Monica Romain with Carmen.
Several of Dungarvin’s Residential Services around the country offer the Host Home model, in which people in need of supports are welcomed to live with a Dungarvin provider who cares for the individual in their home.
Dungarvin places many individuals into Host Home Services (also known in other states as Shared Living, Community Companion Home and other names) every year. However, it can be challenging to find providers willing to support people who have significant medical and/or behavior needs.
This is the case in Colorado, where Dungarvin is seeking Host Home providers with experience or willing to learn the knowledge and skills needed to support others in this setting.
In most cases, individuals placed become part of their providers’ families, who, by and large, find the experience to be positive and meaningful in their lives. This is true for Monica Romain, a Dungarvin Host Home provider in Aurora, Colorado, who has been supporting Carmen, 48, in her home for 22 years.
Monica worked in the medical field for most of her life prior to becoming a Host Home provider with Dungarvin. However, before supporting Carmen, she had no experience working with people who have intensive behavior support needs.
At first, it wasn’t easy, Monica said, because Carmen is nonverbal and would sometimes become aggressive, yelling or throwing things when she wasn’t able to express her needs. But relying on the training she received from Dungarvin, as well as support from staff, Monica learned how to support Carmen, helping her realize a life full of love, family and engagement with her community.
“At first, it was really challenging. But I took it step by step, one problem at a time,” Monica said. She helped Carmen address her medical concerns, which helped with her daily comfort, and she learned how to redirect Carmen to express her frustration in more constructive ways.
Monica assists Carmen with personal care and routines, including dressing, hygiene, medications, meals, and safe transfers between her wheelchair, bed, vehicle and other settings. She prides herself on being able to support Carmen, as well as two other individuals who live with her, and easily determine Carmen’s needs and wants. She said she loves being a Dungarvin Host Home provider because it has allowed her to work from home, and she now feels confident supporting other individuals who have complex support needs.
“I like that I get to care for somebody … either because their family couldn’t take care of them or they were just having challenging behaviors,” she said, adding that her daughters and sisters are also Host Home providers.
“I love opening my home to people with special needs,” Monica said. “I hear from others all the time: ‘Oh, you are so wonderful; it takes a special person to do this.’ And, yes, it does. But I just love bringing them to their appointments. We go on outings, we go to my family gatherings. They go to church with me, we go to movies; and they join us on vacations, too.”
Jeff McNitt with Christina.
Supporting People with Complex Medical Needs
In addition to behavior support needs, some individuals can have complex medical needs. Such is the case for Christina, 66, who has lived with Host Home provider Jeff McNitt in Denver for 12 years.
Christina has had several health issues over the years that have left her medically fragile. Jeff assists her throughout her day, including with personal care, medications, and testing her blood glucose and giving her insulin shots to control her
diabetes. He also supports Christina by taking her to medical appointments and getting her out into the community for fun activities.
Before becoming a Host Home provider, Jeff worked for a Dungarvin Minnesota group home. Later, he and his wife moved to Colorado, where there was an opportunity to contract with Dungarvin. Like Monica, Jeff appreciates the ability to work from home and to enjoy a meaningful career; and he especially likes supporting people with complex needs.
“I find that I excel in it,” he said. “I started in this field supporting individuals with more behavioral concerns, and I enjoyed that. But once I had the opportunity to support someone with medical needs, I realized I liked that even more, because I had to learn every part about what’s going on and what I should look for, and how to support them when issues come up.”
For people thinking about becoming a Host Home provider to individuals with challenging behaviors or medical needs, Jeff said: “Ignore the money and look at the needs. Ask yourself, ‘Can I work with this person day in and day out, with the needs that they have?’”
Monica added that people often ask her how they can become a Host Home provider, and her advice is: “You have to have heart. You have to want to do this and commit to it. My heart is in what I’m doing.”
To learn more about Dungarvin Colorado’s Adult Host Home Services, please visit www.Dungarvin.com. If you are interested in becoming a Host Home provider, please email the Dungarvin Colorado office at: informationcos@dungarvin.com.