When Gloria Fisher, 76, first started attending Adult Day Services in Plant City, she put up a fuss because she didn’t want to go but after just a few days her attitude changed.
“I was begging my family to get up and take me there,” said Fisher.
At the center, trained staff assist with medication administration, provide health monitoring and counseling, serve meals and snacks, offer nutrition and social work counseling and therapeutic services.
“This is such a beautiful place to come,” said Fisher. “Staff helps me out so much because I need help going to the restroom and sometimes need help with my food sometimes.”
In addition to providing assistance with the activities of daily living, Adult Day Services staff also offer social activities to stimulate brain activity (bingo and other games and trivia) and physical exercise (chair yoga).
Fisher enjoys the organized activities. Sometimes they play putt-putt golf. Sometimes it’s just about getting outside to get some fresh air. There are also trivia contests. “Sometimes I’m good at trivia,” Fisher said.
While Adult Day Services can be beneficial to both patients and their caregiver’s wellbeing, it also provides planned events for elderly family members and their caregivers to spend quality time together. The center held Thanksgiving and Christmas dinners, complete with age-appropriate activities, for the families they serve.
The second Thursday of every month, Plant City’s Adult Day Services offers a free support group for caregivers of loved ones with Alzheimer’s and dementia. Each month they cover a new topic and present new tips to help out. They also share information about resources available in the community, from rent assistance to help with finding funding for home repairs like handicap accessibility.
Adult Day Services are for Hillsborough County residents age 60 and older who have decreased physical, mental or social function. Fees for the program are charged on a sliding scale based on income.
Remona Singleton, General Manager for Hillsborough County Adult Daycare Services, hopes to recruit more participants. Even though Plant City is one of its smaller sites (its average attendance is about 10 seniors per day), they can accommodate more than twice that number.
“We have a staff to client ratio of one staff for six clients and we want to raise community awareness that we are here and open and have resources available here,” she said.
Plant City Adult Day Care Center, located at 1205 S. Waller St., is open Monday – Friday 8 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Participants must first be registered with Senior Connection Center, a nonprofit that connects seniors and their caregivers to the myriad of programs and services available. For information about Senior Connection Center call 1-800-963-5337. For more information about Adult Day Services call (813) 272-5250.