of you might be thinking you could save a lot of time and money if you became a joint owner on your parents’ house. You’d save on probate fees, and you might even eliminate the need for probate altogether. Well, you’d be correct on those two points, but there’s more to consider, especially for your parent(s), so you’d be well-advised to speak with an accountant before going on title.

Sometimes real estate is owned by two or more people as Tenants in Common, rather than Joint Tenancy. If one of the owners dies, that person’s share of the property forms part of the estate, can be sold or bequeathed, and does not automatically transfer to the surviving owner(s). You’d rarely see this type of ownership for the family home, but you would frequently see it for investment properties.

Gregg Medwid is the owner and president of Executor Support, a firm based in Coquitlam, British Columbia, with expertise assisting executors and administrators in settling estates. The project management expertise and customer service focus Medwid brings to Executor Support ensures questions are answered and help is given when it is most needed.

This article is in no way intended to substitute for competent legal advice.

Gregg Medwid, Owner
Executor Support
gregg@executorsupport.ca