One Stop Senior Services - clientprofiles-MsM

Ms. M. is a seventy year old retired actress living in a studio apartment on the Upper West Side. Ms. M. suffers from Myotonia Congenita, a rare congenital and debilitating form of muscular dystrophy that subjects her to periodic fits of total paralysis, and severe pain and mobility impairment. She is also a cancer survivor, and wrestles with osteoporosis and thyroid disease. Prior to moving into her current apartment in the Fall of 2007, Ms. M. resided in a homeless shelter for three and a half years. A social worker at the shelter helped Ms. M. to apply for Section 8 housing, and to apply for an emergency grant from the Human Resources Administration to pay her first month’s rent and security deposit.

The Visiting Nurse Service referred Ms. M. to One Stop’s Care Management Program in November of 2007 for assistance with obtaining ongoing homecare, benefits, entitlements, mental health services, and financial assistance. Ms. M. has Medicaid with a small surplus and she currently receives four hours a day of homecare, five days a week. Her home attendant generally helps her with shopping, cooking, personal care, and house cleaning, which Ms. M. cannot manage on her own. Over the last year, Ms. M.’s care manager at One Stop visited her at home on a regular basis to develop a working relationship and assess and monitor her needs. One Stop helped Ms. M. to get an increase in homecare hours, an emergency response system for her home, and to apply for Access a Ride, Food Stamps, and reduced LifeLine phone service through Verizon, in addition to helping her file her 2007 taxes. One Stop also referred Ms. M. to SPOP and to Dorot. She now sees a SPOP therapist who visits her at home on a weekly basis, and she has a friendly visitor from Dorot who comes to see her each weekend. She also looks forward to her holiday packages, which are delivered by children.

Ms. M.’s caseworker also applied for an ongoing stipendiary grant from the deKay Foundation on her behalf, which was approved. Now every month deKay pays the client’s rent and her Medicaid surplus, and the Foundation also bought her an air conditioner and some furniture for her apartment. This grant offers Ms. M. priceless financial security and peace of mind. She now lives without the constant worry that she will not be able to pay her bills, and have enough to eat, and she is able to occasionally attend cultural events, which she loves.

Ms. M. has lived a difficult life of many ups and downs, and she continues to struggle with her complex medical needs and the limitations her disease and her limited income impose on her. She is often homebound as a result of her mobility impairment, and sensitivity to extreme heat and cold, which can bring on attacks of paralysis. But, despite these persistent hardships and all the tragedy she has experienced in her life, Ms. M. maintains a positive outlook and a steadfast love of life, and she is happy to be settled and safe in her New York City home, where she enjoys listening to the radio, singing, and playing her piano.