Blog #1- What LTC means to me.

When I was eleven, I started babysitting for a girl who was severely handicap.  She could speak the names of her family and say the word "cookie" when she was hungry, but that was the extent of her communication.  Aubrey was not able to do anything by herself.  She couldn't dress herself, bathe herself, or carry on any of the tasks that most people are required to perform on a day to day basis.  Her family is providing for her care right now, but what happens when her parents get too old to do that.  Where will Aubrey go?

Long term care is a crucial element in our society today.  There have been and will always be people who are not able to function in our world without the help of extensive care, whether that be mentally or physically.  There needs to be a place, no matter what the cost, where those people can live and be taken care of. It is a moral obligation actually for us to care for those around us who need help; whether it be for the mentally ill or for the elderly. 

One of the problems with this moral belief though is that it costs money, and usually a lot of money to provide this kind of care.  It's well known that the elderly and the mentally ill usually do not have the funds to pay for the bills they incur.  That is why I stated earlier that it is our moral obligation to provide long term care for those who need it.  What that means is that those of us who have a little more than we need, pay for that care.  It seems to me that here in America, people have the belief that to live "The American dream" means to have the nicest house possible, to wear the nicest clothes available and to drive the nicest cars available.  Money is spent on materialistic items and luxurious comforts instead of helping the helpless. 

Long term care means that even when my Mother and my Father can't take care of themselves, they will have a comfortable place to live the rest of their days.  It means that when Aubrey's parents grow old, she will have somewhere to go.  Long term care means that the people I love are cared for no matter what.