It's no secret, most of us would like to stay in our own home as we age. Yet, sometimes our loved ones just need a little extra help to remain comfortable at home. That's where Always Best Care can help....we are dedicated to exceeding expectations....always
They say that your golden years are the best years of your life. For most older Americans, that's how it should be - a time to relax, reflect, and live life in a familiar place. After all, senior citizens in the U.S. have worked tirelessly to build a better economy, serve their communities, and raise families.
Unfortunately, many older Americans aren't able to rely on their adult children for help. The reality in today's world is that family members do not have the skills or time to dedicate to caring for their parents. That's where Always Best Care Senior Services comes in.
Our in-home care services are for people who prefer to stay at home as they grow older but need ongoing care that family or friends cannot provide. More and more older adults prefer to live far away from long-term, institutionalized facilities and closer to the place where they feel most comfortable - their home. Home care in Van Wert, IA is a safe, effective way to give your loved ones the care they need when they need it the most.
Home Care Services
Service AreasSince 1996, Always Best Care has provided non-medical in-home care for seniors to help them maintain a healthy lifestyle as they get older. We are proud to have helped more than 25,000 seniors maintain higher levels of dignity and respect. We focus on providing seniors with the highest level of in-home care available so that they may live happily and independently.
Unlike some senior care companies, we genuinely want to be included in our clients' lives. We believe that personalized care is always the better option over a "one size fits all" approach. To make sure our senior clients receive the best care possible, we pair them with compassionate caregivers who understand their unique needs. That way, they may provide care accordingly without compromising their wellbeing.
The Always Best Care difference lies in life's little moments - where compassionate care and trustworthy experience come together to help seniors live a fruitful, healthy life. Whether you are an aging adult that can't quite keep up with life's daily tasks or the child of a senior who needs regular in-home services, Always Best Care is here to help.
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Home is where the heart is. While that saying can sound a tad cliche, it is especially true for many seniors living in America. When given a choice, older adults most often prefer to grow older at home. An AARP study found that three out of four adults over the age of 50 want to stay in their homes and communities as they age.
When you begin to think about why, it makes sense. Home offers a sense of security, comfort, and familiarity.
The truth is, as we age, we begin to rely on others for help. When a family is too busy or lives too far away to fulfill this role, in-home senior care is often the best solution. Home care services allow seniors to enjoy personal independence while also receiving trustworthy assistance from a trained caregiver.
At Always Best Care, we offer a comprehensive range of home care services to help seniors stay healthy while they get the help they need to remain independent. As your senior loved one gets older, giving them the gift of senior care is one of the best ways to show your love, even if you live far away.
To give our senior clients the best care possible, we offer a full spectrum of in-home care services:
If your senior loved one has specific care needs, our personal care services are a great choice to consider. Personal care includes the standard caregiving duties associated with companion care and includes help with tasks such as dressing and grooming. Personal care can also help individuals with chronic conditions like diabetes.
Common personal care services include assistance with:
Sometimes, seniors need helpful reminders to maintain a high quality of life at home. If you or your senior has trouble with everyday tasks like cooking, our home helper services will be very beneficial.
Common home helper care services include assistance with:
Using this kind of care is a fantastic way to make life easier for you or your senior loved one. At Always Best Care, our talented caregivers often fill the role of a companion for seniors.
Common companionship services include:
According to AARP, more than 53 million adults living in the U.S. provide care to someone over 50 years old. Unfortunately, these caregivers experience stress, exhaustion, and even depression. Our respite care services help family caregivers address urgent obligations, spend time with their children, and enjoy nearby activities. Perhaps more importantly, respite care gives family members time to recharge and regroup. Taking personal time to de-stress reduces the risk of caregiver burnout. Doing so is great for both you and your loved one.
At the end of the day, our goal is to become a valuable part of your senior's daily routine. That way, we may help give them the highest quality of life possible. We know that staying at home is important for your loved one, and we are here to help make sure that is possible.
If you have been on the fence about non-medical home care, there has never been a better time than now to give your senior the care, assistance, and companionship they deserve.
Always Best Care in-home services are for older adults who prefer to stay at home but need ongoing care that friends and family cannot provide. In-home care is a safe, effective way for seniors to age gracefully in a familiar place and live independent, non-institutionalized lives. The benefits of non-medical home care are numerous. Here are just a few reasons to consider senior care services from Always Best Care:
According to AARP, 9 out of 10 seniors prefer to age in place within the comfort of their own home. With in-home care, seniors have a way to stay at home, receive the care they need, and maintain a sense of independence, improving overall wellness.
If you or a member of your family have assumed the role of caregiver for your senior loved one, you know how stressful the job can be. Between caregiver burnout and constant worry, being a family caregiver is hard. In-home care relieves your burden and gives you peace of mind knowing that your older family member is in expert hands.
Unlike nursing homes, where the staff and residents rotate frequently, seniors can foster new friendships and build bonds with their caregiver. Seniors who socialize on a regular basis are often happier, which fosters positivity and leads to increased wellbeing.
No two seniors need the same kind of in-home care assistance. That is why each of our Care Plans is tailored to meet our client's individual needs. We offer plans that cover everything from light housekeeping to more involved duties like transportation to doctor's appointments. Our Care Coordinators will work closely with you to develop a personalized plan to ensure your senior's needs are exceeded.
Always Best Care offers a full array of care options for patients at all levels of health. With our trusted elderly care services, your loved one will receive the level of care necessary for them to enjoy the highest possible quality of life.
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While it's true that some seniors have complicated medical needs that prevent them from staying at home, aging in place is often the best arrangement for seniors and their families. With a trusted caregiver, seniors have the opportunity to live with a sense of dignity and do so as they see fit - something that is unavailable to many older people today.
In-home care makes it possible for millions of seniors to age in place every year. Rather than moving to a strange nursing home, seniors have the chance to stay at home where they feel the happiest and most comfortable.
How much does a senior's home truly mean to them?
A study published by the American Society on Aging found that more than half of seniors say their home's emotional value means more than how much their home is worth in monetary value. It stands to reason, then, that a senior's home is where they want to grow old.
With the help of elderly care in Van Wert, IA, seniors don't have to age in a sterilized care facility. Instead, they can age gracefully in the place they want to be most: their home. In contrast, seniors who move to a long-term care facility must adapt to new environments, new people, and new systems that the facility implements. At this stage in life, this kind of drastic change can be more harmful than helpful.
Institutional care facilities like nursing homes often put large groups of people together to live in one location. On any given day, dozens of staff members and caregivers run in and out of these facilities. Being around so many new people in a relatively small living environment can be dangerous for a seniors' health and wellbeing. When you consider that thousands of seniors passed away in nursing homes during the COVID-19 pandemic, opting for in-home care is often a safer, healthier choice for seniors.
Aging in place has been shown to improve seniors' quality of life, which helps boost physical health and also helps insulate them from viral and bacterial risks found in elderly living facilities.
For many seniors, the ability to live independently with assistance from a caregiver is a priceless option. With in-home care, seniors experience a higher level of independence and freedom - much more so than in other settings like a nursing home. When a senior has the chance to age in place, they get to live life on their own terms, inside the house that they helped make into a home. More independence means more control over their personal lives, too, which leads to increased levels of fulfillment, happiness, and personal gratification. Over time, these positive feelings can manifest into a healthier, longer life.
More independence, a healthier life, and increased comfort are only a few benefits of aging in place. You have to take into consideration the role of cost and convenience. Simply put, it's usually easier and more affordable to help seniors age in place than it is to move them into an institutional care facility. According to the US Department of Housing and Urban Development, seniors who age in the comfort of their homes can save thousands of dollars per month.
In-home care services from Always Best Care, for instance, are often less expensive than long-term solutions, which can cost upwards of six figures per year. To make matters worse, many residential care facilities are reluctant to accept long-term care insurance and other types of payment assistance.
With Always Best Care's home care services, seniors and their families have a greater level of control over their care plans. In-home care gives seniors the chance to form a bond with a trusted caregiver and also receive unmatched care that is catered to their needs. In long-term care facilities, seniors and their loved ones have much less control over their care plan and have less of a say in who provides their care.
In-home care is a valuable resource that empowers seniors to age in place on their own terms. However, a big concern for many families and their loved ones is how much in-home care costs. If you're worried that in-home care is too expensive, you may be pleasantly surprised to learn that it is one of the most affordable senior care arrangements available.
Typically, hiring an Always Best Care in-home caregiver for a few hours a week is more affordable than sending your loved one to a long-term care facility. This is true even for seniors with more complex care needs.
At Always Best Care, we will work closely with you and your family to develop a Care Plan that not only meets your care needs, but your budget requirements, too. Once we discover the level of care that you or your senior need, we develop an in-home care plan that you can afford.
In addition to our flexible care options, families should also consider the following resources to help offset potential home care costs:
When you or your senior loved one needs assistance managing daily tasks at home, finding a qualified caregiver can be challenging. It takes a special kind of person to provide reliable care for your senior loved one. However, a caregiver's role involves more than meal preparation and medication reminders. Many seniors rely on their caregivers for companionship, too.
Our companion care services give seniors the chance to socialize in a safe environment and engage in activities at home. These important efforts boost morale and provide much-needed relief from repetitive daily routines. A one-on-one, engaging conversation can sharpen seniors' minds and give them something in which to be excited.
At Always Best Care, we only hire care providers that we would trust to care for our own loved ones. Our senior caregivers in Van Wert, IA understand how important it is to listen and communicate with their seniors. A seemingly small interaction, like a short hug goodbye, can make a major difference in a senior's day. Instead of battling against feelings of isolation, seniors begin to look forward to seeing their caregiver each week.
Understanding the nuances of senior care is just one of the reasons why our care providers are so great at their job.
Unlike some senior care companies, our caregivers must undergo extensive training before they work for Always Best Care. In addition, our caregivers receive ongoing training throughout the year. This training ensures that their standard of care matches up to the high standards we've come to expect. During this training, they will brush up on their communication skills, safety awareness, and symptom spotting. That way, your loved one receives the highest level of non-medical home care from day one.
While it's true that many seniors prefer to age at home, sometimes in-home care isn't the best fit. For those seniors and their families, choosing an assisted living facility makes more sense. Unfortunately, finding the optimal care facility is easier said than done in today's day and age. That's when Always Best Care's assisted living referral services begin to make a lot of sense.
Assisted living is a form of housing intended for seniors who require varying degrees of medical and personal attention. Accommodations may include single rooms, apartments, or shared living arrangements. Assisted living communities are typically designed to resemble a home-like environment and are physically constructed to encourage the independence of residents.
At assisted living communities, seniors receive help with daily activities such as bathing, dressing, and eating. They may also benefit from coordination of services with outside healthcare providers, and monitoring of resident activities to ensure their health, safety, and well-being. Caregivers who work at assisted living communities can also provide medication administration and personal care services for older adults.
Other services offered within assisted living communities can include some or all of the following:
At Always Best Care, our representatives can match your senior's emotional, physical, and financial needs with viable assisted living communities nearby. Results are based on comparative data, so you can select the best choice for you or your loved one.
Always Best Care works closely with local senior living communities to gain valuable knowledge that we then use to help seniors and their loved ones make informed decisions. This information can include basic care and rent, resident availability, and services provided. Because Always Best Care is compensated by these communities, we provide senior living referral services at no extra cost to you.
For many seniors, moving into a senior living community revolves around how and when they want to make a transition to more involved care. Some seniors are more proactive about transitioning to independent living. Others choose to remain home until their care needs or other requirements are satisfied. Remember - our staff is here to help. Contact our office today to learn more about assisted living communities and how we can find a facility that exceeds your expectations.
The first step in getting quality in-home care starts with a personal consultation with an experienced Always Best Care Care Coordinator. This initial consultation is crucial for our team to learn more about you or your elderly loved one to discover the level of care required. Topics of this consultation typically include:
A discussion of your needs and how our trained caregivers can offer assistance in the most effective way
A draft of your care plan, which includes highly detailed notes and a framework for the care that you or your senior will receive
Discuss payment options and help coordinate billing with your insurance provider
Our caregivers are trained to spot changes that clients exhibit, like mental and physical decline. As your trusted senior care company, we will constantly assess and update your Care Plan to meet any new emotional, intellectual, physical, and emotional needs.
If you have never considered in-home care before, we understand that you and your family may have concerns about your Care Plan and its Care Coordinator. To help give you peace of mind, know that every team member and caregiver must undergo comprehensive training before being assigned to a Care Plan.
At the end of the day, we only hire the best of the best at Always Best Care. Whether you need home care in Van Wert, IA 24-hours a day or only need a respite for a couple of hours, we are here to serve you.
When you're ready, we encourage you to contact your local Always Best Care representative to set up a Care Consultation. Our Care Coordinators would be happy to meet with you in person to get to know you better, discuss your needs, and help put together a personalized Care Plan specific to your needs.
Commentary An intimidating directive arrived in a retiree’s mailbox after she spoke about an elected leader’s chronic absenteeism.Randy EvansFebruary 19, 2025 8:00 amWhen Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and their pals set their quill pens to parchment to write the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, Dec...
February 19, 2025 8:00 am
When Thomas Jefferson, James Madison and their pals set their quill pens to parchment to write the First Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, Decatur County, Iowa, was still a half century off in the future.
Now, 236 years later, the county’s top law enforcement official needs a refresher on the intent of those 45 words the Founding Fathers settled on in the opening of the Bill of Rights.
County Attorney Alan Wilson ought to review three of the five fundamental freedoms the First Amendment protects — the freedoms of speech, of the press, and to petition the government for a “redress of grievances.”
Exercising those rights is exactly what Rita Audlehelm of Van Wert did in a letter to the editor the Leon Journal-Reporter published on Feb. 5.
Audlehelm is aggrieved, as our Founding Fathers would call it. She wants redress of her grievances — for the absence from the courthouse in Leon of one of three elected county supervisors.
Steve Fulkerson has not attended in person most board meetings since last October, even though each Decatur County supervisor is paid $32,120 annually. (The county attorney will be paid $65,638 this year, an Iowa State Association of Counties salary survey says.)
So, Audlehelm spoke by letter to the local newspaper.
“Did you know that the last 17 BOS (Board of Supervisors) meetings since 9/30/2024, Supervisor Fulkerson has attended just one meeting (12/23/2024) in person?” she wrote. “There have been 8 call-ins by Fulkerson to meetings, the majority of those calls have been short, only long enough to address one issue, and some resulting in a dropped call.”
The same day the Journal-Reporter printed Audlehelm’s letter, Wilson wrote to her on official county attorney stationery, with copies to the three supervisors, and sent his letter by certified mail.
His delivery method signaled to the 73-year-old retired school nurse that she better pay special attention to the letter’s contents.
Wilson demanded, “This letter serves as your Notice to Cease and Desist from making any further false, misleading, or defamatory statements against any elected official of Decatur County.”
He warned her, “I am advising the Board of Supervisors to speak with their private legal counsel about the defamatory statements you have made against them, particularly if you don’t retract these false, misleading, and defamatory statements immediately.”
The reputations of elected county officials hardly were sullied by this one taxpayer, and her letter certainly did not spread any deliberate falsehoods. Even if her comments and questions hurt the feelings of county supervisors, the prosecutor had no business lecturing her or making a not-so-subtle threat of possible legal action against her.
The timing of Wilson’s letter is ironic, considering the climate in our nation when our new president has a history of referring to government officials and employees as morons, crooks, frauds, birdbrains, sleazy, deranged and swamp-dwellers. The president’s promise to stop government lawyers from weaponizing the judicial system makes Wilson’s letter even more out of step.
Just as our president has the right to malign those with whom he disagrees, Rita Audlehelm can freely criticize her county attorney and her three county supervisors, even if her criticism annoys or aggravates them.
Audlehelm used neither sticks nor stones to make her point. She merely posed questions that others among the county’s 7,700 residents were asking, too:
“Why are you not attending Board of Supervisors meetings and the committee meetings assigned to you?”
“How would you address a 60-day absence taken by any other elected official in Decatur County?”
Audlehelm ended her letter by saying, “I urge the citizens of Decatur County to remain engaged in your county government and the services that are rendered by those county employees that show up every day to do the work they were elected to do.”
Democracies falter when citizens lose interest or cannot ask questions, seek answers, and make comment without fearing government reprisal against them.
So, when an elected official pursues a taxpayer for her fair comment and criticism, it seems like a strange way to protect and defend the Constitution.
Decatur County Attorney Alan Wilson should put aside his attempt to intimidate taxpayer Rita Audlehelm and study the biography of his county’s namesake.
Decatur County bears the last name of Stephen Decatur, a decorated U.S. Navy commodore who fought on the shores of Tripoli in the years after the American Revolution and once commanded the USS Constitution.
Decatur was a man of words, deeds, and conviction.
He was on a naval panel that court-marshaled Commodore James Barron for “unpreparedness” in an 1807 incident in which a British ship captured a frigate under Barron’s command.
Barron later sought reinstatement, but Decatur opposed that in strongly worded letters to government officials. Barron claimed Decatur slandered him and sought a retraction. Failing that, Barron then demanded a duel.
Following the custom of the time, Decatur accepted the challenge rather than retract his statements.
So, on a morning in March 1820, facing one another eight paces apart with pistols drawn, Barron and Decatur both fired their guns and hit their targets.
Barron lived. Decatur did not.
The cost of free speech for Stephen Decatur was his life.
A final note: Iowa’s founders, along with protecting speech, press and petition rights in the Iowa Constitution, included a provision disqualifying anyone who engaged in a duel from ever holding public office.
Rita Audlehelm might be interested to know Iowans repealed that ban in 1992.
Randy Evans is a member of the Iowa Writers’ Collaborative and his columns may be found on his blog, Stray Thoughts.
Editor’s note: Please consider subscribing to the collaborative and the authors’ blogs to support their work.
Our stories may be republished online or in print under Creative Commons license CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. We ask that you edit only for style or to shorten, provide proper attribution and link to our website. AP and Getty images may not be republished. Please see our republishing guidelines for use of any other photos and graphics.
Randy Evans is executive director of the Iowa Freedom of Information Council, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that promotes openness and transparency in Iowa’s state and local governments. He can be reached at [email protected] Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, John Adams, and others discussed the need for a...
Randy Evans is executive director of the Iowa Freedom of Information Council, a nonpartisan, nonprofit organization that promotes openness and transparency in Iowa’s state and local governments. He can be reached at [email protected].
When Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, John Adams, and others discussed the need for a Bill of Rights to the U.S. Constitution, Decatur County, Iowa, was still a half century off in the future.
Now, 236 years later, the county’s top law enforcement official needs a refresher on the intent of the 45 words the Founding Fathers settled on when drafting the First Amendment.
County Attorney Alan Wilson ought to review three of the five fundamental freedoms the First Amendment protects: the freedoms of speech, of the press, and to petition the government for a “redress of grievances.”
Exercising those rights is exactly what Rita Audlehelm of Van Wert did in a letter to the editor the Leon Journal-Reporter published on February 5.
Audlehelm is aggrieved, as our Founding Fathers would call it. She wants redress of her grievances—for the absence from the courthouse in Leon of one of three elected county supervisors.
Steve Fulkerson has not attended in person most board meetings since last October, even though each Decatur County supervisor is paid $32,120 annually. (The county attorney will be paid $65,638 this year, according to an Iowa State Association of Counties salary survey.)
So, Audlehelm spoke by letter to the local newspaper.
“Did you know that the last 17 BOS [Board of Supervisors] meetings since 9/30/2024, Supervisor Fulkerson has attended just one meeting (12/23/2024) in person?” she wrote. “There have been 8 call-ins by Fulkerson to meetings, the majority of those calls have been short, only long enough to address one issue, and some resulting in a dropped call.”
The same day the Journal-Reporter printed Audlehelm’s letter, Wilson wrote her on official county attorney stationery, with copies to the three supervisors, and sent his letter by certified mail.
His delivery method signaled to the 73-year-old retired school nurse that she better pay special attention to the letter’s contents.
Wilson demanded, “This letter serves as your Notice to Cease and Desist from making any further false, misleading, or defamatory statements against any elected official of Decatur County.”
He warned her, “I am advising the Board of Supervisors to speak with their private legal counsel about the defamatory statements you have made against them, particularly if you don’t retract these false, misleading, and defamatory statements immediately.”
This one taxpayer hardly sullied the reputations of elected county officials, and her letter certainly did not spread any deliberate falsehoods. Even if her comments and questions hurt the county supervisors’ feelings, the prosecutor had no business lecturing her or making a not-so-subtle threat of possible legal action against her.
The timing of Wilson’s letter is ironic, considering that the U.S. president has a history of referring to government officials and employees as morons, crooks, frauds, birdbrains, sleazy, deranged, and swamp-dwellers. The president’s promise to stop government lawyers from weaponizing the judicial system makes Wilson’s letter even more out of step.
Just as our president has the right to malign those with whom he disagrees, Rita Audlehelm can freely criticize her county attorney and her three county supervisors, even if her criticism annoys or aggravates them.
Audlehelm neither used sticks nor stones to make her point. She merely posed questions that others among the county’s 7,700 residents were asking, too:
“Why are you not attending Board of Supervisors meetings and the committee meetings assigned to you?”
“How would you address a 60-day absence taken by any other elected official in Decatur County?”
Audlehelm ended her letter by saying, “I urge the citizens of Decatur County to remain engaged in your county government and the services that are rendered by those county employees that show up every day to do the work they were elected to do.”
Democracies falter when citizens lose interest or cannot ask questions, seek answers, and make comment without fearing government reprisal against them.
So, when an elected official pursues a taxpayer for her fair comment and criticism, it seems like a strange way to protect and defend the Constitution.
Decatur County Attorney Alan Wilson should put aside his attempt to intimidate taxpayer Rita Audlehelm and study the biography of his county’s namesake.
Decatur County bears the last name of Stephen Decatur, a decorated U.S. Navy commodore who fought on the shores of Tripoli in the years after the American Revolution and once commanded the USS Constitution.
Decatur was a man of words, deeds, and conviction.
He was on a naval panel that court-marshaled Commodore James Barron for “unpreparedness” in an 1807 incident in which a British ship captured a frigate under Barron’s command.
Barron later sought reinstatement, but Decatur opposed that in strongly worded letters to government officials. Barron claimed Decatur slandered him. Barron sought a retraction. Failing that, he then demanded a duel.
Following the custom of the time, Decatur accepted the challenge rather than retract his statements.
So, on a morning in March 1820, facing one another eight paces apart with pistols drawn, Barron and Decatur both fired their guns and hit their targets.
Barron lived. Decatur did not.
The cost of free speech for Stephen Decatur was his life.
One final note: Iowa’s founders, along with protecting speech, press and petition rights in the Iowa Constitution, included a provision disqualifying anyone who engaged in a duel from ever holding public office.
Rita Audlehelm might be interested to know Iowans repealed that ban in 1992.
Top image is by Zerbor, available via Shutterstock.
Tags: Alan Wilson, Commentary, Decatur County, Free Speech, Local Government, Steve Fulkerson
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