'Centro de Amigos' Senior Day Care Center Provides Steadfast Care and Ongoing Support to Local Spanish-Speaking Seniors During COVID-19 Crisis, Amidst Insurance-Funding Challenges

HAVERSTRAW, N.Y., July 30, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Centro de Amigos (https://centrodeamigos.com/) recently announced that it continues to successfully provide ongoing socialization, upholding its high quality-of-life standards, and has kept all of the seniors in its care safe during the COVID-19 outbreak in New York state. Despite ongoing funding challenges and widespread fear, Centro de Amigos chose to remain in operation so that its members would not be stripped of the services they rely upon. The popular social adult day care (SADC) continues to remain an essential service to the large community of Spanish-speaking Rockland County seniors during the state of emergency declared by Governor Cuomo.

Of the center's importance to the community, director Doris Karpeh -Diaz said:

"Based on the 2010 census, Rockland County is 18.4% Hispanic and  the village of Haverstraw has a population that is over 67% Latino/Hispanic, and sits right in the middle of a COVID-19 'hot spot.' Our seniors have been sheltering in place since mid-March, and we've been a source of comfort and connection to them the entire time. Our clients were deeply afraid, and we served as a trusted resource for them and their families; many of whom are essential workers and, due to language barriers, didn't fully understand the severity of the situation right away. And we didn't wait to be directed by the insurance companies – we just acted, because it was the right thing to do. We made sure our clients had food provided by the Rockland County Office for the Aging, their medicines, and inquired about caregiver support, because many of our seniors could not get in-home care coverage – many home health aides did not want to be exposed to the virus. Fortunately, Medicaid and the New York State Department of Health approved the use of telehealth to provide social adult day services.

Managed long-term insurance companies (MLTC) recently cut authorizations for SADC services requested by the senior and approved prior to the pandemic  across the State, effectively leaving seniors with no access to this medically necessary and desired benefit. Speaking of the MLTC decision, Karpeh-Diaz said:

"We were fortunate that we applied for a PPP loan early; otherwise, I'm not sure how we could have kept our doors open thus far. We kept all of our 11 staff members employed. Our staff is extremely dedicated, each assigned to a group of seniors that they have grown to know and love. And those seniors rely upon our staff for a wide range of important services:  providing sources of reliable COVID-19 information in Spanish, contact tracing, calling case managers, setting up appointments, filling out census information, maintaining crucial social media that keeps seniors connected, and in-person safety checks (at one point, our staff had to call an ambulance for two seniors who needed help). These are all extremely crucial quality-of-life care activities that so often get missed during a widespread health crisis. And we're happy to continue providing that love and care to our clients. We hope that the MLTCs will see the value of the telehealth services that we and other SADC provide in an effort to keep seniors connected and in the community, aging in place, avoiding premature placement in nursing homes and other institutions; everyone feels better at home."

For the latest news and events taking place at Centro de Amigos, or to learn more about their ongoing mission, visit them online. Or follow Centro de Amigos, Haverstraw on social media: Facebook, YouTube.

About Centro de Amigos

Centro de Amigos is the only social adult day care (SADC) service that serves the specific cultural and linguistic needs of Spanish-speaking seniors in Rockland County, New York – a community that is predominantly Hispanic and Latino. The center serves as a hub, and provides authentic Latino cuisine, wide-ranging social activities, and staff to help seniors perform activities of daily living (ADL), regular health and wellness checks, and many other important functions.

Learn more at: www.CentroDeAmigos.com.

Media Contact:

Doris Karpeh-Diaz, Director
Phone:  (845) 553-9777
Email: [email protected]

SOURCE Centro de Amigos

Related Links

http://www.CentroDeAmigos.com